Marubeni Citizen CNC
Published

Turning Centers Improve Efficiency For OEM

When Dairy Pipe Lines (United Kingdom), a hygienic valve manufacturer, wanted to incorporate additional CNC turning efficiency and capacity into its Saffron Walden (Essex, England) facility, it selected a trio of Kia turning centers from Hyundai-Kia Machine (East Rutherford, New Jersey).

Share

When Dairy Pipe Lines (United Kingdom), a hygienic valve manufacturer, wanted to incorporate additional CNC turning efficiency and capacity into its Saffron Walden (Essex, England) facility, it selected a trio of Kia turning centers from Hyundai-Kia Machine (East Rutherford, New Jersey).

The three machines—a Super Kia Turn 28LB and two 21LMB turning centers—were installed primarily as replacements for older machines, but the company soon discovered that because of the machines’ high productivity levels, an additional CNC lathe could be removed from service and relocated to a sister company’s site.

With a history dating back to the 1890s, the company originally manufactured brass and gun metal valves and fittings for London’s breweries and dairies. Since its beginning, Dairy Pipe Lines (DPL) has developed a range of hygienic valves for the food, dairy, brewing and soft drinks industries, where quality of manufacture and confidence in product performance are key concerns. The company is also making inroads into the pharmaceuticals industry where stringent hygiene standards are also a concern.

The diverse nature of the modern fluids-handling market has led to the development of a range of product types including seat, butterfly, ball, non-return, relief, plug and diaphragm valves. DPL’s policy of continuous product development also means that it has to constantly review its manufacturing processes.

“Valves and actuators continue to represent an increasing share of our manufacturing capacity, and significant investment in CNC machines has enabled us to continually achieve more efficient production targeted at meeting market demands,” says Managing Director Steve Sharp.

“This is highlighted by the recent purchase of the Hyundai-Kia machines. While they were partly bought as replacements for older machines, we were also looking for additional efficiency and to expand our manufacturing capacity.”

Complete with a C axis, live tooling, subspindle and a 65-mm spindle bore, the two Super Kia Turn 21LMB turning centers offer a main 15/11 kW spindle motor that produces 25 to 4,000 rpm, while the 3.7/2.2 kW subspindle reaches 30 to 6,000 rpm. The 12-station bidirectional turret has a driven tool speed range of 20 to 4,000 rpm generated by a 3.7/2.2 kW motor.

According to Manufacturing Manager Mark Edwards, the company wanted a “value-for-money” CNC lathe with live tooling specifically for the face drilling of flanges. Most of the work undertaken so far on the Kias has been batch work on stainless steel forgings and billets. The tough machining properties of stainless steel also led DPL to opt for high-pressure coolant delivery systems on the machines, which helps to remove swarf from the machining zone.

With maximum turning lengths and diameters of 530 mm and 255 mm respectively, the 21LMBs have a swing over the bed of 550 mm. Rapid traverse rates are 36 m/min. The 21LMB also boasts a series of high specification standard features, including a torque limiter on the X and Z axes, a Q-Setter for quick tool compensation, a 210-mm three-jaw hollow spindle hydraulic chuck on the main spindle and a main and sub-parts catcher.

Because DPL is accredited to BS EN ISO 9001: 2000, the importance of quality criteria is another reason for selecting the Hyundai-Kia machines. “Surface finish down to half a micron is commonplace on components of this nature,” Mr. Edwards states. “I’m pleased to say we don’t see any rejects from the Kia machines.”

Part of DPL’s mission statement highlights its ambition to be the United Kingdom’s largest manufacturer of hygienic flow equipment. With the three Kia machines now pulling their weight, there seems little reason to doubt that the company is well on its way.

“The machines are very reliable,” Mr. Sharp says. “Overall, the whole project has been a success. We did our homework and put a lot of effort into researching the market, and we feel we have gotten our rewards.”

Marubeni Citizen CNC
MWR120 Automated Twin Spindle Multitasking CNC
Star CNC
manufacturer of machine tools
Horn USA
Marubeni Citizen CNC
SolidCAM
Kyocera

Related Content

Sponsored

Getting More Production From Swiss Turning Centers

Buying a new CNC Swiss turning center is a substantial investment. For the best return, look closely for capabilities that enable the best utilization of the machine.

Read More
Medical

5-Axis Machining Centers Transform Medical Swiss Shop

Traditionally a Swiss machine shop, Swiss Precision Machining Inc. discovers a five-axis machining center that has led the company to substantial growth. (Includes video.)

Read More
Swiss-Types

Does a Scanning Probe Make Sense on a Swiss-Type?

Swiss-types have limited tooling capacity, but there can be advantages to giving up some of that capacity to take advantage of a touch probe — in fact, a scanning probe — to enable in-process part measurements.

Read More
Basics

Video: Why a Production Machine Shop Started a Baseball Bat Company

A 153-year-old manufacturer of precision, metal pins recently started a side business creating custom wooden baseball bats. The reasoning behind establishing this new company is intriguing, as is how it has helped create a stronger bond with the local community.

Read More

Read Next

Automation

Predicting the ROI of Robotic Automation

Various methodologies paired with online tools can help small to mid-sized manufacturers determine how to predict and calculate the potential economic benefits of robotic equipment for their specific needs.

Read More

Fielding Manufacturers’ FAQs about CMMC

Here are answers to frequently asked questions we as a provider of testing, consulting, information and compliance services receive about Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification.

Read More
Tooling

The Value of Swiss-Types Milling Rectangular Medical Parts

High-speed spindle technology was key to effective milling of small cardiac monitoring components complete on a CNC sliding-headstock machine platform instead of running them across two mills.

Read More
Marubeni Citizen CNC