Page 21 - MetalForming April 2014

“And, the feeds provide more torque than we would ever need,” adds Wierenga. “They provide brute force that we can tame to match our needs. While we’re only feeding 0.090-in. material, I’d bet that they easily could handle 0.150-in. stock.”
In addition to their brawniness, Wierenga points to their use of rack-and- pinion drives, rather than ballscrews, as a reason for relying on the feeds to meet demands for reliability and opti- mum uptime. The pair of servo-press lines runs 24/7 to keep up with growing demand for airbag housings.
“The rack-and-pinion drives are bul- letproof,” Wierenga says, “and they’re perfect for zig-zag double cuts. With the new feeders, we’re running all of the jobs that used to be single cut as double cut, with the blanks staggered to opti- mize stock width. That’s reducing mate- rial use by as much as seven percent.”
Custom Subcompacts
In addition to the DRFM feeds,
This custom-engineered subcompact zig-zag feed, installed on a standard gap-frame mechanical press, features an aluminum feed structure for weight reduction. The feed and zig-zag drives mount below the feed rolls to reduce the width of the units by 10 in.
Wierenga also notes a number of cus- tom-engineered subcompact zig-zag feeds recently installed on a handful of its standard gap-frame mechanical presses.
“Dallas redesigned the subcompact feed just for us,” he says, “using the same controls as on the larger feed- ers. That allows our toolmakers to work efficienctly and seamlessly through- out the plant. And, the components are off-the-shelf Allen-Bradley, so we have minimal issues with performing timely maintenance procedures and
keeping the lines running.”
The redesigned subcompact feeds
feature an aluminum feed structure for weight reduction. The feed and zig- zag drives mount below the feed rolls to reduce the width of the units by 10 in. And, operators use an eight-button control pendant to quickly set up new jobs and to thread-up stock during coil changes.
“We need uniformity in the equip- ment we buy,” Wierenga summa- rizes,” and the new feeds support that mission.” MF
www.metalformingmagazine.com
MetalForming/April 2014 19
METALFORM Mexico Booth 2904