Flextopus: 3D drawing to drilled & lasered tube

“Tube machining is quite cumbersome,” explains engineering manager Thierry De Vleeschouwer. “You start with a project, for which you need some tubes with holes and screw holes. Traditionally, you had to cut the tubes to size first, with or without lasered contours in them. You then transported them to a workshop or a machine where the holes were flow drilled. Tapping usually happens elsewhere. In all these steps, errors can occur. Because the Flextopus combines everything in one machine, no more time is lost in internal transport and the error rate drops dramatically. You enter your 3D design and the Flextopus does the rest.”

Up to 20% less material loss

The Flextopus’ biggest gain is in nesting. “Suppose you have three projects. For every project, you need tubes of different thicknesses and sizes. Most manufacturers will run the projects sequentially. This way, the tubes are all neatly sorted for the operators, who can then start drilling and tapping project by project. Easy, but inefficient. If you need a 40x40 mm tube for each project and you want to get it out of one long tube, you have to put it on the machine three times. As a result, the last piece may no longer be usable.”

“With the Flextopus, we throw the three projects onto one heap. The software intelligently determines which pieces the machine extracts from which tube. We mark the tubes per project with the laser so that the operator can easily sort them out. This is not only more efficient in terms of time use, it also ensures that you need fewer raw tubes to make your project. Through intelligent nesting, we throw away up to 20% less residual material.”

There is a second way in which the Flextopus limits scrap: the adjustable rest that clamps the tube and a second rotary table allow machining to the end of the tube. Many other machines clamp the tubes at the end, preventing you from laser cutting at that location. If you want holes at the end of your tube, you will need a longer rest piece. That too is not necessary here.”

Technical feat

The Flextopus posed a stiff challenge for Balliu. “We’re very familiar with laser cutting,” says Lieven. “But drilling, flow drilling and tapping involves even more. We exert force on the tube, which means we have to support the tube at all times. It creates chips, which we need to extract. In flow drilling - which is done with great force - you need fluid to cool and lubricate sufficiently. You have to supply that, but you also have to discharge the fumes. Machining implies being able to change and manage tools. To that end, a tool magazine with a full library is integrated on the machine. That way, you can track the use of the tools and change them where necessary.”

All that resulted in a machine with as many as 27 axles (11 of which are trailing axles) that the Flextopus controls all at once. “That includes collision avoidance: technology that continuously ensures that the drilling unit, rotary tables and laser heads cannot collide. Added to this is a 3D camera that continuously measures the tubes to make sure the machining is done in the right place. In other words, we are asking a lot from the controller.”

That controller is a SINUMERIK ONE, Siemens’ CNC controller. “Collision avoidance requires a lot of complex calculations,” says Nick Vanden Broecke, Head of Sales OEM at Siemens. “The SINUMERIK ONE is a robust controller that combines the numerical platform, motion control and HMI, enabling faster communication without loss of cycle times.”

Working with Siemens made all the difference. “We have a lot of knowledge in-house,” adds Thierry, “but for the fine control of axes and the integration of collision avoidance and all the programming around the tool magazine, we were able to build further on software Siemens had already developed.”

Social impact

It also responds to social trends. “Our customers are finding it increasingly difficult to find skilled operators,” notes Lieven. “Automation, especially in the machine itself, helps cope with production peaks without having to look for extra staff.”Training operators is a second challenge. “With our technology, we bring operator experience into the machine,” says Thierry. “Experienced operators know what to look out for when laser cutting or drilling tubes; after all, there are always anomalies in the raw material. With 3D cameras, we flawlessly detect these anomalies, so that holes are always located correctly. So you gain not only time, but also certainty.”

In addition, the Flextopus makes European customers more competitive. “By automating here, you narrow the gap with low-wage countries,” Lieven stresses. “This way, producing in Europe remains attractive.”Balliu therefore sees many opportunities for the technology. “We are already looking into adding another milling function,” says Lieven. “Its modular design makes the Flextopus ready for extensions. The potential is huge.”