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Siemens Meet at the Machine: Be productive from day one of new CNC machine delivery

Traditionally, many programming, validation, and training activities begin only after a machine is installed. Not anymore. Meet at the Machine is Siemens' new initiative uniting machine builders, software, and automation for next-level CNC through a continuous digital thread across engineering, programming, virtual validation, and execution. By pairing a Digital Twin with Digital CNC powered by SINUMERIK, manufacturers can prepare, validate, train, and optimize workflows before your specialized machine's physical delivery! TRAK Machine Tools is the launch partner -- see what they are doing.
Learn more.

How to master metal powder management in 3D printing

What's the real cost of "good enough" powder tracking for powder-bed fusion 3D-printing machines? According to Tim Wischeropp, CEO and Co-Founder of amsight, the technology is rife with hidden costs. Every cycle, every handling step, every exposure, and every mixing decision plays a part. Surprisingly, though, with the right strategy, users can turn their losses into a competitive edge. Learn how.
Read the full article.

Aluminum oxide filament for FDM printers

Virtual Foundry, the company that brought us 3D-printable lunar regolith simulant, has a new product called Aluminum Oxide Filamet™, giving users the power to print alumina parts using the FDM printers they already own. This composite 3D-printing material allows researchers, engineers, and makers to bypass expensive ceramic tooling and produce pure ceramic components in-house. Print using a 0.6-mm hardened-steel, standard-flow nozzle on virtually any open-architecture printer.
Get all the material specs.

New metal extrusion retrofit system helps manufacturers get into ShAPE

A new invention from the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory could soon help manufacturers more easily adopt the lab's patented Shear Assisted Processing and Extrusion (ShAPE™) technology, enabling faster manufacturing of superior extrusion products while reducing costs and energy use.
Read the full article.

Pneumatics: Dual guide rod cylinders and exhaust silencers

Automation-Direct has expanded its guided actuator lineup with compact 12-mm dual guide rod cylinders from Metal Work. Ideal for packaging and material handling, these double-acting cylinders feature 10-mm to 250-mm strokes, magnetic pistons, and integral sensor slots. Additionally, new durable acetal plastic silencers are now available in multiple NPT/BSPP sizes to reduce pneumatic exhaust noise.
Learn more.

Expanded injection molding capabilities

Pexco LLC has acquired Recto Molded Products and Legacy Extrusions, expanding its capabilities in complex injection molding, tooling, assembly, and engineered thermoplastic solutions for OEM manufacturers. The Cincinnati-based companies bring more than a century of manufacturing expertise, advanced production technologies, and value-added services that strengthen Pexco's ability to support customers from product design through full-scale production. Injection molding presses ranging from 55 to 500 tons.
Learn about Pexco and its value-added manufacturing services.

Custom 3D-printed steering wheel for jet dragster

Jet dragsters use General Electric J85 engines -- the same turbines pulled from U.S. military F5 Freedom Fighters -- mounted to a custom 26-ft chassis. The racers achieve quarter-miles in 5.5 sec, but standard metal parts can fail custom ergonomic needs. Traditional manufacturing of low-volume aluminum steering wheels demands long, 8-day lead times, high costs, and multi-piece assemblies. Larsen Motorsports solved this by replacing metal with continuous fiber 3D printing using the Markforged X7. Embedding continuous carbon fiber into an Onyx nylon matrix allowed them to target specific load paths, delivering a custom steering wheel that is stiffer, lighter, and faster to produce than aluminum.
View the video.

Application Spotlight: Light-duty ring in an air vent nozzle

Explore how a light-duty Spirolox^® retaining ring is used in an airplane air vent nozzle to regulate airflow. This application spotlight shows how the ring fits into a groove in the plastic housing, securing the nozzle during rotation. Designed for light loads and axial positioning, it offers a simple, economical solution that is easy to install and remove.
View this informative Smalley video.

Fasteners for automotive and agricultural equipment

Norm Fasteners has acquired an automotive fastener manufacturing plant in Plymouth, MI, expanding its North American footprint beyond sales, engineering, and logistics. The local facility produces metric fasteners (M4-M24) and engine bolts. Norm’s portfolio includes wheel bolts, studs, custom fasteners, and licensed MAThread^® and TAPTITE^® products, serving diverse automotive and industrial assembly needs.
Learn more or contact Belgin Tunce for more information.

3M Cooling Film for vehicle roofs launched

New 3M Cooling Film is a roof-applied heat-management solution designed to help keep vehicle cabins cooler, reduce cooling demand, and improve operational efficiency. The aftermarket product uses advanced thermal management technology to reflect more than 85% of solar radiation. Interior vehicle temperatures can be reduced by up to 10 degrees F with this product. Installs like graphics by professional installers using 3M adhesive technologies. Initially designed for fleet and rail operators.
Learn more.

Test your knowledge: High-temp adhesives

Put your knowledge to the test by trying to answer these key questions on how to choose the right high-temperature-resistant adhesive. The technical experts from Master Bond cover critical information necessary for the selection process, including questions on glass transition temperature and service temperature range. Some of the answers may surprise even the savviest of engineers.
Take the quiz.

New Air Holster Safety Air Gun Mount

EXAIR's new Model 5930 Air Holster provides a simple and convenient way to keep Safety Air Guns secure and within easy reach at workstations throughout a facility. Designed to give operators a designated location for their air gun when not in use, the Air Holster helps prevent misplaced tools while keeping work areas organized and efficient. Its practical design makes it an ideal addition to manufacturing, assembly, maintenance, and other industrial workstations where Safety Air Guns are frequently used.
Learn more.

Southco access hardware in rail applications

Discover how Southco's rail access hardware solutions help improve safety, reliability, and operational efficiency across modern rail networks. The video showcases a range of rail applications where Southco's access hardware plays a critical role, including driver cabins, lighting systems, tray tables, headrests, armrests, and other passenger and operator touchpoints. Designed to support dependable performance in demanding moving environments, Southco's solutions help operators streamline maintenance processes, minimize downtime, and enable more proactive asset management.
View the video.

Multi-zone tension leveler for hard-to-flatten alloys

Redex USA's Levelflex^® is a modular, multi-zone tension leveler engineered for continuous processing lines, including coating and heat treatment of aluminum alloys and where flatness is critical to coating adhesion and downstream formability. By stretching material within 95% of its yield strength, it corrects stubborn flatness defects in fewer passes. It comes in open-loop pure stretch or closed-loop tension measurement modes to optimize surface integrity and eliminate crossbow.
Learn more.

Hold any shape with ID and OD Form Holding Clamps

These simple OD and ID clamping solutions from Fixtureworks clamp onto your part in one easy operation, eliminating the need for custom fixtures. They allow users to clamp onto the inner or outer diameter of small-size, irregularly shaped work parts fast. Lots of options.
Learn more.

Cummins-Peterbilt SuperTruck gets Modine waste heat recovery heat exchangers

Modine Manufacturing Company, a world leader in thermal innovation, is developing a series of compact heat exchangers designed to capture waste heat from the exhaust stream of a diesel engine and convert this heat into useful power to improve engine efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions.

As part of this development effort, Modine has been involved in a Department of Energy-sponsored program called SuperTruck and has provided these heat exchangers to a Cummins-Peterbilt concept vehicle for comprehensive road testing. During this road testing, the vehicle achieved 10.7 mpg. The truck also demonstrated a 75 percent increase in fuel economy in head-to-head testing over a 24-hr time period compared with a 2009 baseline truck. These results translated to a 43 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and an 86 percent gain in freight efficiency. The vehicle was on display at a recent event in Maryland where President Obama announced that work would begin on the next phase of national greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency requirements for commercial trucks.

The Department of Energy (DOE) initiated the multi-year SuperTruck program in 2010 with the goal of designing a heavy-duty Class 8 truck that achieves a 50 percent improvement in overall freight efficiency. That increase in fuel economy would save about $25,000 annually based on today's diesel fuel prices for a long-haul truck traveling 120,000 miles per year. The DOE set the goal of attaining part of the overall efficiency gains from engine improvements, with the remaining gains coming from other vehicle improvements such as aerodynamics, use of lighter-weight materials, and reduction of friction in the drive train. Class 8 trucks represent only about 4 percent of the on-road vehicles in the United States but are responsible for almost 20 percent of the country's on-road fuel consumption.

The Cummins-Peterbilt collaboration was one of several DOE-selected partner projects. The objectives of this partnership were to develop and demonstrate a highly efficient and clean diesel engine, an advanced Rankine-based waste heat recovery system, an aerodynamic Peterbilt tractor-trailer combination, and an auxiliary power unit (APU) to reduce engine idling. Cummins and Peterbilt selected Modine to provide the heat exchangers for the waste heat recovery system.

The Rankine-based waste heat recovery system operates similarly to a conventional stationary power plant. A power fluid is boiled using the heat from the diesel engine exhaust and is sent to a turbine, which converts this heat into mechanical energy. By recovering this energy from the exhaust, the diesel engine uses less fuel and CO2 emissions are reduced. Multiple heat exchangers are required for this system to operate efficiently.

However, unlike a conventional power plant, these heat exchangers must be miniaturized to fit under the hood and on the chassis of a conventional Class 8 truck. "Our research engineers utilized Modine's technology building blocks to develop highly compact heat exchangers to meet the thermal management and space requirements of this new challenge," says Lawrence Gabbey, Modine Research Engineering Section Manager and Program Manager for the SuperTruck program. "Leveraging the success of this demonstration program, Modine continues to develop this waste heat recovery technology in preparation for future commercial opportunities around the globe in the commercial vehicle and automotive markets."

The Modine SuperTruck front-end cooling module consists of a radiator, charge-air cooler, air-conditioning condenser, and new waste heat recovery condenser. Lower left (in front of the module): stainless steel EGR Boiler-Superheater for the engine. Lower right: aluminum Recuperator. Both additional heat exchangers are part of the waste heat recovery system. This photo depicts six Modine heat exchangers in all. Modine also provides a tailpipe boiler.

 

 

 

 

"Fuel economy and the reduction of CO2 emissions are two strong technology drivers that will create many opportunities for Modine heat exchanger technology in the future," says Jonathan Wattelet, Modine's Global Director of Research and Technical Services. "The SuperTruck public-private partnership sponsored by the Department of Energy has been an excellent opportunity to leverage our research in areas where longer-term research is too risky to undertake alone. Working with engine and commercial vehicle leaders such as Cummins and Peterbilt has been an outstanding opportunity for Modine to obtain much-needed engine test cell and road testing experience for our newly developed heat exchanger technology."

Want to know more details about the Cummins/Peterbilt SuperTruck project? You can view an in-depth 2012 presentation (PDF) by clicking here.

 

 

Source: Modine

Published March 2014

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