On the occasion of this year’s IRC (International Rubber Conference) in Nuremberg (29th June to 2nd July 2015, hall 12, stand 264) KraussMaffei Berstorff will exhibit a straight-through extrusion head with hydraulic tool centering system and X-ray measuring device. This system will enable rubber hose producers to hone their competitive edge by increasing productivity, improving their product quality and minimizing raw material consumption.
Fast set-up gives maximum productivity
“After the IRC 2015, the hydraulic tool centering system for hose diameters ranging between 3 and 100 mm will be available to all our customers,” says Frank Reineke, responsible for rubber process technology and development at KraussMaffei Berstorff. “This system is an optimum solution for hose manufacturers wishing to produce hoses of identical wall thickness over a longer period of time as it ensures high reliability, unparalleled economic efficiency and premium quality. Retrofitting the hydraulic tool centering system in existing hose extrusion lines is also possible,” he adds.
The straight-through extrusion head is designed for minimum set-up times, high productivity and perfect product quality. In the front head area, the hose wall thickness is adjusted by an axially moveable die as in previous solutions. Radial centering is ensured by a hydraulic system that acts on the newly designed die holder, which substantially reduces the setting efforts during start-up and production.
X-ray measuring device controls the hydraulic tool centering system and minimizes material consumption
Using the X-ray measuring device in combination with the tool centering system, the manual head adjustment is now replaced by an automated process. The device continuously measures the wall thickness, eccentricity and outside diameter of rubber hoses and adjusts the hydraulic wall thickness centering system with extremely high precision to one-hundredth of a millimeter using digital controllers.
The new solution gives hose manufacturers’ decisive benefits in terms of quality assurance and operation. It saves time and material during equipment set-up and enables continuous production monitoring to significantly reduce wall thickness tolerances. Owing to substantial material cost savings per year at constantly high product quality, this new line configuration pays off within a minimum of time