10. Industry forum on the future of pipe processing

SCHMALLENBERG, Germany - April 29, 2015 - PRLog -- Progress thrives on the exchange of knowledge. This is also the conviction of transfluid Maschinenbau GmbH and it cannot be described more aptly than by the Albert Einstein quote above. With its Innovation days the company has been offering the pipe processing industry a platform for more than ten years already, with the objective of developing new perspectives as seen from the different points of view. Numerous experts once again gathered at Hotel Rimberg in the Sauerland on the occasion of this anniversary, for two days of open discussions and exchange of ideas.

“Deviating from the beaten track to share our know-how with the objective of redefining standards is quite natural to us,” says Stefanie Flaeper, Managing Director of transfluid. “The fact that our knowledge platform for pipe processing has by now firmly established itself, with the interest increasing by the year, demonstrates to us that the need for transparency is strong, particularly in medium-sized businesses.” The Schmallenberg Innovation days offer special added value: Together with other renowned companies transfluid, as the initiator and host, is presenting practical pipe processing technology and its potentials in the form of contributions and technical discussions. The focus this time was on “Process optimisation in piece and batch production”.

Valuable catalysts and in-depth exchange
The “Complete Piping Solutions” presentation by Parker Hannifin GmbH focussed on global pipe processing options for pipe diameters up to 220 mm in shipbuilding, offshore and hydraulics – including cutting to length, bending, fitting of connecting systems and measurement of components.
Voss Fluid GmbH presented a contribution on “Screwed and other connection systems in Hydraulics”, focussing on cutting ring pre-assembly units equipped with pressure/path controlled process monitoring and automatic tool recognition in particular. This may be used to check cutting ring pre-assembly. The company Metronor Messsysteme discussed special feeler pins including a wireless optical receiver station, allowing working unobstructed on large workpieces or working in confined spaces. This solution is ready to operate immediately and convenient to re-position – useful, for instance, to measure existing piping in ships and to transmit the data to the pipe manufacturing department or to copy. Virtual lines may also be measured in free space and two connections may, for example, be connected in this way.

By the motto “Still forming or already bending?” the transfluid presentation discussed process optimisation in pipe manufacturing and explained that forming should always take place before bending in the process chain, to avoid costly handling systems or the complexity of reworking. The new pipe bending software “t project” was also introduced and examples demonstrated how this may be deployed to reduce processing time, set-up time and machine time, streamlining processes and also generating comprehensive documentation.
A plant walkabout offered the participants additional insights into practical pipe processing. transfluid Managing Director Gerd Nöker emphasised on this occasion that progress was driven by sharing of knowledge, but especially also by customer-oriented development. This is because sustainable solutions for pipe processing are required to satisfy the increasing demands made by many different sectors in industry. To sum up 10 years of Innovation days: We always stand at the beginning, with an exciting future beckoning. transfluid is looking forward already to the next get-together.