Member Article

Bruderer chooses MACH to deliver ‘world first’ press to Harwin Plc

Manufacturers supplying the automotive, electronics and renewables sectors were given a major boost yesterday, with the launch of ‘world first’ technology at MACH 2014.

Bruderer UK, which employs 12 people at sites in Birmingham and Luton, unveiled its new BSTA 280-75B2 stamping press in front of show visitors and immediately signaled its intention to hit £4m for the first time in its 43 year-history.

The innovation comes from being able to combine two operations into one, with engineers now able undertake press tool development and high-speed production on the same machine.

This provides customers with complete flexibility without reducing capacity and will be ideal for firms supplying precision components to demanding sectors, including automotive, aerospace, consumer electronics, power generation and renewables.

Once MACH 2014 is over, this groundbreaking machine will be packed up and delivered to Harwin Plc’s Portsmouth facility in a deal estimated to be worth £500,000.

Andreas Fischer, Chief Executive Officer of Bruderer AG, commented: “This is such a major show for us and brings together some of the biggest machinery manufacturers across the globe…all under one roof.

“To be able to showcase a world first and gain such fantastic exposure can only be good for the business and I know we’ve taken 20 leads already…some of whom are from overseas, including Russia and India.”

He continued: “The world first comes from the integration of a planetary gearbox into the shaft of the main motor, which will allow engineers to have finger point control of tooling development to produce test runs of new products.

“They can then – in a matter of minutes - change the speed to 1500 strokes per minute providing high speed production on a capacity of up to 28 tonnes.

“This is particularly useful for firms keen to create complex components and marks the next generation of stamping technology.”

Bruderer AG’s CEO flew in to unveil the BSTA 280-75B2 and presented the first machine to Harwin Plc’s Chairman Damon de Laszlo.

The latter was also given a specially-commissioned Swiss cow bell to mark the occasion and a working relationship that spans more than 30 years.

“This new technology removes the need for a separate development press, as we can put new tools through at the lowest stroke rate and at full press capacity – allowing us to identify any issues before flicking a switch on full production,” explained Damon.

“There are lots of advantages…increased efficiency, reduced costs, less space required and even gains in terms of logistics since tools have to be transported less.”

He continued: “We specialise in high reliability connectors and innovative PCB hardware and are continually investing in our new product development programme. This new acquisition will help us develop the next generation of connectors and in particular our EZ-BoardWare range.”

Bruderer UK has been working closely with Harwin’s manufacturing team for many months to bring the innovative solution to market.

The deal could prove to be the catalyst for a record year for the stamping technology specialist, with the focus on taking annual sales from £3m to £4m by the end of 2014.

In addition to the ‘world first’, the company also used its appearance at MACH to announce new partnerships with Zani Presses and Zehnder & Sommer, the latter displaying high-speed servo feed units that can operate up to 2000 strokes per minute (SPM).

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Russ Cockburn .