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From June 28 to 30, one of the largest 3D printing events in the world, “2017 Inside 3D printing Conference & Expo” was held at KINTEX exhibition center in Korea. At the international conference which focused on digital manufacturing innovation, Peter Rogers, the additive manufacturing product specialist at Autodesk, gave a speech on “Success with Metal AM: Software’s Role” and “The Future of Metal AM.” During the interview with Handler at the event, Peter shared ideas about additive manufacturing, and introduced Autodesk’s 3D printing software, Netfabb, including its innovative generative design feature which will be released this August. ▲ Peter Rogers, the additive manufacturing product specialist at Autodesk Do you often visit Korea or other Asian countries?Yes, I live in Tokyo in Japan, and look after the entire APAC countries in between India to New Zealand. Parts of my region are China, Korea, Japan, Singapore, and Malaysia. Most of the time, I visit those countries in my area to speak with clients, or speak with companies that are going to be integrating 3D printing. Quite often, we also go there to take events like Inside 3D printing. This exhibition is a major one, and last week, I was at DMS(Design Engineering & Manufacturing Solutions Expo), one of the biggest Japanese manufacturing events. This November, I will visit Germany to attend formnext, the largest metal 3D printing event. What would you like to deliver to Korean audiences in Inside 3D Printing Conference?At the moment, Korean audiences are still new to the idea of 3D printing. They have been doing a little bit of rapid prototyping, but have not started to use 3D printing for manufacturing. More desktop machines are in early stages, but a lot of the large industrial machine players like EOS and 3D Systems are attending this event which I think highlights that a lot of big companies also see Korea as a big potential market. Still, it is small, so we are just waiting for it to explode. I have big expectations on the Korea market. I think there will be lots of growth. Now, everyone is just thinking about integrating additive manufacturing, and with the government’s push to support improvements to the software, hardware and materials aspects of the industry, it is moving in the right direction. However, the big companies like Samsung and Hyundai need to lead the way to start the trend.At this stage, I think it is all about education. They do not see the value, so if we can go in and show them how to make 3D printing useful technology, they can understand the value, increase the part efficiency, and production capabilities. I think it is just the matter of time. Are you planning to attend or exhibit in events like Inside 3D printing in the future?This September, HankookDelcam will exhibit software in collaboration with Autodesk at their UGC(User Group Conference). In Korea, HankookDelcam is our partner, which is our master reseller of not only Netfabb, Autodesk’s 3D printing software, but also our CNC software, Delcam. They have a big market share of CNC technology in Korea. In their UGC, a lot of people attend, so it is a great opportunity for us to show Netfabb. Also, we are going to attend KAMUG(Korean Additive Manufacturing User Group), and I will also be presenting at this conference. When did Autodesk start distributing 3D printing software like Netfabb to the market?Autodesk has been making software for many years, but they acquired the additive software, Netfabb, 2 years ago. As fully integrated Autodesk solution, it was released mid last year in Asia. Before that, Netfabb had been as a separate company from Germany, but it became a part of Autodesk solution after we purchased it. We have developed this software after the acquisition, so now we have many different products in Netfabb. Before, it was a simple data and build preparation technology, but now we have added optimization, simulation, hybrid manufacturing(which has CNC and additive manufacturing features), and a wide range of other new functionality. Autodesk has a big portfolio. It takes all of the good features from other Autodesk products, and bring them together. As a result, Netfabb becomes much more advanced.  ▲ Autodesk 3D printing software, Netfabb Could you tell me the strengths of Netfabb?The key strength is that it is end to end. Most of the software that is available is taking care of one part of the process. Now, we have the capability to do everything from CAD import to post processing. It includes importing and repairing the file, optimizing, creating the support materials, and simulation.Simulation is the biggest functionality at the moment. For additive metal, if you are making laser sintered parts, the part changes shape easily, because it is shooting a very hot laser onto a powder material which can be quite unstable. We call it distortion. Also, it can cause the part to fail easily. This simulation can tell you whether the part will be successfully printed.In terms of optimization, there are design for additive manufacturing functions, topology optimization, lattice optimization, and generative design.Generative design will be one of the biggest releases from Autodesk this year, and it will be coming out very soon. From next month, we have generative design as a part of Netfabb product as a tech preview. Using the feature, you don't need to design the part. You just put in parameters. For example, if you are trying to create a chair, you put the area that you need to have for the person to sit, and the amount of load, maybe maximum 100kgs. On the back, you have backward push of 50kgs, and then the rest is just empty. And the software creates design for you. It is computer-generated design. Because we have strong capabilities on simulation, understand the materials, and are strong at design, we can create unique software that uses AI and the cloud to generate many different design options. Therefore, the design will be unique. At the moment, the key problem of additive manufacturing is that people cannot think of the new design, because they have already predefined ideas of what the product should look like. This is a way to remove all of the thoughts about what it should be, and just make the design based on what the goal and purpose of the part is, and create design without any preconceived ideas. ▲ Peter Rogers is giving a speech on“Success with Metal AM: Software’s Role” and “The Future of Metal AM” in 2017 Inside 3D printing Conference & Expo. During the conference, you emphasized on design in additive manufacturing. What can users do to improve it?Additive manufacturing allows them to have complete design freedom. You can create any design which is impossible with CNC or molding. Latticing, topology optimization is very difficult to do with the traditional technology, but designers and engineers now have been working with the same technique for decades. They need to change the way they think, but creating designs is a time-consuming and difficult process. If you create lattice design in CAD, it takes a long time. Therefore, what the software can help with is automating the lattice placement into the internal structure, and creating the lattice on the external structure. You don’t need to be a heavy CAD user. As long as you have the design, you can optimize it easily. You just select the part, define the settings for the lattice, and push execute, and then it creates the part with the lattice for you. Even though it might be more expensive to produce, you get much better long-term returns, because it is more effective for the life of the product.We also have mechanical simulation which allows you to ensure the latticing will be suitable for the end use. Sometimes, you will need to have thick or thin lattices based on the stress inside of the part. We simulate that stress, thicken certain sections, and thin other sections to make it optimized for the usage of the part.  ▲ Lattice surface optimization(Photo: Autodesk) The strength of the metal 3D printed product is still weaker than the one conventionally manufactured. What do you think how we can solve it?One of the ways we are seeing the big increase in the strength of the part is by changing the geometry. The material properties have quite a lot of impact on the strength of the part, but if we can change the geometry, we can make plastics to be almost as strong as metals. There is a lot of information that suggests the strength properties of the part can be changed by geometry. If we can create interesting geometry that has not been possible with traditional manufacturing, we can capture unique shapes, and increase the strength of the part. Lattices help to absorb forces, because there are the internal sections that can help to cushion the forces. For example, with Airbus, we created the Bionic partition for their airplane. We did generative design on this, and created a topology optimized and latticed design. It was stronger than the original part which was 100% metal, and was done previously by traditional manufacturing. In traditional manufacturing, it was difficult to use certain kinds of metals. However, 3D printing makes it easy to try and manufacture using new metals. We have a lot of strong alloys, and mixes of different properties within the metals, and this is allowing companies to get unique results. What are the feedbacks from the users in Korea and abroad about Autodesk’s desktop subscription policy?Previously, we had perpetual license policy. Once you paid, you got access, and you paid maintenance, you got updates. Now we have changed to subscription policy. At the moment, it is very good. Especially, with 3D printing, the hardware is quite expensive. If you need to buy software, and pay the full price from the start, it makes it even more expensive. From our perspective, if we can make entry cost lower, they can diversify their investments in training or other things. It really allows them to capture a large amount of value from the money they have on hand. The other thing is that it really allows companies to use the licenses easily. I think lots of people found that transferring licenses between different computers was difficult with perpetual licenses. With subscription, it means that you can access the license here and there. If you have the ID and password and log in, you can have the technology installed in many different laptops. The licenses are stored in the cloud, so if you are connected to the Internet, and it can reach the server, it knows if you have a valid license or not. It is great that it can cut down the level of piracy. Previously, there were people stealing the software, and using it for free, so there was no incentive for our customers to pay for it. Now, if they don’t have a license, they cannot get access.The other thing is that Autodesk invests 27% of revenue into R&D. If nobody is paying us, we cannot do R&D and make better products. If we can cut down the amount of piracy just by 10%, that is enough money for us to create many new products. In addition, our investors are happy as well. They say that it is the way the industry needs to move. All of the big software companies including Microsoft and Adobe are moving toward the subscription model. We are the first one in this area to move 100% to subscription. It just means that not only they get faster releases(every 3 months), but also they get easy to access. We also found that other companies are looking at doing a subscription model for hardware. It is a great way for keeping customers happy, because they don’t have any risk. They can change software after 1 year if they don’t like it. The pressure is on Autodesk to make software which people enjoy, and to make sure to be the best today AND tomorrow.  What are the topics which Autodesk and HankookDelcam are focusing in the future?Generative design is going to be the key focus for at least the next few years. The key reason behind that is because it is an incredibly interesting way of designing. Instead of having a CAD designer trying to create the product, you just put in the parameters and requirements of the part, and it will create the design for you. This is not only good just for additive manufacturing, but also for creating new and exciting products. It also gives you the information about the cost, stress, weight, and the amount of the material that is used in each of the parts before you finish designing.  Currently, additive and conventional manufacturing co-exist. Do you think they will supplement each other, or either one will be stronger than the other?I think they will work hand in hand. If you have additive manufactured parts, but if they don’t have the right surface finish, they need CNC. You can think about it as 3D printing providing raw material for CNC. Instead of having a big block that CNC uses, you have the shape which is almost perfect, and just need to cut a few millimeters of the material to make it perfect. This is allowing customers to cut down the amount of waste, and to have internal structures that they could not achieve with CNC. There are a lot of ways they work together.Another example is in the mold industry. Conformal cooling is becoming a hot topic. Sometimes, you don’t need the entire part to be 3D-printed. You might have a long tube like an insert. You will have CNC-cut straight lines up through the tube, but if you are going to have a curve at the top, you cannot cut in using CNC, because it destroys the mold. What they are doing is that they create the height in CNC, and the last top part they connect pipes using 3D printing. As the result, it is 10% 3D printing, and 90% CNC. Working on these together allows for optimized processes and makes it easy for them to have right technology apply to the right products. Instead of destroying other industries like CNC or injection molding, 3D printing will support them to have more functionality and efficiency. We need to work nicely together with other technologies as well. That’s why Autodesk is investing everything. We have additive technology, CNC technology, injection molding simulation, and composites. We don’t see that one will be better that the other. We see that in the factory in the future, you will have all of these technologies doing different things for manufacturing. 
Ms. Kang 2017-07-18
기사제목
- New strong partnership for inductive mold heating and injection molding - Direct integration into the complete range of KraussMaffei injection molding machines - One-shot process for premium-quality surfaces ensures high cost-efficiency  ▲ Exciting surface effects will be created with Roctool’s inductive mold heating technology HD Plastics™ on a PX 160-540 as part of the KraussMaffei Open House in Queretaro, Mexico(Photo: KraussMaffei)   KraussMaffei and Roctool S.A. from Le Bourget du Lac, France, (Roctool) are intensifying their cooperation in the global marketing of Roctool's inductive mold heating technology HD Plastics™ (High Definition Plastics). Within the context of the Global Collaboration Agreement, KraussMaffei will be able to offer all injection molding machines from its range with this option within their DMH technology (Dynamic Mold Heating) and can also supply this directly if required. Both companies expect to open up new markets and applications as a result of the cooperation along with the outstanding design options provided by this technology.   As stylish as film, but more efficient   The decisive benefits of HD Plastics™/DMH are the options that allow for design and construction while remaining highly cost-efficient. The one-shot process produces components with premium-quality surfaces, entirely without the technical and financial expenditure of decorated films or painting. As a result, additional in-mold decoration steps such as preforming, punching and feeding have been omitted. "With KraussMaffei as one of the world's leading suppliers of injection molding machinery, we have a powerful partner at our side. We have been cooperating intensively for the last three years and we have already opened up numerous applications. Now we want to expand our cooperation further and offer KraussMaffei customers added value with the additional option of Roctools HD Plastics™ technology," explains Mathieu Boulanger, CEO of Roctool.   After the successful demonstration during Chinaplas last month in Guangzhou, both companies will shortly be presenting the advantages of the technology, live as part of the KraussMaffei Open House on July 6, 2017 in Queretaro, Mexico. A PX 160-540 of the new all-electric injection molding machine series equipped with a Roctool 50 kw generator will be impressively demonstrating the versatile design options of inductive mold heating using a box cover as an example. Different color shading, hologram, gloss or matt effects – everything can be realized with the one-shot process without the need for additional post-mold processing. "The design options of the inductive DMH technology are enormous and open up entirely new markets and applications. For example, we see great potential in the entertainment and communications industry, in the automotive industry, and in the sport and leisure sector," adds Nadine Despineux, Vice President Sales of the KraussMaffei brand in the Injection Molding Machinery segment. The technology brings also other key advantages such as elimination of weld lines, flow length extension, quick cycle time and no temperature limitation for any plastic materials.   For more information about Roctool's HD Plastics™ technologies visithttp://www.roctool.com/work/hd-plastics   
Ms. Kang 2017-07-18
기사제목
 - Arburgcelebrates its 25-year presence in China with around 200 invited guests- ManagingPartner Renate Keinath presents anniversary sculpture- China'sgreat importance reflected in three Arburg locations Lossburg.Arburg is celebrating the anniversary of "25 years of Arburg in China"in style in 2017. The celebrations kicked off at an evening event on 7 July 2017in Shanghai with around 200 invited guests, a high-powered delegation from theArburg parent company and employees from China. In recognition of thesubsidiary's enormous commitment, Managing Partner Renate Keinath presented theanniversary sculpture to Zhao Tong, Managing Director of the Arburgorganisations in China. Other highlights were video messages from SeniorPartner Eugen Hehl, employees of the parent company and numerous customers. ▲ ManagingPartner Renate Keinath congratulated Zhao Tong, Managing Director of the Arburgorganisations in China, on the anniversary and presented the anniversarysculpture in recognition of the subsidiary's enormous commitment.The well-known "Peace Hotel", the oldesthotel in Shanghai, provided a suitable setting for the event.In her address, Managing Partner Renate Keinathfocused on the enormous dedication displayed by Arburg China: "I'mextremely impressed with what our team here has achieved over the last quartercentury. In line with the Arburg "Wir sind da." brand promise, ouremployees have always been there for their customers." She said thatArburg can be relied upon, just like a trusted family member, as the team inChina has been proving on a daily basis for 25 years now. Anniversary sculpture as sign of recognition"We wish to honour these highly motivated,long-standing and successful efforts with a very special gift on the occasionof this outstanding anniversary," said Renate Keinath, presenting the"25 years of Arburg China" anniversary sculpture to Zhao Tong,Managing Director of the Arburg organisations in China. Speaking on behalf ofthe owner families and the entire Arburg parent company, she thanked Arburg'semployees in China for their untiring commitment. Video messages of congratulationsMore messages of congratulations were conveyed byvideo relay: Senior Partner Eugen Hehl expressed his personal thanks to theChinese employees for 25 successful years. In addition, several colleagues fromthe various departments at the Arburg parent company and a number of customersfrom China took this opportunity to express their congratulations on theoccasion of the silver jubilee and to wish the employees all the best for thefuture. Looking back on 25 successful yearsManagingDirector Sales Gerhard Böhm took the time to review the success story of Arburgin China: "It all began in 1992 withthe establishment of a subsidiary in Hong Kong. From the outset, weconcentrated on machines for the manufacture of high-quality plastic products –just as we have done all over the world. This strategy has borne fruit and wehave been able to add two more subsidiaries: first in Shanghai in 2004 and thenin Shenzhen in 2006."GerhardBöhm believes that thissuccessful development confirms thatArburg chose the right path decades ago and that the company's continuousinvestments in the Chinese market have paid dividends. Gerhard Böhmexpressed his thanks to customers for the trust they had placed in Arburg andfor the successful cooperation over the past decades. Zhao Tong echoed thesewords of gratitude and emphasised: "You have joined us on our journey,helping us and contributing to the fact that the Arburg team in China nownumbers 80 employees, who are ready to offer you comprehensive support." Positivereputation: High quality machines, service and consultingGerhard Böhm explained the development of the customerstructure as follows: "In the early years, our customers tended primarilyto be large, globally operating companies. This has changed significantly inthe interim and we are now pleased to say that more and more domestic injectionmoulding companies are benefiting from the advantages of our high-performancemachines. They not only appreciate the performance of our high-tech Allroundermachines, but also our extensive expertise in service and consulting." Asexamples of the wide range of services, he mentioned the hotline, which isoperated by experts, the experienced service and application technicians, theexcellently equipped spare parts store, the showrooms for trials usingAllrounders and the Freeformer for additive manufacturing, the multifacetedtraining programme and the machine warehouse in Shanghai. Communicationin the national language"In addition to our strong presence with threelocations and our service offering, our decision to communicate in the languageof the country also reflects the great importance of China for Arburg,"said the Managing Director Sales. Examples of this include the use of Arburg's Chinese name with acorresponding logo, the Chinese version of the Arburg website, the Chineseedition of Arburg's "today" magazine, and the weChat channel run bythe subsidiary with over 12,000 followers as a direct link to customers. Successfullaunch of the anniversary celebrationsThe official part of the event was followed by amulti-course dinner and a cocktail party with jazz music on the roof of the"Peace Hotel". Following this successful kick-off in Shanghai,"25 years of Arburg in China" will be celebrated also on 22 September2017 at the Shenzhen location together with customers from that region. 
Ms. Kang 2017-07-17
기사제목
- Successful Roth Packaging Day with more than 80 participants - State-of-the-art Roth testing center equipped with KraussMaffei und Netstal machines- KraussMaffei and Netstal jointly cover the entire spectrum of injection-molded packaging   ▲ Roth Werkzeugbau demonstrates the qualification of an IML-decorated cup with 0.4 mm wall thickness at the Roth Packaging Day.   Supported by KraussMaffei and Netstal, mold manufacturer Roth Werkzeugbau held its inaugural 'Roth Packaging Day' event at its testing center in Auma-Weidatal. With more than 80 visitors attending, the event heralded the official entry into the packaging market of the Thuringia-based mold manufacturer. The injection molding segment of the KraussMaffei Group covers the entire packaging market with its KraussMaffei and Netstal brands.   Successful Roth Packaging Day signals entry into packaging market   On May 23, 2017, Roth Werkzeugbau welcomed upwards of 80 visitors to its spacious testing center at company headquarters in Auma-Weidatal for the inaugural 'Roth Packaging Day'. This was unusual in a sense because Roth has no history to date of being an established mold provider to the packaging industry. "Since the founding of the company shortly after German reunification we have flourished in the automotive sector, which up to now has been the major source of our sales," said Marco Roth, CEO of Roth Werkzeugbau. Roth went on to explain that the company had been taking an intensive look at the intricacies of packaging molds for around four years and had implemented initial projects in that area, which nonetheless proved to be a hard road for the company. "But we have now gained enough experience to enter the market officially. This is the start of a new era for our company. In the next five to ten years, we are looking at generating around 50 percent of our sales in the packaging sector," declared Roth. This foray into the market by Roth Werkzeugbau opens up opportunities above all for German manufacturers, with many of the principal packaging companies headquartered within a 300-km radius of Auma-Weidatal.  ▲ Roth Werkzeugbau greeted more than 80 trade visitors to its testing center, fully equipped with KraussMaffei and Netstal machines   Roth testing center equipped with KraussMaffei und Netstal machines   According to Roth, the newly built testing center is playing a major role in implementation of the packaging strategy. "Today, customers expect more from us than just molds: we support them in making their injection molding processes more efficient. Our longstanding partnership with the KraussMaffei Group is a significant factor in this respect," explained Roth. The basic machine park comprises four KraussMaffei CX and MX injection molding machines covering clamping forces of between 110 and 1,300 tons. All of the machines are equipped for 3K applications and with 6-axis KraussMaffei robotics. The systems are used for the qualification of molds for automotive applications and thick-walled packaging products, especially reusable and logistics containers. For extremely thin-walled packaging applications, since mid-2016 Roth has also been operating two fast Netstal EVOS injection molding machines with 350 and 550 tons of clamping force respectively. Located between the two machines is a highly versatile buckling arm robot for placing in-mold labels (IML) and removing the finished product. To make the qualification process as efficient and precise as possible, in cooperation with KraussMaffei Automation, Roth developed a special handling solution that ideally meets the requirements of mold manufacturer testing operations and also enables short cycle times. The systems used in the Roth testing center were specially designed for versatile application in mold qualification processes.▲ KraussMaffei and Netstal jointly cover the entire spectrum of injection-molded packaging. Group photo (from left to right): Klaus Zeiler (KraussMaffei), Marco Roth (Roth Werkzeugbau) and Thorsten Just (Netstal Germany) at the Roth Packaging Day   The entire packaging environment service spectrum from a single source   Packaging Day at the Roth testing center also represented a mini-milestone for the KraussMaffei Group. "At our valued partner Roth Werkzeugbau, we were able to demonstrate in practice that with our two brands KraussMaffei and Netstal we are the only injection molding machine provider worldwide that covers the entire spectrum of packaging applications with highly efficient solutions for each specific product," said Klaus Zeiler, head of Global Business Development at KraussMaffei. Live demonstrations were carried out on a total of five injection molding machines during the one-day event. Test products ranged from magnets and stackable boxes used by Roth itself and popular EMSA food storage boxes, including the commensurate lids and patented TPE seals, right through to IML-decorated polypropylene cups with a wall thickness of just 0.4 mm. During development of these highly complex applications, the Roth Werkzeugbau team were able to rely on the full support of Netstal. "Our decades of experience and solid application know-how in terms of thin-walled packaging with and without in-mold labeling enabled us to provide optimum advice to our partner Roth Werkzeugbau in relation to wall thickness optimization, cycle time reduction and repeatability. For packaging manufacturers, the resulting consistent quality and low unit costs are a perfect win-win situation," affirmed Thorsten Just, CEO of Netstal Germany.   Further minimization of wall thickness for cups   To achieve its ambitious goals Roth Werkzeugbau put its trust firmly in innovation. As such, to reduce the wall thickness of cups even further, the company is soon to try out the injection compression molding process further developed by Netstal. "Our Netstal machines are already prepared for the process, we now have to build up the necessary process knowledge in order to provide our customers with the commensurate support," concluded Marco Roth. In the spirit of the company motto 'What Roth delivers, works!', it is not hard to imagine participating trade visitors marveling at an injection compression molding application that is ready for series production by the next Packaging Day event. The second Packaging Day is scheduled to take place in 2019.        
강민정 2017-06-16
기사제목
The faculty of mechanical engineering recognizes Holzinger's achievements and contributions to science and technology particularly in the area of lightweight construction   Georg P. Holzinger was awarded an honorary doctorate from the faculty of mechanical engineering at the Chemnitz University of Technology (TU Chemnitz) at an academic ceremony on May 31, 2017. Holzinger is Vice President Technologies IMM (Injection Molding Machinery) at KraussMaffei as well as President IMM for China. The honorary doctorate was awarded as a tribute to Holzinger's achievements and contributions to science and technology – particularly in the area of lightweight construction and in the close collaboration with TU Chemnitz.   Among the first to congratulate Holzinger (center) were the rector of the university, Prof. Dr. Gerd Strohmeier (left), and the dean of the faculty of mechanical engineering, Prof. Dr. Thomas Lampke (right) Photo: TU Chemnitz/Rico WelzelRole model for knowledge sharing   In his opening speech, the dean of the faculty for mechanical engineering at the university, Prof. Dr. Thomas Lampke, praised Holzinger for the example he has set: "He has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of lightweight key enabling technologies through his exceptional achievements and extraordinary commitment." The dean went on to say that, by awarding this honorary doctorate, the faculty for mechanical engineering is also sending a strong signal on the value of linking up research and teaching, science and industry within an international context. He also explains that Holzinger's dedication ensures that new technologies are put into practice quickly and are scaled for large-scale production processes.   Holzinger has been with KraussMaffei since 2008, initially as General Manager of R&D and as Vice President Technologies IMM since July 2014. He has overall responsibility for R&D and order management mechanical design department. His role also covers the strategic alignment of the company's technological development to market requirements as well as implementation of the global engineering footprint. He has managed KraussMaffei Group China in Shanghai & Haiyan since January 2012. Holzinger is also a founding member and chairman of the industrial advisory board in the German Cluster of Excellence MERGE at Chemnitz University of Technology and thus promotes lightweight construction at the faculty of mechanical engineering.
Ms. Kang 2017-06-13
기사제목
Filling out a line of small to mid-size machines with new, more efficient servo motors.  A new generation of small to mid-size IntElect all-electric injection machines was presented to the public at an in-house fair in April at the German headquarters of Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery. The firm previewed the first model, of 50 metric tons, in the series at the K 2016 show in Dusseldorf last October. Sumitomo Demag (U.S. office in Strongsville, Ohio) now has added units of 75, 100, 130, and 180 m.t. The largest unit closes the gap between large and mid-size IntElect machines. The new units are said to “significantly reduce the price difference between hydraulic and all-electric machines,” with an “objective to enable a ROI in less than one year while providing the complete range of options.”   A key feature of these presses is a brand-new generation of “highly dynamic” servo drive motors, developed in-house, which boast extended memory for brake energy and 20% overall energy savings versus comparable all-electric machines. In addition, the control cabinet is integrated into the machine base, freeing up space for downstream equipment and allowing easy access to the nozzle area and clamp unit. The new design has significantly smaller footprint than its predecessors—even the smallest (50-m.t.) model is 1.6 ft shorter than earlier models. On average, the setup area is 10% less than that of comparable all-electrics, the company says.   Other features include sensitive mold protection and a linear guide system said to provide maximum platen parallelism right down to symmetric application of nozzle force. Redesigned platens are up to 30% stiffer than before. The NC5 controller comes with a new capacitive glass color touchscreen with the improved brilliance and sharpness of a smartphone. In addition to the standard version, the electric ejector package is available with additional force and/or speed.   http://www.ptonline.com/products/injection-molding-new-range-of-all-electric-machines
Ms. Kang 2017-06-12
기사제목
Record sales in fiscal 2016/17 at injection machine supplier Engel look set for continued growth in coming years if the company’s capital investment program is anything to go by.   Speaking at the pre-Chinaplas press event in Guangzhou, Gero Willmeroth, Sales and Service President at Engel Machinery Shanghai noted that capacity for machine building is being expanded at the company’s main plant in Schwertberg, Austria as well as its large machine plant at St. Valentin through an overall investment of EUR400 million through to 2020. In Shanghai, meanwhile, Engel is adding 1600 m 2 of production space as well as an apprentice workshop and more office area. The expansion will be completed by September. “Building work in Shanghai progressed well over the winter,” says Willmeroth. “We plan to inaugurate the new production hall together with our customers and partners in September.” This is already the second major expansion since Engel Machinery Shanghai was established exactly 10 years ago. The new apprenticeship workshop at Shanghai will train technicians over three to four year courses. At present, 45 apprentices are training there as CNC, mechatronic and plastics technicians.   In terms of production activity, “We shipped out 1000th large injection machine built in Shanghai in October 2016, having opened the plant in May 2007,” says Willmeroth. “We expect the next 1000 to come within three years.” The 1000th injection machine was a 4000-t0nne machine for auto end user in China. Currently, 20% of Engel’s sales are in Asia, including Wintec brand machines, with 24% in the Americas and the majority of 55% in Europe. Moreover, 85% of Engel machines sold in Asia are also made there, and this ratio is set to rise further to 90% according to Willmeroth.   “The markets in Asia have played a big role in the success of the Engel Group,” sais the directors of Engel at the start of the Chinaplas 2017 trade fair, where Engel traditionally announces its annual results. “Asia grew faster than average in the last fiscal year, primarily due to China. On top of this, we are benefiting from the strong momentum in Southeast Asia,” says Chief Sales Officer Dr. Christoph Steger in Guangzhou. At the same time, growth in Europe continues unchecked and demand in North America increases further. The directors of the Engel Group expect further growth in the new business year, albeit at a somewhat lower level than in the recent past.   Engel delivers both individual injection moulding machines as well as integrated turnkey solutions worldwide, the latter accounting more and more for incoming orders around the globe. “Customised solutions are currently our main driving force for growth,” says Steger. “Here, too, Asia, and China in particular, grow at above-average rates.” Apart from injection moulding machines, robots and other automation solutions, the system solutions tailor-made to meet the requirements of the respective applications include process technologies, peripheral systems, molds as well as software solutions for digitalisation and networking. Engel unlocks   the potentials for efficiency and quality particularly well by adapting all components in the manufacturing cell to each other exactly right from the start, thereby strengthening the competitiveness of its customers.   The development of customised injection molding solutions necessitates not only especially deep technological know-how, but also an understanding of the particular industry, which Engel ensures with its business unit structure. At its headquarters in Austria, Engel maintains separate teams dedicated wholly to the requirements of the automotive, technical molding, teletronics, packaging and medical industries respectively.   More than two years ago, Engel also started to entrench industry-specific know-how locally at its customers’. As a first step, unit managers were appointed in North America for the five business units, and currently, Engel is introducing a business unit structure in Asia. “We will then also have industry know-how available to us for Asia at our site in Shanghai, thereby enabling us to grow our market position in the five business units further,” says Willmeroth. “This is an important step in our efforts to strengthen our technological expertise here in Asia.” “The global trends in manufacturing and increasing process integration or Industry 4.0 mean that we work ever-more intensively with our customers over the complete lifecycle of the machines and manufacturing cells,” Steger underlines. “More and more, we are becoming partners in the endeavour of continuous process optimisation. We are implementing our new structures to meet the needs of this development.”   Remote maintenance and condition-based predictive maintenance are just two of the possibilities leading to closer cooperation in after-sales. At Chinaplas, Engel presented both its established as well as new innovative smart service solutions. “Industry 4.0 is rapidly gaining importance here in China,” says Willmeroth. “The major international players have been tackling this issue for a long time and have first successes to show. Many other companies still find it difficult to deal with digitalisation and networking. This is where we see our role to support our customers with their very special problems to enable them to make full use of the fourth industrial revolution and to accompany them on their road to becoming smart factories.” Engel has fully developed products that have proven themselves time and again around the world for all three parts of the smart factory – smart machine, smart production and smart service – thereby enabling it to fall back on vast experience in this field.   https://www.plasticstoday.com/injection-molding/engel-grows-worldwide-above-average-gains-asia/185415580656844
Ms. Kang 2017-06-12
기사제목
Mid-market private equity firm Kohlberg & Co. LLC (Mount Kisco, NY) announced today that it has closed the acquisition of Pexco and successfully merged it with PPC Industries Inc., a Kohlberg portfolio business that also comprises Kelpac Medical.   Pexco has a more than 50-year history of providing injection molding and extrusion services to medical device OEMs. Kelpac Medical is specialized in medical tubing and assemblies. The companies will operate under the new name of Spectrum Plastics Group (Minneapolis, MN), which will have its official debut at the co-located MD&M East and PLASTEC East event in New York next month.   The new name underscores the wide and comprehensive range of plastic and material solutions it is now able to bring to market, most notably for the medical device sector. Spectrum Plastics Group will feature multiple thermoplastic and silicone tubing extrusion, injection molding, film, packaging, assembly and value-add manufacturing technologies across 20 plants, five countries, and three continents. More than 2,000 employees work for the merged companies.   The formation of Spectrum Plastics Group creates a more comprehensive suite of medical solutions under one provider, said Kolberg & Co. in a press release issued today. The medical business will consist of 15 manufacturing facilities across the globe and feature both thermoplastic and silicone technologies. Both Pexco and PPC Industries, however, will retain their industrial brands and marks for industrial profile extrusion and industrial packaging businesses, respectively.   The Spectrum Plastics Group name belonged to the Pexco portfolio of brands as a result of its acquisition of the Minneapolis-based precision injection molder in 2013. It is relaunching with a new mark and logo.   Commenting on this new name and brand for the entire operating unit, Mauricio Arellano, President of the medical division, indicates that it fits the proposition perfectly. “We now bring a full spectrum and in most cases unmatched set of specialty plastics capabilities to the medical device sector, so the opportunity to relaunch our brand, one with a long history in medical devices and strong brand equity with our customers, was compelling. It speaks precisely to our unique position within the medical device market and our ability to support our customers’ noble mission of restoring health for millions of patients worldwide.”   Spectrum Plastics Group looks forward to telling its story to MD&M East/PLASTEC East attendees at booth 1329. The event comes to the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York from June 13 to 15.   https://www.plasticstoday.com/medical/newly-formed-spectrum-plastics-brings-medtech-oems-full-range-injection-molding-extrusion-services/98619322856779  
Ms. Kang 2017-06-12