Torchmate Inc. is introducing a new robotic, CNC metal-cutting table that includes engraving and routing functions in a large envelope. It will be priced affordably, below $5,000 according to the developer, which already has two models in its Growth Series^™ CNC machines. Torchmate is a Lincoln Electric company that produces CNC plasma cutting tables and other automation systems for fabricating and manufacturing. The new machine will be introduced at FABTECH, November 14-17, in Chicago.

Torchmate’s Growth Series CNC cutting systems are an affordable design for smaller machine shops, fabricators, and sheet metal processors. Operators of current models may upgrade to the larger table size.

The new Torchmate^® Growth Series^™ 4×4^™ is described as a versatile, adaptable robotic system that responds to the market’s demand. It follows the company’s Growth Series 2×2 and 2×4 CNC machines, but because of its larger table it will cut a wider range of metal products. Operators of Growth Series 2×2 and Growth Series 2×4 machines can upgrade their systems, the developer indicated.

The new machine is a three-axis, motorized system (two X-axis drives, one y-axis drive, and a motor. It is supplied with customized control software (4×4 Driver) that is compatible with multiple tools, and capable of repeatable and precision performance so that operators can produce multiples with one click.

A water-table version of the machine also is available.

“The launch of our Growth Series 4×4 machine underlines Torchmate’s continuing commitment to create machines that provide the affordability and flexibility that small businesses and hobbyists demand,” stated Torchmate general manager Bill Kunz. “The Growth Series 4×4 allows CNC machine owners to upgrade their machines to keep pace with the expansion of their business or personal needs without starting all over.”

The Growth Series 4×4 is intended for smaller machine shops, fabricators, and sheet metal processors, career and technical schools, hobbyists, and off-road and racing fab shops. It may be used to design and cut intricate and professional-quality metal parts, including automotive chassis or suspension components.

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The PythonX CNC plasma cutting fabrication system available from Power Machinery Australia is designed for the mining, manufacturing, boatbuilding and defence industries in structural steel fabrication and beam cutting applications.

The 6-axis robotic PythonX CNC plasma cutting fabrication system is based on a new technology that brings automated 3D fabrication to processing beams, channels, HSS, angle, plate and bar.

Power Machinery Managing Director Ken Christensen describes the PythonX as having the flexibility to be ‘an entire fabrication shop in a single machine’.

Even a modern, fully automated metal fabrication shop typically requires transfers and conveyors to feed and offload multiple pieces of equipment, which take up a lot of space and time.

A ‘mostly manual’ steel fabrication shop would need about 30 minutes to lift, flip and move the beam around, each movement increasing the risk of a handling accident.

A shop with ‘conventional’ automation still needs about 20 minutes to move the piece from one machine to another, over to a workbench for coping and torch cutting, which all add up to the job cost.

PythonX CNC plasma cutting fabrication machines on the other hand offer huge savings in floor space, labour and material handling with a single plasma cutting line automating the shop’s entire structural fabrication tasks into a single machine.

According to Mr. Christensen, the PythonX can replace up to 10 machines used in conventional processes, saving on equipment cost, manual labour and double handling in machine shops.

He explains that the normal way to drill a beam is to mark the holes, drill them out with a magnetic drill, use a handheld plasma or oxy cutter and then repeat this process over and over again, working out to about 20 hours of labour per tonne of steel.

By using the PythonX, one can cut this down to about 5 hours per tonne, saving both time and money.

Key features of PythonX CNC plasma cutting fabrication system:

• PythonX torch head will actually probe and measure the piece to be cut, placing each feature with precision
• Compensates for out-of-spec beam geometry to deliver finished beams that are in spec and good for the job with AISC-approved bolt holes
• No manual programming of the cuts
• Cuts are determined from the part detail drawing files ensuring accuracy
• Accepts files via direct download from structural design software such as Tekla XSTEEL, SDS/2 or AutoCAD among others
• Machine control reads the file, probes and measures the piece before beginning fabrication
• Probe and measure function takes out all the guesswork or chance for human error from the equation
• Produces features and holes of very high quality, placing them precisely, even if the work piece has a slight bend or imperfection that might make it unusable with traditional fabricating machines
• Precision part positioning ensures accuracy
• Handles a wide array of structural shapes and part sizes
• Cuts steel up to 32mm thick in shapes up to 1200mm wide and 400mm high
• Can handle beams up to 26 metres long with conveyor options
• http://www.ferret.com.au/c/Power-Machinery-Australia/PythonX-CNC-plasma-cutting-fabrication-system-from-Power-Machinery-Australia-n912583

ESAB Welding & Cutting Products introduces an important new capability for its CNC plasma cutting machines.

ESAB CNC plasma cutting machines are now available with Precision Hole Technology, an integrated set of systems that improve hole cutting cylindricity as well as delivering the highest possible edge quality. This new system takes advantage of the advanced gas control capabilities already available in ESAB’s m3 Plasma™ systems by capturing the best hole cutting techniques in ESAB’s new Columbus.NET programming software. Precision Hole Technology also utilizes ESAB’s unique encoder-based height control, as well as the VISION 5x series of CNCs. This new technology is available on new ESAB cutting machines and can also be retrofitted on many existing ESAB machines in the field.

The new Precision Hole Technology represents a significant engineering development encapsulated in a new process control database. This database is used by ESAB’s Columbus.NET programming and nesting software to automatically produce the highest quality plasma cut holes on mild steel up to 1” thick, for hole sizes down to 1:1 ratio without manual intervention. The database is also used in ESAB’s new VISION T5 CNC, where it automatically processes any part program created through the EasyShape™ library with optimum small hole quality. This includes DXF and DWG files imported right at the VISION T5 CNC, as well as nests. Building this technology into both the off-line programming software as well as the new CNC gives ESAB customers the flexibility to quickly and easily produce the highest quality plasma cut holes.

An important part of Precision Hole Technology is the automatic height control system that sets and maintains the optimum torch height during hole cutting. ESAB’s PB-MB-1 Plasma Station

CNC Machines
http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/293509

On the heels of their official Blaze 2 CNC product release earlier this year, PlasmaRoute CNC announces a new addition to their CNC rotary cutting product line: The TubeMaster 2400 CNC tube processing system, designed to load and cut a variety of pipe shapes. The company is marketing this machine to small- to mid-size manufacturers.

PlasmaRoute CNC officially launches their new CNC machine, the TubeMaster 2400 tube processing system. The TubeMaster 2400 is one of several PlasmaRoute CNC machines capable of rotary cutting, meaning that the machine will rotate a piece of material as it is being cut. The TubeMaster 2400 is designed specifically for plasma cutting round, square, and rectangular pipe.

The TubeMaster 2400 differs from PlasmaRoute CNC’s other rotary cutting products, in that it offers automated pipe placement, automated material feed, the ability to handle multiple shapes of pipe and tubing, and the ability to accommodate pipe up to twenty-four feet in length. According to the product description on the PlasmaRoute CNC company website, the Tubemaster 2400 lifts the pipe into position and feeds the pipe forward to the plasma cutter. After the cut is finished, the cut piece then drops off into a bin.

With a price tag of $85K, the TubeMaster 2400 isn’t for everybody. “This is specialized manufacturing equipment,” says Steve Gustine, CEO and President of PlasmaRoute CNC LLC. According to Gustine, before the TubeMaster 2400 was released, “You couldn’t get into a machine even similar to this for less than a hundred thousand.” Gustine goes on to say that his company manufactures other CNC tube cutters and rotary wood cutters priced to meet the needs of a broader customer base.

PlasmaRoute CNC had announced earlier this year the impending release of a rotary attachment for their Blaze 2 CNC table, but decided instead to put more time into meeting customer requests. “We don’t design machines just to say we did it,” says Gustine, “We design what our customers need.”

Steve Gustine may be contacted at PlasmaRoute CNC, 580-272-0515.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/plasmaroutecnc/tubemaster/prweb4476704.htm

Techno, Inc. proudly introduces the New HPLC CNC Plasma Cutter Series, a low cost, operator-friendly machine, designed for small to mid-sized shops that wish to bring their manual plasma process to a whole new level. For over 24 years Techno has provided high-quality CNC equipment to various industries and is excited to expand into CNC Plasma Cutting.

Techno, Inc. proudly introduces the New HPLC CNC Plasma Cutter Series, a low cost, operator-friendly machine, designed for small to mid-sized shops that wish to bring their manual plasma process to a whole new level. For over 24 years Techno has provided high-quality CNC equipment to various industries and is excited to expand into CNC Plasma Cutting.

“This new expansion just makes sense. We manufacture high-speed CNC router equipment for the wood, plastic, and signage market, so building a CNC Plasma Cutter was easy,” says Roy Valentine, CNC Sales Manager. “Since we have been designing and programming our own CNC Controls for over 20 years, attaching a high-quality plasma torch to the system and developing the electronic circuitry needed for automated torch functions was trivial. This in-house know-how has made us an industry leader in the CNC Router market, something we intend to repeat in the plasma cutting market.”

The new CNC Plasma’s unique design has drawn compliments from Hypertherm and Thermal Dynamics CNC Plasma experts, who were impressed with the HPLC’s ease of operation, built-in automatic system functionality, and overall system flexibility. Every HPLC is built from the same heavy-duty welded steel and precision drive system as our CNC Routers. The fully automated CNC Plasma Interface has advanced, yet with user-friendly features that will guide users with ease.

Customers can choose from three standard table sizes, which can handle up to 1-1/4” thick material. Receive more information on Techno’s New HPLC Series CNC Plasma Cutter online at: http://www.techno-isel.com/CNC_Routers/plasma.htm or call our knowledgeable application engineering staff at: 1-800-819-3366.

Note to editor: You can pick up this release (and others) by using this secret deep link: http://www.technocnc.com/pr/ to download a .zip file containing an .rtf and high-resolution .jpg file.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010TechnoPlasmaCutter/07/prweb4204074.htm

Plasma cutting is a process used to cut steel and other metals (or sometimes other materials) using a plasma torch. In this process, an inert gas (in some units, compressed air) is blown at high speed out of a nozzle; at the same time an electrical arc is formed through that gas from the nozzle to the surface being cut, turning some of that gas to plasma. This plasma is sufficiently hot to melt the metal and moving sufficiently fast to blow molten metal away from the cut. The result is very much like cutting butter with a hot jet of air.