Parker Hannifin is supplying its servo drives to Unison for use in the company's high-accuracy, cost-effective and energy-efficient all-electric tube-bending machines.
The latest servo drives from Parker Hannifin form a vital element in Unison's innovative all-electric tube bending machines. Parker's servo drives are enabling users of these machines to achieve savings of up to 90 per cent in energy costs in comparison with conventional hydraulic equipment. The all-electric machines are also claimed to be more accurate, user-friendly and cost-effective, in addition to minimising the environmental impact of tube bending operations.
Unison's Managing Director Alan Pickering notes: "We have run tests against hydraulically-powered bending machinery that show comparative energy savings of 90 per cent when producing exactly the same part. Combined with other advantages of a servo motor-based architecture, all-electric tube benders provide the metalworking industry with a practical measure to help remain competitive and retain profit margins despite soaring material costs and the high costs of skilled labour."
Unison designed an automated setup tube bending machine to meet the requirements of its customers more effectively; in 1995 this was developed into the first all-electric range. Today the company has a broad range of machines that use advanced servo motor technology to control all moving parts and provide customers with virtually unlimited control features to meet the specific needs of the tooling used or the part being made.
Since the launch of its first all-electric model, Unison has worked closely with Parker, installing servo drives on almost all its equipment. Alan Pickering of Unison explains: "We have been working with Parker for many years and the quality of their products has been a crucial factor in our success. Their combination of leading-edge drive technology and worldwide technical backup has been outstanding and has allowed us to refine and develop our market-leading machines."
The Unison tube bending machines are said to have revolutionised the tube bending industry, providing users in various sectors with a significantly more efficient and user-friendly machine than conventional hydraulics types. The all-electric machines enable production levels to be increased greatly, as they can be reconfigured for a different part or batch in minutes, without the need for skilled labour and scrapped parts during set-up. As a result, in addition to boosting productivity, operational costs can be reduced considerably.
Furthermore, the all-electric machines are said to be capable of far greater accuracy and repeatability than their hydraulic counterparts; complex tube shapes can be created to tight tolerances of 0.01mm, which is essential for applications such as those in the aerospace industry. This is made possible thanks to advanced closed-loop control from the latest Parker servo drives.
In addition to this exceptional motion control, the electrically driven machines can reduce the energy consumption of conventional tube bending applications by as much as 90 per cent, as they only require a significant amount of power when they are in operation, unlike hydraulic machines that need to maintain pressure. Likewise, with health and safety and environmental issues becoming increasingly important to operators, the all-electric machines are considerably quieter than conventional equipment and produce no waste products that are problematic to dispose of responsibly, such as hydraulic oil.
Alan Pickering is confident that Unison's decision to use Parker has been the right one, commenting: "Parker's support and high-quality products have been vital to the success we have had with our all-electric tube bending machines over some thirteen years. Our customers continue to choose Unison machines because they know they can rely on them to deliver unbeatable performance over long, low-maintenance service lives. With dependable Parker technology at the heart of our machines, we can be confident that we can live up to, and exceed, our customers' expectations."