Walter Tosto chooses Innse-Berardi innovation
In this scenario, the most recent investment was decided in 2017 with the acquisition of a large, high-performance, 5-axis mobile gantry machining center designed and built by Innse-Berardi; installed in the Belleli plant in Mantua, the machining center was mainly used for the machining of critical components of the ITER project, the most important project in the world for the development of cold nuclear fusion as a viable and sustainable source of energy. «The long experience in hydrostatic technology, the ability to offer advanced customized solutions and a fully digitized machine with proprietary algorithms for predictive maintenance - underlines Luca Tosto, President of Belleli - represent the winning mix that led us to select Innse-Berardi to realize our participation in the ITER project». The supply of this advanced milling plant represents for the Brescia-based company the crowning of a significant design commitment that has led to promptly satisfying all the challenging requests of the customer, both in terms of performance and in terms of production start-up times. Innse-Berardi, part of the Machine Tools division of the Camozzi Group since 1999, represents one of the main industrial realities, at an international level, in the design and construction of machine tools and boasts a history of over 120 years.
The mission of the Camozzi Machine Tools division is aimed at the design and production of large machine tools, developed with the aim of providing specific solutions to maximize customers' investment in terms of performance and production efficiency.
In particular, the Innse-Berardi offer consists of high-speed horizontal and vertical machining centers, medium-large horizontal and vertical milling machines, special machines for specific applications, and customized machines based on the customer's production needs. These are cutting-edge solutions that find application in all those sectors where high added value machining is required such as, for example, energy, aeronautics/aerospace, steel, naval, heavy mechanical and precision machining. The precious wealth of experience gained by Innse-Berardi over the years, continuously enhanced by the constant attention to technological innovation and the supply of tailor-made solutions, was a determining factor for Walter Tosto's choice of the Brescia-based company.
From the needs to the solution
«The ITER project - explains Tosto - constitutes the most important international collaboration in the energy field involving 50% of the world population and covering 80% of the global GDP. As a member of the AMW Consortium, to which Ansaldo and Mangiarotti also belong, the Walter Tosto Group has been entrusted with the supply of five sectors of the Vacuum Vessel, the heart of the Tokamak machine. For the machining of these high boron stainless steel components, element used to absorb the fast neutrons emitted by the plasma during the fusion reactions, machines with high rigidity and high performance reliability in terms of precision and productivity are required. To meet these needs, we felt that Innse-Berardi was the right interlocutor; the Atlas Hydro vertical machining center with mobile gantry, appropriately configured, seemed adequate to our needs: a technologically advanced machine that takes advantage of the company's great experience in the machining of stainless steels with a high boron content. This machining operation, to achieve high production volumes, requires particular attention to the design and construction. First of all, we needed the certainty of the machining precision and a certain machine size to produce the components of the nuclear reactor. Furthermore, the intrinsic flexibility of Atlas Hydro has allowed us to obtain some modifications and improvements on the machine from Innse-Berardi, thus optimizing some machining processes».
Atlas Hydro: top technology
With a clearance of 7,200 mm between the uprights and a maximum distance between the spindle nose and the work surface of over 6,600 mm, the machine is able to machine the entire range of large pieces produced in the Belleli factory. «In this case - explains Stefano Lodolo, Sales Director of Innse-Berardi and Camozzi Manufacturing - the solution features an oversized machine structure in electro-welded steel calculated through finite element analysis methods, to ensure maximum stability and overall rigidity. Given the large size of the moving parts, to achieve maximum vibration damping, long life, minimum maintenance and, therefore, lower operating costs, the linear axes and the RAM are hydrostatically supported. The machine was also equipped with a 5-axis universal head to be able to work very complex pieces, often machined from the solid billet. A large automatic magazine with accessory heads and a high capacity chain tool magazine give the machine great flexibility of use both for applications with large material removal and for machining where great precision is required». The movement of all linear axes is achieved with pre-loaded systems; a double rack and pinion system with electronic backlash recovery is used for the X and Y axes.
«With the same principle, the polar axes of the 5-axis universal head - Lodolo highlights - also use a multiple pinion system on a toothed wheel to obtain maximum rigidity and high dynamics of movement in the absence of backlash the solution adopted, with electronic backlash recovery, guarantees constant preloading of the system without the need for periodic adjustments and with minimal maintenance requirements».
«Furthermore - Tosto adds - this machining center has been conceived to be able to integrate a 6 meter turning table with a capacity of 250 tons: it is easy to understand that with this configuration our Atlas Hydro reaches maximum levels of flexibility: an extremely important aspect for us that construct single pieces».
Advantages of the Innse-Berardi solution
The mobile gantry machining center, now in full production, offers significant advantages: first of all, high productivity thanks to the high material removal rate and the level of automation implemented on the machine.
The automatic tool change and accessory head change, the use of electronic probes to measure the pieces, the ability to remotely control the machining with the use of video cameras in fact reduce downtime and ensure maximum machine productivity.
«No less significant - adds Tosto - are the advantages deriving from the technical solutions adopted: limited tolerances maintained over time, optimized tool life with the same mechanical property constancy of the component to be machined, optimized energy consumption thanks to constant monitoring of utilities, optimized chip evacuation system for easy cleaning of the work area and mobile operator cabin to allow close control of the machining operations performed, guaranteeing maximum operator safety».
The machine - Lodolo adds - equipped with the latest generation Siemens 840D sl numerical control, is also completely digitalized to meet the Industry 4.0 requirements, to maximize the utilization factor of the machine.
In fact, it also integrates the IBRM (Innse-Berardi Remote Maintenance) system, the digital platform equipped with algorithms patented by our company in collaboration with Camozzi Digital, which allows tangible predictive maintenance and continuous monitoring of vital machine parameters.
In addition to continuous real-time control of a series of machine operating parameters, the IBRM platform, which works in the cloud, allows the automatic diagnosis of the condition status of its critical components.
This is performed by continuously monitoring the working conditions and process parameters by means of sensors installed on the machine. When the limit thresholds of some physical quantities established by the algorithms are exceeded, an alert signal is automatically generated so as to be able to intervene on the machine in an immediate or programmed/predictive manner».
"We are particularly satisfied with the investment - concludes Tosto - because we are recording exceedingly high machine performances. And it is also an Italian manufacturer: they are good, quick in the realization of the machine and with the desire to experiment some innovative solutions with us”.
Source: Tecnologie Meccaniche - nr. 10 - ottobre 2020