03/05/2010
Energy efficiency – current catch phrase in the wire and cable industry. At the trade fair wire 2010 the Maschinenfabrik Niehoff GmbH & Co. KG, booth 10C18, is presenting the result of a thorough development. Being one of the globally leading manufacturer of machinery and equipment engineered for the wire and cable industry, Niehoff has improved the energy efficiency of its products. All exhibits feature state-of-the-art drives, optimized components and considerable energy savings – some of them show up for the first time at the trade show wire 2010 as completely new constructions. The use of raw materials and working materials is reduced which enables a clear reduction of operational and material costs.
The brand new Niehoff machine design is having its premiere in Düsseldorf. All exhibits feature this new design and are functionally optimized. Moreover, they correspond also to the current safety regulations of the machinery directive RL 2006/42/EG. Niehoff has also optimized the after-sales-service
and elaborated new offers for the reliable and economic supply of spare parts, which will also be shown at the booth. Further innovations are an energetically optimized rotor bow for stranding machines and an RFID system for the management of braiding and NPS spools.
The exhibits
- Drawing machine for the intermediate wire range MSM 224 with
induction annealer RI 250
- Multiwire drawing machine MMH 50 with continuous annealer
RM 121
- Double twist bunching machine D 401 with pay-off ARH 630
- Double twist bunching machine D 1001
- Rewinding machine DSA
- Rotary braiding machine BMV 16;
- Double twist stranding machine DSI 631 with double twist
backtwist pay-off ARD 630 D and longitudinal tape pay-off
ALB 600
- energetically optimized rotor bow for stranding machines
- RFID system for the management of braiding and NPS spools.
Description
The electronically controlled drawing machine for the intermediate wire range MSM 224 with integrated induction annealer RI 250 is designed for wires made of copper alloys such as brass, bronze, German silver, nickel and nickel alloys as well as other non-ferrous metals like platinum, rhodium and special materials. The machine is capable of drawing wires with inlet diameters of 3.5 mm (7 ½ AWG) to a final diameter range of 0.5... 1.8 mm (24 - 13 AWG). The drawing capstans are individually driven by water cooled AC motors. This proven drive principle enables a minimized slip operation resulting in wire with a very high surface quality.
The design of the continuous inductive annealer RI 250, developed by the Niehoff subsidiary NBM, has been optimized, and is used for the production of wires made of brass and bronze in the 0.8 – 2.2 mm diameter range. The RI series annealers built in several sizes are designed for round, flat and profiled wire made of metals with low electric and thermal conductivity. The induced electrical current heats the wire and generates a fine and homogeneous structure with good processing and forming properties while ensuring a high wire surface quality.
The multiwire drawing machine MMH 50 with its integrated continuous annealer RM 121 is designed to draw simultaneously 16 wires with a final diameter of up to 0.05 mm which can be processed to superfine multiwire bundles. The machine is part of the worldwide top-selling MMH range of multiwire drawing machines, the largest of which is capable of drawing up to 48 wires. The quality of the wires produced on these machines exceeds the most demanding specifications and processing requirements. Niehoff offers 8 and 16-wire drawing machines for aluminum and aluminum alloy wires along with multiwire drawing machines for copper wire to complete the Niehoff product portfolio.
Two double twist bunching machines D 401 and D 1001 extend the D series which now is comprised of six models in various dimensions. The D 401 model, the smalles of the series, is designed for strands of 0.013 to 2.5 mm² (36 – 13 AWG) cross section with continuous lay length and a maximum rotational speed of 9000 twists/min. The machine enables the production of strands with 7 x 0.05 mm (7 x 44 AWG) construction. The D 401 will be shown with a tangential pay-off ARH 630 with motor-driven spool.
The D 1001 model, the largest machine of the series, is designed for strands of up to 50 mm² (1/0) cross section for copper with a lay length of max. 300 mm (11.8”) and a maximum rotational speed of 3,200 twists/min. The machine is optimally suitable for large wire rope lay strands and battery cables of copper and aluminum. It is suitable for up to 60 mm² (3/0) cross section aluminum conductors.
All bunching machines feature all technical advantages of the entire product family and are available in left and right-hand versions. Due to the new energy saving bow energy consumption and noise emission are reduced considerably compared to the two-bow and the conventional single bow bunching machines. State-of-the-art three-phase AC drive technology, energy-saving motors for the rotor drive, and non-contact machine data transfer reduce maintenance to a minimum. As a standard the D 401 is equipped with the NBAT (NIEHOFF Bunching Automatic Traverse) system which detects automatically spool flanges and controls the traverse width of spools by means of opto-electronic sensors. It works automatically and perfectly, without machine operator intervention. The larger models of the D series can be equipped with the NBAT optionally. As the spools are filled perfectly, in downstream processes the strands can be paid off tangle-free and without wire damages even at very high speeds.
The automatic rewinding machines of the DSA series spool wires from single and multiwire spools onto braiding bobbins and play a key role in enabling the BMV series high speed braiding machines (s. below) to work at their full potential. Various line configurations allow the efficient utilization of the upstream multiwire drawing line and a space saving line installation.
The 16-carrier lever arm rotary braiding machine BMV 16 can process bare or coated copper wire, aluminum wire and stainless steel wire with a single-wire diameter ranging from 0.05 to 0.3 mm (40-28 AWG) as well as artificial yarn and fibers. This machine and the other models of the BMV series designed for 12 or 24 spools feature an infinitely variable electronic control of line speed and braiding pitch as well as an automatic central lubrication system. The machines are equipped with new spool carriers made of aluminum. The BMV machines can be combined with different kinds of taping devices. Upon customer request an automatic empty bobbin detection system can be integrated which on the one hand stops the machine before a braiding bobbin is completely empty, and on the other hand keeps the residual wire on the braiding spool to a minimum. The machine at the stand is equipped with a completely new-designed take-up and pay-off unit BAS 800 for spools with a flange diameter of up to 800 mm. The device is installed in a space saving matter under the working area of the machine. For larger spools separately driven take-ups and pay-offs can be installed.
In conjunction with the DSA rewinding machine and the BMV rotary braiding machine at the booth, a new RFID technology will be shown which has been particularly adapted to the logistics and the management of braiding spools. The system has been developed by Niehoff, the software house Advaris, a spool manufacturer and the university of Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany. The RFID system consists of spools which are marked by an RFID transponder, a read/write system which is integrated into the rewinding machine and a mobile reading advice. It can be connected to a production data acquisition (PDA) system with manufacturing execution system (MES). The RFID system enables a decentralized data storage beyond factory boundaries and the tracking of single bobbins. The RFID system can be used also for NPS spools.
The double twist stranding machines DSI 631 and DSI 1001 are developed to combine insulated conductors into pairs or quads or to strand conductor pairs into LAN cables and other special cables of best quality with or without backtwist. Depending on line configuration up to three foils can be applied on the cable. The DSI 631 is used for a wide conductor cross-section range and a maximum strand diameter of 8 mm, while the DSI 1001 is built for a maximum strand diameter of 15 mm. The lay length can be
freely adjusted within a very narrow tolerance band, the lay length consistency is < ± 0.5% of the effective lay length. The DSI machines can be combined with other systems – e.g. the DSI 631 at the stand with a double twist backtwist pay-off ARD 630 D and a longitudinal tape pay-off ALB 600 – and manufacture all types of data cables and special cables, including LAN cables in all categories (including the future ones) with the utmost precision.
Further innovations are an energetically optimized rotor bow for stranding machines and an extended after-sales-service which offers the reliable and economic supply of NIEHOFF quality wear parts.
Complete Solutions from a Single Source
Maschinenfabrik Niehoff GmbH & Co. KG headquartered in Schwabach near Nuremberg, Germany, engineers and manufactures machinery and lines for drawing, annealing, galvanic electro-plating, bunching, spooling, rewinding and braiding of non-ferrous wires as well as machines for stranding, coiling and spooling of insulated data and special cables.
Niehoff Endex North America, Inc. (NENA), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Niehoff Group, with manufacturing and engineering capabilities in NJ, USA, is responsible for the sales, supply, and service of the entire Niehoff product range in the USA, Canada & Mexico. NENA was founded in 1999 by the combination of Niehoff of America, Inc. and Endex, the former Bekaert Engineering of North America.
The Niehoff group worldwide is comprised of headquarters, subsidiaries and representative and service centers and is present on all important markets with more than six hundred employees. The products and services offered by the Niehoff group range from development and planning, right through to turnkey projects of complete cable factories.