Koepfer Germany Gear Manufacturing
In the United States, the “Koepfer” name is mostly likely associated with fine-pitch gear hobbing machines. However, in Europe, the Koepfer name also belongs to the Koepfer Group, a world-class gear manufacturing operation. Headquartered in Furtwangen, Germany, Koepfer comprises multiple factories that supply transmission gears to globally known automotive brands. Consequently, the manufacturer leads the European industry in executing the latest processes to successfully deliver millions of gears annually.
Koepfer’s latest upgrades in the German job shops include multiple Tecnomacchine (TM) deburring machine installations. “Koepfer was looking for an automatic deburring solution that would seamlessly work with the existing palletized handling system. Our machines easily adapted into their production lines,” said Mauro Farina, CEO of Tecnomacchine.
TecnoMacchine 200-3SC
These machines provide a proven solution for gear deburring and chamfering. The TM 200 series of deburring machines provides 5 work stations: 1) automatic loading / unloading (more on this below), 2) top deburring, 3) bottom deburring, 4) top brushing, 5) bottom brushing. With the ability to use grinding wheels, carbide burr tools, and brushes, a TM 200 deburrs parts from 30 mm (1.181 in) to 200 mm (7.874 in). This flexibility makes the TM 200 an ideal deburring solution for not only the Koepfer factories, but also job shops of all sizes.
As automation continues to transform the manufacturing industry, deburring often remains an operation performed by hand in job shops. As a result, this labor continues to grow as a portion of a finished part’s overall cost. Consequently, job shops both large and small are looking to automated deburring solutions to remain competitive in today’s market. Tecnomacchine steps up to the plate with several attractive options for gear manufacturers to overcome this challenge.
Consider a 100 mm (~4 in) gear. A TM 200 can fully deburr and brush a typical part of this size in about 25 seconds. When the savvy gear manufacturer takes breaks, distractions, tardiness, sickness, and other human effects into consideration, the same part by hand takes significantly more time. Thus, compared to manually deburring, a TM 200 offers a return-on-investment (ROI) of only 2 years.
For gear manufacturers targeting long-term competitiveness, automatic deburring must be implemented.
Flexibility + Capability + Automation
How can gear manufacturers achieve such effective deburring? The TM 200 follows the same world-leading combination as Koepfer hobbers: flexibility + capability + automation.
The machine can deburr spur and helical gears as well as bevel gears and sprockets. The 5 work stations are easily set up by adjusting position and pressure. The deburring stations can utilize both end mills and grinding wheels with tool speed up to 24,000 RPM. The brushing stations are easily positioned axially along with inclination. The brushes’ radial positions are controlled via CNC, thus automatically compensating for wear.
Lastly, but most importantly, the TM 200 series of deburring machines offers two styles of automatic loading and unloading. First, for high-volume applications, the “TM 200 2SC” and “TM 200 3SC” models feature a palletized / basket-type configuration: 2SC for two bays; 3SC for three bays. This system can be fully integrated with existing automation systems of a similar concept. Second, for lower-volume applications, the model TM 200 R3 features a CNC manipulator to load / unload parts from / to rotating magazines. Each magazine comprises 8 turrets at a height of 450 mm (17.7 in). These turrets are easily adjustable to capture a stack of work pieces. For example, 144 parts with a 25 mm (~1 in) face width can be loaded for automatic deburring.
We are excited to bring Tecnomacchine to the U.S. The versatility of these deburring machines helps job shops and gear manufacturers keep a competitive edge into the future.
Adam Gimpert
Palletized Loading System
The TM 200 series can adapt to existing basket-type loading systems.
Turret Loading System
The TM 200 series also features a rotary magazine loading system.
Automation Joins Deburring
To control the rising costs of deburring operations, the Koepfer Group job shops have installed multiple Tecnomacchine deburring machines. The TM 200 2SC and TM 200 3SC were considered for their easy implementation with existing basket-type loading / unloading systems. The TM machines resulted in allowing the shop to move labor hours away from deburring to focus on more valuable processes.
For job shops of all sizes, Tecnomacchine offers a range of flexible deburring equipment to boost shop productivity and increase competitiveness for the future. Tecnomacchine is exclusively sold and supported by Koepfer America in the United States. A TM 200 R3 deburring machine will be shown at Gear Expo 2017 in Koepfer America booth number 807.