By David Vink, European Plastics News
Lossburg, Germany -- German injection machinery maker Arburg GmbH + Co. KG used its annual Technology Days open house event at its headquarters in Lossburg to launch its energy-saving Hidrive hybrid machine line and to invite customers into its newly completed customer centre.
The Hidrive H series machines feature a five-point toggle clamping unit incorporating the electric clamp system from the all-electric Allrounder Alldrive, the hydraulic injection unit from the Allrounder S Advance, and hydraulic accumulator technology from the Allrounder S machine range.
About 3 300 international visitors attended Technology Days in March.
Sales director Helmut Heinson said the new machine has been developed around a limited number of combinations of clamping and injection units for a "combination of high efficiency in production and cost". As a result, the Hidrive costs 25 percent less than an equivalent Alldrive all-electric machine, the firm said.
The company claims the Hidrive can lead to energy savings of up to 40 percent over a standard hydraulic machine, compared with 50 percent for an all-electric machine. Part of the reason for the energy savings is the Hidrive's use of energy recovery during braking and EFF1 motors, Arburg said. The braking energy is fed back into the machine.
Also charging of the hydraulic accumulator is dynamically regulated, so the pressure level is automatically adapted in line with actual demand.
A comparison of dry cycle times shows that a Hidrive 370H can cycle in the same time as its all-electric equivalent-0.8 seconds-while a hydraulic machine with dual pump technology takes 1.3 seconds.
Arburg officials said Hidrive reproducibility is similar to that of all-electric machines, due in part to the use of a position-regulated screw (PRS) on the injection unit and planetary roller screw drive positioning of the clamp.
Hidrive machines will be available with clamping forces ranging from 60-320 metric tons.
The new machines were showcased in Arburg's new 108 000-square-foot customer service centre in Lossburg. The centre houses cleanroom facilities, a powder injection moulding laboratory and network integration capabilities. It is equipped with more than 30 injection presses with clamping forces ranging from 12.5 to 500 tonnes.
"
