FABTECH® 2016 Highlights—Day 3

Trying my hand at plasma cutting.

Another FABTECH® has come to an end. The show has been an unqualified success. I don’t have the attendee total for the entire show yet, but I do know that day 1 set a record at 16,000.

Personally, today was my best day. I had few set appointments and more time to walk the show and drop by booths just to see what’s new. Best of all, I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried something new.

Let’s start with that something new. Hypertherm, a U.S.-based manufacturer of plasma, laser, and waterjet cutting systems, had booths in two halls. Among the products featured in both was the new Powermax45 XP® that delivers 6.5 kW of output power. The powerful system also has a low-amp process that makes it easy to mark, score, and make precision gouges.

The best thing about this new system was my opportunity to try it out. I suited up, moved the torch as instructed, and pulled the trigger. My first effort did not result in a “drop” cut, because I moved the torch too quickly mid-cut. So, I tried again and was successful. I was nervous going into this and was totally surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

The company also has a revolutionary new cutting nozzle for its Powermax 65, 85, and 105 machines that allows a thin plasma arc to come out parallel to the work surface for a flush cut.

I had an appointment with Ross Technology, Leola, Pa., which makes industrial storage systems addressing the challenges service centers have storing, handling, and distributing heavy steel coils. Sales Engineer Tracy Buck took me through a visual presentation of these challenges and how his company met them. In his words, most centers store coils in a “Flintstoney” way. They are placed on pieces of wood on the facility floor. Knowledge of a particular coil’s location often is “tribal.” If the person who knows where the coil is supposed to be is unavailable, much time is spent locating it. And this common storage method is anything but safe. It’s difficult to move larger coils with a single forklift, and some facilities might use two to move a single coil. So not safe.

Enter the Dexco structural I-beam coil rack systems, which allow for safely storing and accessing metal 80,000 pound coils stacked four units high. The systems are customized for each operation. The company is working on a version for metal processors, like stampers, who don’t need all the bells and whistles necessary for the volume housed in service centers.

When passing by the Davi booth, I was drawn in by a massive section of pipe on display. Made from 6.89-in.-thick steel, the pipe was a test piece for a company that would be using pipe of these dimensions in a nuclear application.

Something else that caught my eye while walking the aisles was a big SOLD sign on a Bliss press in the Schuler booth. After being off the market for 50 years, Bliss is back. And if that big SOLD sign is any indication, customers are glad. The company is running a contest to find the oldest Bliss press in the U.S. To enter, you are required to submit a photo, serial number, location, and your contact information to info@blisspressusa.com.

Upon learning that I was on the lookout for unique products at the show, a fellow editor steered me toward MC Machinery Systems booth where I saw the Videre press brake that displays DXF files, 3-D models, bending simulation, and tool location on the face of the machine. You have to see it to believe it.

Shooting for a "drop" cut.

This machine has been out eight weeks. Show attendees were so interested in it that the company gave out all 500 brochures it brought to the show on second day.

And finally, Jeep driver that I am, I simply could not pass up the TRUMPF booth once I saw the Jeep® out front. I walked up to my media contact at the company and asked, “What’s up with the Jeep?” Turns out that as part of its product demonstration for show attendees, the company was allowing them to program its machines to cut, bend, and laser weld miniature Jeeps to their specifications. For example, the attendee could choose the type of wheels.

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