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Tel: 01926 452452 | November 2014 | ||||
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No compromises on safety,
speed or reliability | |||||
The company makes robot cells for the automotive
industry. These are used for various applications on production lines and
are sealed by high-speed doors for physical protection of operators.
Unlike light curtains which have been used in similar environments, the
customer believes in the physical barrier of a door which unequivocally
shows operators whether access to the cell is possible or
not.
The
doors cannot be opened until any procedure in the cell has been
terminated, and then must allow quick entrance and exit.
Any slow running or failure of a cell door would
delay or force the production line to stop. This is particularly unwanted
in the automotive industry where any downtime has significant cost
implications.
In
a new application for our systems, GfA UK was approached to help design a
complete package of drives and controls to ensure the cells comply with
the latest regulations. A Safedrive
Fi
was provided for a test rig and performed many thousands of operations
over a two-week period. This drive was specifically developed for powering
non-balanced doors where speed, frequency of use and durability are key
requirements.
Our
sales and technical sales teams worked closely with our customer.
Including visiting the site to fine tune the parameters of the
TS971
control panel to give the customer the performance they
required.
Each
cell door is also installed with a wireless safety edge. This presents a
huge benefit according to the customer as it overcomes the problems
associated with traditional curly cables that can break and be
disconnected creating potentially dangerous health and safety
situations.
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In
a year that GfA in Germany celebrates its 60th
anniversary in business, it continues to invest heavily in the future with
the opening of a new multi-million euro distribution centre in
Dusseldorf. Storage
capacity has tripled compared with the company’s former
facility.
Removal
of previous high-rack systems has created more space so that the
prototype testing and inspection area can be expanded alongside production
capacity.
The
scale of the investment reflects GfA’s commitment to the industry and will
assist in its expansion plans in Europe and
globally.
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GfA
will have a significant presence at the 50th anniversary of the
R+T trade fair in Stuttgart from 24th to 28th
February 2015. Andrew Collett, Peter Whittles and Joe Ferrara will be
joining the GfA group stand and are keen to introduce any UK customers
attending to the global GfA family. It will be a great opportunity for you
to exchange thoughts on our industry with our global colleagues and
customers.
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As
this is our last newsletter before Christmas, please note the following
dates. Our offices will be closed from midday on Christmas Eve and will
reopen on Monday 5th January 2015.
We
would like to thank you for your support this year. We will be making our
traditional donation to a charity chosen by our employees in lieu of
sending Christmas cards.
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