One highlight at the event were demonstrations of the 100th Ecospeed model that is said to increase the productivity of small and medium-sized wing ribs by up to 87%. Like all of the machining centres of this series, it features a Sprint Z3 tripod-drive head. This parallel kinematic machining head with three legs was developed in 1999 together with DaimlerChrysler Aerospace, as it was known then.
All of these machines remain in service, reports Dr Norbert Hennes, head of Starrag’s new aerospace and energy business unit. “All machines sold since 1999 are still in operation. Since that point, they have completed over four million operating hours. As things stand, we have not had to exchange a single tripod head. This makes the Ecospeed series the most reliable machine tool in its class".
Number 100 is the new ECOSPEED model F 1540 with 120 kW spindle that is designed for medium-sized structural components (pallet size: 1,500 mm x 4,000 mm) such as wing ribs and fuselage sections. The foundation, which would otherwise be included as standard, can be omitted, because the F 1540 can be installed directly on the factory floor.
Aircraft components play an important role in the new business unit, and specialists from the Starrag Group and its technology partners (including Ceratizit, CGTech, GMN, Haimer, Ingersoll, Iscar, Kennametal, Sandvik, Siemens, Walter) provided visitors from Belgium, China, Germany, France, Britain, South Korea, North America, Russia and the Czech Republic with information about the manufacture of these components.
About one sixth of the 100 Ecospeed machining centres sold so far (16, to be precise) are in use at Premium Aerotec, an Airbus group-owned tier one supplier with factories in Germany and Romania that employs around 9,000 employees and has a turnover of approximately €1.9 billion. The machining centres are used in particular for the production of large aircraft structures from aluminium, titanium and carbon fibre composite materials (CFRP).
Dr. Matthias Lange, head of cube and rotation machining at Premium Aerotec, says: "Beside the enormously high levels of efficiency, the machines from the Starrag Group stand out due to the fact that the production systems have been developed and adapted to be exactly in line with our needs. Thanks to the highly dynamic 5-axis simultaneous cutting, parallel kinematics sets the benchmark for us when it comes to machining large, complex aluminium structural components compared with conventional machining".
