There are revolutionary innovations that require radical changes and reorganizations. And there are innovations that are only seemingly collateral, yet allow companies to grow in a way that is sometimes unexpected.
At Eurotherm, we experienced such kind of growth when we installed the new Schröder bending machine. We thus became independent in processing large sheets, to the point where we were able to create a completely new department: innovative, connected, highly-performing and safe for the operators.
Until 2018, sheet metal processing was carried out outside the company, by subcontractors that were specialized in bending large format and thin sheet metal.
The sheets we use at Eurotherm reach up to 4 meters in size. Our need was to be able to bend them in-house, without requiring an unsustainable number of operators and within acceptable time and quality parameters.
How could we do it?
The birth of Eurotherm’s new bending department
Once installed, the new MAK4EVO bending system, manufactured by Schröder and distributed in Italy by Evomach, became the heart of the sheet metal working department. The complete work cycle includes a fiber laser cutting system that directly feeds the new bending machine, equipped with a suction cup loading system. This way, the sheet metal “flies” directly from the laser to the Schröder, without ever touching the ground (where it can get dirty).
Please note: the MAK4EVO bending machine is the largest model available on the market. The system also takes care of managing program changes between productions that occur in one-off batches.
The reorganization of the workflow has allowed us to reach the surprising (even for us) amount of 40 panels processed per hour.
Schröder is a new interpretation of bending
Bending large metal sheets is a key element in Eurotherm’s production, since it’s the essential element of our painting booths.
Schröder has come up with a hybrid technology between paneling and station bending. By adopting its bending system, we have now become independent in processing sheet metal up to 5 meters in size. Our bending cycle is thus flexible and fast.
You can read more about the Schröder bending system in the following article on Publitec Online.
