Clearview National April 2016 - Issue 173 | Page 126

MACHINERY

Look, no hands!
Whiteline, the Sussex-based fabricator, has recently
conducted a fundamental reassessment of its
production facilities and capabilities. This has resulted
in a major £1.4 million investment programme to
replace and modernise its PVCu manufacturing lines.
»»DEPUTY MD RESPONSIBLE FOR
production, Ken Gray, explains: “We
deliberately set out to challenge some of the
dated manufacturing methods and machinery
that have long been employed by our industry.
We wanted to focus on waste reduction,
improved production flows and efficiency but
most important of all, to produce the best,
consistently high quality, finished products on
the market today.”
January 2016 saw the commissioning of a
new £0.5m Rotox, fully automated Sash line
that produces a consistently finished sash every
70 seconds. Window Designer interfaces with
the new line, batching construction by each
profile type to reduce the number of welding

block changes. A brand new bar code label
system identifies cut profile positions to load
into the welder.
The new CNC quad welder uses the very
latest technology. The heads heat to 270° C
providing a shorter heat soak into the profile
for more accurate and better quality welds,
especially on foil finishes. The welding blocks
are manufactured from high tensile aluminium
and ‘tuned’ to Whiteline’s custom and standard
PVCu profiles, a £50k investment on its
own.
After welding the sash passes along a cooling
table, with the speed optimised to each profile
and foil finish, followed by the cleaning stage
where two machines clean two corners each.

This is a knifed process that can produce a
cleaned weld 2.5mm wide, with a unique inner
bevel pinch detail to only 0.2mm, another
industry first and no need to hand finish here!
As part of the CNC welding process, the
system automatically sends bead dimension
data to the automated saw that cuts beads
whilst the sash is being cleaned, resulting in a
perfect bead fit, first time every time.
“We believe that this is the first set up of
its kind in the UK and demonstrates how
Whiteline’s engineering team, working with
our suppliers, are defining the future for the
industry,” concludes Ken Gray proudly.
www.whiteline.co.uk

Accurate measures for
an expanding company
»»INTASTOP LTD HAS RECENTLY
invested £80K in new equipment from
Elumatec, the leading premium supplier of
profile machining. Intastop is an innovative
company and lead the way in the specialist
fields of anti-ligature products and door and
wall protection. This pedigree, combined
with the company’s commitment to new
product development and leading edge
innovation, ensures Intastop remains a leading
manufacturer and supplier to
the healthcare, public and
leisure build markets.

126 » APR 2016 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M

“For over twenty years we have built up a
considerable body of knowledge in supplying
cost-effective protection solutions to
hospitals, schools, supermarkets and airports,”
said Shaun Howard, Intastop operations
director.
“Intastop products need precise
dimensions; there is no tolerance for
deviation in the measurements. We needed
new machinery to speed up production but
with no compromise on accuracy. This lead
us to the Elumatec machine show in Milton
Keynes.”
Intastop viewed
a demonstration of
SBZ122/64 and were
very impressed by its
precision profiling. This
machining centre has a
power torque spindle that
can machine thick-walled

profiles and lengths up to 7.05m. Automatic
clamp positioning means time is saved when
profile lengths have to be changed.
Elumatec’s technical sales manager, Andrew
Robson, said “It is always rewarding to work
with companies like Intastop that research
leading edge equipment and technology.
We look forward to continuing to support
Intastop in its exciting future.”