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New Technologies
OLD MORANDO KL 12
LATHES RETROFITTED
Another facet of Berco technological innovation and know-how
applied to production processes
Radical changes, unmatched
by any of our competitors on
the world market, have taken
place in the sprocket and sprocket
rim manufacturing process.
The entire work cycle, from the
hot forging of the sprockets on
the maxi-press (already operational
for more than 200 different earth-
TURNING AND DRILLING
IN A SINGLE OPERATION
THE REASONS
BEHIND THE CHOICE
For more than two years now,
the machining process in the
Copparo factory sprocket
department has been subject to
intensive renewal and upgrading
work, with the introduction of
‘new’ vertical turning lathe centres
obtained by the retrofitting of
six old MORANDO KL12 vertical
turning lathes.
The old Morando KL12 lathes line
8 BN31 • 3rd Quarter 2002
moving machines!) the heat
treatment with differential
quenching and stress relieving,
the turning and drilling of the
mounting flange right through
to the painting has been planned
and engineered by Berco
engineering down to the finest
detail.
These machines, built in the
sixties (installed in Berco in ’68),
i.e. several years before the largescale
introduction of continuous
numerical control, are equipped
with a relay programming system
known as ‘cabled logic’. Despite
the age, the supporting structure,
the hydraulic clamping
mechanism on the self-centering
chuck and the double vertical
carriage (with a four-position
turret on the right carriage) are
still in a good state and, in
particular, the sturdiness and
working capacity are absolutely
unrivalled for this type of machine.
On considering all these factors,
together with the high cost of
buying new lathes of the same
size and type, Berco decided to
go ahead with the ‘retrofitting’
(i.e. reconditioning of mechanical
parts and upgrading of functions
with the installation of electronic
systems) of the six old machines,
despite the fact that project
completion times would be longer
than for the purchase of new
machines.
COMPLETE RETROFITTING
Turning and drilling in a single
operation, especially with small
and medium sized batches, can
result in shorter set-up and
materials handling times and
reduced drilling costs. With this
in mind, the left-hand carriages
of the Morando turning lathes
have been transformed into drilling
and tapping units and a brake
has been fitted to the main spindle
line, together with an encoder,
for the continuous control of both
the position and speed of the
self-centering chuck.
These drilling units, powered by 16
kW brushless motors, consist of an
ISO 50 taper bore spindle (with the
coolant passing through the tool)
with a maximum speed of 1500
rpm.
A 6-tool magazine has been
installed on the right side of the
machine, giving autonomy both
in the production of batches with
twinned tools and in machining
cycles requiring different tools.
The basic mechanical retrofitting
involves both the ‘X’ and ‘Z’
movement axes on either carriage,
with the application of recirculating
ball screws and the rebuilding of
the counter-guides with the
application of play-adjustment
gibs.
As regards the electronic and
control systems, brushless motors
(with Siemens drives) have been
installed, with encoders for
controlling the axis position and
speed, together with latestgeneration
840D digital numerical
control.
Finally, a tool measurement unit
has been installed on each of the
two vertical carriages, consisting
of a MARPOSS gauge mounted
on a protected telescopic arm,
allowing the rapid set-up of new
tools inserted in the tool magazine
(to be used in the left carriage
or in the turret on the right
carriage).
All these interventions of
retrofitting, mechanical overhauling,
application of new tools and
functions and directed at improved
safety of the system (be it for the
machine itself or for the operator)
in the end has let us construct a
completely new vertical lathe
equipped with the most modern
technologies which does not find
an equivalent in the commerce
of new machines.
THE SCENARIO
The first two machines, already
in place in the factory, are nearing
completion and will soon be ready
for the first machining trials. A
third turning lathe, the same as