Influence of the natural aluminium oxide layer on ... - ALU-WEB.DE

EXTRUSION
Gerhardi and GIA Clecim – an European partnership
Extrusion line from a single source for intelligent pr<strong>of</strong>iles (II)
Gaspar Fernandez Roldán, GIA Clecim Press
GIA Clecim Press would like use this
unique opportunity at <strong>the</strong> GDA conference
to introduce itself as a company able
to attend <strong>the</strong> existing <strong>aluminium</strong> extrusion
demands. GIA Clecim Press is a dynamic
company which has become, during
<strong>the</strong> past years, one <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> leaders in
<strong>the</strong> metal extrusion market in <strong>the</strong> world.
At <strong>the</strong> beginning <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> 1980s, when GIA in
Albacete, Spain, began producing extrusion
dies, <strong>the</strong>re was a boom in Spain’s building
industry which provided huge market opportunities
for <strong>aluminium</strong> window and structural
sections. Good starting conditions, which encouraged
<strong>the</strong> young company to extend
its engineering performance besides
die manufacturing to o<strong>the</strong>r applications
in extrusion plants. So GIA became an
equipment manufacturer which <strong>of</strong>fered
handling and processing equipment for
extruded sections to <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>n growing
Spanish market.
A substantial gap was filled when,
towards <strong>the</strong> end <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> 1980s, <strong>the</strong> technical
staff at GIA ventured to attempt
<strong>the</strong> centrepiece <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> plants: <strong>the</strong> first
extrusion press designed by <strong>the</strong> company
itself and made by it in 1990 was
a 14 MN press <strong>of</strong> conventional, backloading
configuration, which began
operating as part <strong>of</strong> a complete plant
supplied by GIA to a Spanish extruder
in Albacete.
Following <strong>the</strong> company policy to
become a supplier <strong>of</strong> turn-key projects
in <strong>the</strong> extrusion business, GIA developed
and introduced to <strong>the</strong> market <strong>the</strong>
short-stroke back loading design <strong>of</strong> 18
to 22 MN. Due to <strong>the</strong> factory location
and <strong>the</strong> great growth <strong>of</strong> extruded <strong>aluminium</strong>
consumption, <strong>the</strong> main approached market at
<strong>the</strong> time was Spain where <strong>the</strong> equipment had
a huge demand and customer acceptance.
At <strong>the</strong> end <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> 1990s <strong>the</strong> leap to trading
overseas took place. After orders from <strong>the</strong> Dominican
Republic o<strong>the</strong>rs followed from Mexico
and <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn states <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> USA. By
<strong>the</strong> end <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> millennium, that is within about
ten years, GIA had supplied 45 new extrusion
plants equipped with 18 and 35 MN presses
<strong>of</strong> its own. Changed conditions in <strong>the</strong> extru-
sion market and also <strong>the</strong> advance into new
markets such as <strong>the</strong> gulf region demanded <strong>the</strong>
development <strong>of</strong> larger presses from <strong>the</strong> beginning
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> new millennium. Thus, <strong>the</strong> range
<strong>of</strong> short stroke back-loading presses was extended
up to 45 MN. As before, <strong>the</strong>se formed
<strong>the</strong> centrepiece <strong>of</strong> complete GIA plants.
The decision by Siemens VAI in 2006 to
break away from <strong>the</strong> extrusion press construction
activities <strong>of</strong> its French traditional trademark
Clecim opened up new perspectives for
GIA. It was soon decided to acquire <strong>the</strong> rights
to and designs <strong>of</strong> Clecim presses and, toge<strong>the</strong>r
with <strong>the</strong> company’s own press programme, to
market ‘GIA Clecim’ presses. For GIA, Clecim’s
technology was a milestone for <strong>the</strong> company’s
fur<strong>the</strong>r development. At <strong>the</strong> time <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
sale Clecim still had a proud reference list <strong>of</strong>
more than 100 extrusion presses built since
<strong>the</strong> early 1970s.
GIA Clecim Press became <strong>the</strong>n <strong>the</strong> press
manufacturer with <strong>the</strong> largest number <strong>of</strong> references
in Europe. This transfer <strong>of</strong> property
congregated technology and know-how from
all companies which have merged to Clecim
along <strong>the</strong> time. GIA Clecim Press also took
advantage <strong>of</strong> this transfer by hiring expert engineers
from former Clecim Presses Division.
Therefore, GIA Clecim Press became <strong>the</strong>
successor <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> companies Loewy, Davy, Morane,
Somu, Loire, Secim, Clesid and finally
Clecim, since <strong>the</strong> foundation <strong>of</strong> Chavanne
Brun in Montbrison (France) in 1857. All <strong>the</strong>se
company were extraordinary press builders
along <strong>the</strong> time, and have demonstrated outstanding
designs for <strong>the</strong> extrusion field.
GIA Clecim Press has in its archive all <strong>the</strong>
information, calculations and drawings <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
presses designed by <strong>the</strong>se manufacturers during
<strong>the</strong>ir activity. Our company maintains <strong>the</strong>
willing <strong>of</strong> keeping contact with all users <strong>of</strong>
<strong>the</strong>se equipments as well as continues increasing
this reference list.
Particularly important in <strong>the</strong> <strong>aluminium</strong> extrusion
field, GIA acquired an established <strong>the</strong>
range <strong>of</strong> modern short-stroke presses. Since
<strong>the</strong>n, along with its own back loading
presses <strong>the</strong> company has been able
to react flexibly to <strong>the</strong> various needs
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> market and <strong>of</strong>fer <strong>the</strong> optimum
press configuration for each individual
case as <strong>the</strong> market de-mands. Ano<strong>the</strong>r
benefit for GIA is <strong>the</strong> fact that Clecim
extrusion presses were not built for
<strong>aluminium</strong> alone. Through Clecim
GIA also acquired technologies and
references for <strong>the</strong> extrusion <strong>of</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
materials, such as stainless steel, copper,
special alloys as well as particular
projects. In that connection it is worth
mentioning that GIA Clecim Press has
just commissioned 22 MN press for a
stainless steel plant in Austria and has
been awarded for o<strong>the</strong>r interesting
projects as <strong>the</strong> 42 MN extrusion press
for stainless also in Sweden and a 35
MN complete extrusion plant for copper
alloys in China.
The meanwhile consolidated engineering
programme that originated
from GIA and Clecim today includes
presses <strong>of</strong> any load and type including direct
and indirect extrusion with or without piercer,
optionally in front-loading or back-loading
versions. In <strong>the</strong> recent past several complete
plants have been commissioned all over <strong>the</strong>
world such as a 14 MN line in Bosnia, 18 MN
in Ireland, a 30 MN front loading press plant
in Bahrain, a 22 MN press line in Saudi Arabia,
a 65 MN front loading press to Japan.
All <strong>the</strong> plants are developed, designed, produced,
assembled and tested at <strong>the</strong> company’s
own works in Spain. In <strong>the</strong> mechanical workshop
parts weighing up to 100 tonnes can be
machined.
38 ALUMINIUM · EAC CONGRESS 2011