Editor's Page
Previous editor's page: 06/2005
ServoTIG - Orbital Welding Revolution & Amsterdam Marathon
This time I have something really interesting to tell for Tube and Pipe Industries.
I wrote in the previous editor's page that I met at Schweissen & Schneiden Welding show
some really interesting people. They are form Dynamicc Welding Company, Holland. The point is that they
have developed a revolutionary Orbital Welding system - ServoTIG. I was told then
that it can make orbital welding without typical parameter programming. Machine supposed just
to need some information about tube material, diameters and wall thickness. After
that, it can make full penetrated welding seam orbitally. First, I was a kind of
interested, but since all Orbital Welding makers are often claiming that they
have something new, I didn't got too excited with it.
Trip to Holland
Anyhow, after the Essen show, I began to think about this idea. If it really works as they say, I started to look for possibilities to
visit to their factory in Holland. I was a kind of lucky, since I
noticed soon that Amsterdam marathon will take place on October 16:th. So, it was a kind of match for me to
combine these two interesting things with the same trip!
So, we agreed about the meeting and demonstrations which took place on October 14:th.
I am not deeply familiar with orbital welding, but still what I saw was
astonishing. There were a number of tubes being fabricated with T-DRILL's well
known Collars. Now I really understand also why tube/pipe branching is easy
with T-DRILL system.
So, People at Dynamicc Welding had planned to show me how Orbital welding can be
made just perfectly with first trial and without any given parameters to the machine using
difficult cases where wallthickness is changing. This, as far as I know, is difficult for ordinary
orbital welding. This is also what I saw.
They just entered tube diameters, approximate of wall thicknesses and material. The machine
actually found the full penetration by itself and maintained it through the
full orbital cycle. A log list was available after the welding how all happened.
The welding seam was perfect as far as I can understand.
Suddenly
I realized that the matter that I saw really can be a revolution within
automatic orbital welding. This is why I am writing to you about it.
I saw two weldings and I am 100% sure that
they were not practiced before, since I heard from T-DRILL that they had
sent just one ST304L 4" pipe with 2 mm wallthickness tube for testing.
This one was welded during my visit. The wall thickness on the collar
was changing from 1.2 to 1.8 mm and the machine adjusted itself accordingly.
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4" x 2.0 mm ST304L pipe with 4" collar being welded orbitally.
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All above 4 weldings were made with the same program without entering any parameters.
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I am actually proud that TubeNet is the first well known Tube & Pipe media to be able to tell about ServoTIG.
Being thankful for this experience, I made even an enquiry form for the manufacturer itself if
you want to get more information about ServoTIG. Please help yourself: Click Here
Amsterdam Marathon
Those who have been following TubeNet for a long time, knows that 4 years ago
something went wrong in my head and I started to run. First marathon in Atlanta 2001
and then 24 more. Last one was Amsterdam on October 16:th, 2005.
I am so pleased now that I went there to run since I broke by record time which is now 3:15.
Seven minutes less than in Richmond, Virginia nearly two years ago (3:22).
Cheers my friends
Juha
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