Fifth Nakamura for Velden

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Velden Engineering (UK) Ltd has ordered its fifth Nakamura-Tome turning centre, a NTY3-150 twin spindle 3-turret machine, from the Engineering Technology Group.

Based in Bolton, the subcontract manufacturer offers services including CNC machining, laser cutting, waterjet machining, sheet metalwork, assembly, product build, busbar production, design and development.

It serves clients in the nuclear, offshore, rail, motorsport, aerospace, automotive, environmental, medical and pharmaceutical sectors.

In 2012, the company acquired its first Nakamura-Tome turning centre, a compact WT100 twin-spindle twin turret machine. This formed part of a strategy the company was looking to push forward with regarding the replacement of older machines with modern multi-tasking machines to reduce the number of operations and improve efficiency.

Lee Valentine, Plant Manager, says: “Originally, Velden was looking to buy a different brand of machine but we were impressed upon seeing a Nakamura WT100 at an exhibition. When we learnt that the next generation of this machine was about to be launched with a new large screen windows-based control, the decision to purchase our first Nakamura, the WT100 was made on the back of it fitting perfectly with Velden’s Industry 4.0 aspirations. Velden became one of the first companies to take delivery of this next generation machine, which became an instant success. The machine is very reliable with higher overall equipment effectiveness that made it particularly impressive to all customers and visitors who saw it in action.” 

As part of its continuous improvement strategy, the company has now decided to replace that first machine that arrived almost a decade ago.

Lee Valentine said: We received an offer to sell our original WT100 and we felt it would be a good opportunity to replace our oldest Nakamura with a brand new WT150II. Firstly, the Nakamura machines retain a high residual value and the opportunity to have three of the same type of machine with the same programs and tooling would have created a uniformity on the shop floor.”

“However, many of the enquiries we are starting to receive are for parts in slightly higher volumes with increased complexity and also above the size that is suitable to do on our current range of sliding-head machines. 

"As a 3-turret machine all with Y-axis, the Nakamura NTY3-150 machine opens up a greater opportunity to do even more simultaneous machining and it will deliver even faster cycle times. This will be possible through the use of special tooling on what will be very price-sensitive parts. 

"The additional cost of the Nakamura NTY3-150 will be offset by allowing us to be even more competitive on certain packages of work and it will therefore enable us to win a lot of new business on the back of it. We are looking forward to the machine landing in the new year.” 

www.veldenengineering.co.uk

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