Trumpf: Automation Automated Swing Bending with a Robot

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The Heidelberg (Germany) sheet metal manufacturer Autz + Herrmann has been in business for 115 years and has made a name for itself as a pioneer in laser processing. By venturing into automated swing bending, managing directors Irina Autz and Florian Friedrich are now setting the course for the next technological leadership.

The robot arm lowers onto the metal sheet. Its grippers with low-pressure suction cups gently pick up the blank, rotate it lightning-fast into the required position, and place it in Trumpf's swing bending machine "Tru Bend Center 7020." The bending process then takes place fully automatically: quickly, precisely, with repeat accuracy and in the best quality.

The couple, Irina Autz and Florian Friedrich, is proud of their new system, even if it looks entirely different from what was originally planned, as Friedrich says with a smile: "We had already purchased the swing bending machine 'Tru Bend Center 7020' and wished for the most compact and cost-effective automation solution possible." However, in detailed discussions with the bending experts from Trumpf and their strategic partner Starmatik, it quickly became apparent that the intended small solution could not meet the requirements of Autz + Herrmann. In the end, a well-founded consultation led to the best solution for Autz + Herrmann.

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A Step Ahead

A passion for sheet metal is a key to success for Irina Autz and Florian Friedrich, who lead the family business Autz + Herrmann in the heart of the Baden-Württemberg university city of Heidelberg in its fourth generation. Courage is another key: continually investing in new technologies to meet market demands. "In the early 1980s, my father and my uncle were among the first to buy a laser cutting system from Trumpf and made a name for themselves as pioneers of this technology. We still benefit from that, but we don't rest on those laurels," explains Irina Autz. Today, Autz + Herrmann offers solutions along the entire sheet metal process chain and supplies customers with both standard parts and ready-to-install, custom assemblies if desired. Irina Autz, who is responsible for finance, production, and sales, always keeps a close ear to the market. "Our customers want one-stop service. We have set ourselves up for that with our motto 'Blech unlimited.' When we encounter requirements that we cannot meet with our existing technologies, machines, or capacities, we search for suitable solutions."

Well-advised—correctly invested

It was the same with the topic of swing bending. "We have been interested in this technology for some time to fill a gap in our portfolio," says Irina Autz. When a suitable request from a customer for around 10,000 parts per year came in, the matter became decisive. The entrepreneurial couple quickly decided to purchase the "Tru Bend Center 7020" bending machine from Trumpf. "What was decisive for us was the exceptional nesting height of 350 millimeters (approx. 13,7 inches), which allows us to bend housings in one pass, for example," explains Florian Friedrich. The decision on automation was made only after thorough consultation with Stefan Richter, bending expert and project manager at Trumpf, and Roberto De Nardi of Starmatik. Trumpf and the automation specialist Starmatik have been strategic partners since 2021, focusing on robotic automation of bending machines. "Autz + Herrmann benefited from this partnership," says Stefan Richter. "When Mr. Friedrich told me that he intended to run the plant unmanned overnight or over the weekend, I knew that a small automation solution would not be sufficient in the long run." Richter's arguments and the proposed concept fell on fertile ground. Irina Autz and Florian Friedrich decided to invest in robotic automation for loading and unloading the swing bending machine (Starmatik) and to connect the entire system to the existing sheet metal storage (Stopa) with 550 storage spaces. The unloading of finished parts occurs without interrupting the bending process.

More Precise Thanks to Automation

With the "Tru Bend Center 7020" bending machine, Autz + Herrmann can now precisely and automatically shape complex components from thin sheet metal. "This was often cumbersome and difficult with free bending," explains Irina Autz. The sensor-based angle measuring system ACB-Laser ensures perfect and reproducible bending results, allowing angles to be controlled and maintained accurately during the bending process. The programming of the swing bending machine, including the robotic automation, is done at Autz + Herrmann using the programming software Tec Zone Bend in combination with the simulation software Simul Easy. "With Simul Easy, 3D simulations including collision monitoring can be created. This gives our programmers security," explains Florian Friedrich. Manual intervention is not required during the machining process. Retooling with the integrated tool changer Tool Master Bend in the "Tru Bend Center 7020" does not require an operator when changing standard tools, and material supply comes automatically from the storage. A robot, which rides on a 16 000 mm (approx. 630 inch) long floor track installed in front of the bending machine, quickly and precisely inserts the blanks and stacks removed finished parts onto prepared pallets. "Our employees only need to transport the loaded pallets away and provide empty ones for serial production," explains Florian Friedrich.

Perfectly Automated as a Team

Although Autz + Herrmann was the first company where Trumpf and Starmatik installed the complete solution consisting of a "Tru Bend Center 7020" bending machine and robotic automation, everything went smoothly from consultation to commissioning. "We particularly liked that the two partners acted as a team at all times. This way, we got everything practically from a single source," says Florian Friedrich, satisfied.

The investment in the Trumpf bending machine, combined with Starmatik's automation, turned out slightly higher than initially planned, but the entrepreneurial couple does not regret the purchase decision. "The overall system consisting of the machine, automatic loading and unloading, and storage connection is a great solution that leaves all options open for us. This sets the course for technological leadership in forming," says Florian Friedrich. Irina Autz adds, "The teamwork worked well again. Together, we initiate an investment idea, examine it from all angles, and listen to the experts' arguments. It's an interactive process. You can imagine it like a pendulum that eventually comes to a standstill. Then our decision is made." Florian Friedrich adds with a smile, "And then we go full throttle, then it can't go fast enough for us."

(kmu)

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