Hydraulic cylinder manufacturer Sahgev has installed a Thompson friction welding machine at its factory in France.
The Gevigney-based company is using the equipment to join a range of chromed bar piston rods from 20mm 60mm diameter.
The refurbished PR Series machine is equipped with a number of special features including a single tool, twin axis flash removal device, two jaw chuck and quick change non-marking tooling.
It is part of Sahgevs latest investment in the plant, which produces more than 300,000 cylinders a year for customers including Claas and John Deere. The company employs 200 people and has an annual turnover of 27m.
This machine will help us diversify and win more business from customers in the construction machine market, commented Pierre-Antoine Quivogne, Sahgevs sales and marketing manager.
Thompson also provided a sub-contract friction welding service to Sahgev in the run-up to the machines delivery. Its facility at Halesowen is among the largest in Europe.
The busy engineering firm has recently launched a new generation of friction welders for joining chromed piston rods and cylinders used in construction machine equipment.
Improved features include a heavy duty flash removal system which offers better chip control thanks to a head mounted flash guard.
Thompson will be aiming to build on its order book when it exhibits at the Aero Engineering Show at Birminghams NEC from November 12-13.
Thompson produces machines for component makers in the aerospace, automotive, construction machine and mineral exploration industries. This year marks the 50th anniversary of its first-ever friction weld. www.thompson-friction-welding.com