News: UK first for TWI

The TWI Technology Centre in Rotherham has become the first of its kind in the UK to secure qualification for a complex additive manufacturing (AM) process.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations, with expertise in solving problems in all aspects of manufacturing, fabrication and whole-life integrity management technologies.

The Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

TWI's Yorkshire site has become the first AM facility in the UK to secure a signed facility qualification from Lloyds Register (LR) for the manufacture of components in Stainless Steel 316L on its EOS M290 laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB) system.

The process is used to produce geometrically complex components that are difficult, expensive or impossible to create via conventional manufacturing.

Lloyds Register provides quality assurance and certification for ships, offshore structures, and shore-based installations such as power stations and railway infrastructure. It is part of a UK charity dedicated to research and education in science and engineering.

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Following an extensive independent audit, the site was awarded a facility qualification covering the entire end-to-end process including design, materials, manufacture, post-processing and inspection.

The certifications means that TWI can prove to their customers and the market that the AM parts manufactured on the AMP meet the required codes, standards, controls and best practices.

Paul Goodwin at TWI said: "PBF-LB is increasingly being used in industry, but its uptake has been hindered by a lack of understanding of the process, particularly in terms of controlling the quality and reproducibility of the parts made and how to qualify and certify these parts for use.

"The achievement of the facility qualification allows TWI to support industry on their journey towards part qualification and pre-audit facility checks for additively manufactured parts. We are now engaging with stakeholders regarding future work and additional developments to strengthen the facility qualification, including the addition of other materials and PBF-LB systems."

David Hardacre, Lead Specialist at Lloyds Register, added: "An LR qualification provides independent third-party assurance to an AM facility and demonstrates a real commitment to the highest levels of consistent quality and safety."

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News: TWI's vision for Simple nuclear project

TWI is working alongside the Nuclear AMRC and other partners on a system for the automated in-process inspection of welds on critical components for the nuclear sector.

Supported by £1.35m of funding, the project, called Simple (single manufacturing platform environment), aims to integrate a range of manufacturing operations onto a single machining platform.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations, with expertise in solving problems in all aspects of manufacturing, fabrication and whole-life integrity management technologies.

The Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

Also with state of the art facilities on the AMP, the £25m Nuclear AMRC is a joint initiative with industry, The University of Sheffield and The University of Manchester's Dalton Nuclear Institute, and is designed to help build and enhance the UK's civil nuclear new build industry.

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The Nuclear AMRC is leading the research consortium including two of its sister centres within the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, the Advanced Forming Research Centre and AMRC with Boeing, as well as the University of Sheffield physics department, TWI and Peak NDT.

Partners are developing an integrated welding and monitoring system which combines a range of sensors and testing tools with an automated arc welding head. This will allow automated in-process inspection of welds, improving quality and reducing the risk of weld failure leading to costly scrapping or rework.

Further development could then integrate this tool with a comprehensive selection of machining, cladding and inspection heads on a single large manufacturing platform. By combining conventional and advanced techniques onto a single platform, the project aims to achieve cost and time savings of at least 50 per cent for a range of complex fabrications.

A spokesperson for TWI said: "TWI will work on developing vision systems based on HDR camera technology and neural networks for real time monitoring and assessment of arc welds.

"The project seeks to see time and cost savings of at least 50% for a range of complex fabrications. This will be achieved by pulling together a selection of machining, cladding and inspection heads on a single manufacturing platform to monitor welds and ensure that any problems are picked up and can be addressed in real time."

Simple will focus on large components measuring at least two metres such as pressure vessel sections, large valve casings and decommissioning waste containers.

The project is funded by the Department for Business, Energy & Industry Strategy (BEIS) through the Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) managed by Innovate UK.

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News: Nuclear AMRC tackling challenges of large-scale manufacturing

The Nuclear AMRC has secured nearly £2.5m in Government funding to lead on two new research and development (R&D) projects to investigate two contrasting approaches to producing large-scale nuclear components.

With state of the art facilities on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham, the £25m Nuclear AMRC is a joint initiative with industry, The University of Sheffield and The University of Manchester's Dalton Nuclear Institute, and is designed to help build and enhance the UK's civil nuclear new build industry.

The Inform project aims to improve the process of moving large parts between multiple machines, while the Simple project aims to do more operations on a single platform.

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Professor Steve Jones, chief technology officer of the Nuclear AMRC, said: "Simple and Inform are based on the two different philosophies of manufacturing large high-value components – taking the part to the machine, and taking the machine to the part. Both projects aim to provide significant improvements to UK productivity, potentially cutting manufacturing time and cost by half for a variety of large nuclear components.

"By developing innovative approaches to the fundamental challenges of manufacturing, these projects will help the UK’s nuclear supply chain to compete globally. These technologies could also provide major benefits to other high-value manufacturing sectors, such as offshore renewables or oil & gas."

The Inform project (intelligent fixtures for optimised and radical manufacture) will develop an adaptive fixturing system to ease the movement of large parts around a factory, and ensure precision throughout forging, machining, welding, inspection and assembly.

The Nuclear AMRC is leading the project, backed by around £1.1m project funding, with partners include fixturing specialist MetLase (the AMP-based joint venture between Rolls-Royce and the Unipart Group), Sheffield Forgemasters, Cambridge Vacuum Engineering, NPL and TWI (the organisation has a Technology Centre on the AMP).

Simple (single manufacturing platform environment), aims to integrate a range of manufacturing operations onto a single machining platform. Supported by £1.35m project funding, the Nuclear AMRC will lead a research consortium including two of its sister centres within the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, the Advanced Forming Research Centre and AMRC with Boeing, as well as the University of Sheffield physics department, TWI and Peak NDT.

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The Nuclear AMRC is also working the Nuclear Industry Association (NIA) to map future contract opportunities in the nuclear market, and help match manufacturers with relevant work packages.

The Nuclear AMRC has secured funding from Innovate UK, through the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, to create a robust model of future demand for UK nuclear manufacturing. The model will help manufacturers identify work packages which they can bid for, and allow R&D and support to be focused on areas of the greatest value to the UK supply chain.

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News: Engineering Extravaganza at AMRC

An "Engineering Extravaganza" returns to Rotherham today to inspire the next generation of engineers.

Hosted by the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) with Boeing, STEM Ambassadors from leading institutions will inspire more than 120 pupils from 12 secondary schools across the Sheffield city region.

Based on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham the AMRC focuses on advanced machining and materials research for aerospace and other high-value manufacturing sectors. It operates a £20.5m Training Centre on the site to train the next generation of engineers.

As part of British Science Week, four professional organisations will stage an interactive fun day at the AMRC's Knowledge Transfer Centre. It is the third time the event has been held at the AMRC.

The young people will get involved in a number of challenges to put their problem-solving skills to the test, to show them that engineers play a leading role in solving the world's problems, and to discover more about the broad range of exciting careers available in engineering.

The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) and Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) will each set a hands-on challenge to get the school pupils to work in teams and provide engineering solutions.

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The ICE will run the skyscraper challenge using Lego. The students will be tasked with designing and building a high rise structure to withstand the forces of nature and provide the best value for developers.

The IET challenge looks at the technology behind "vacuum tube trains," capable of travelling at 4,000 miles an hour, as a lower cost alternative to air travel and will get the youngsters to engineer their own small scale vacuum tube train and show what forces will act on it.

The IOM3 challenge will explore how materials play a central role in our lives and have helped to change and improve the technology we rely on.

Meanwhile, the IMechE will be helping the teams of youngsters to build an air-powered model of the Bloodhound car, which is hoping to raise the World Land Speed Record to more than 1,000 miles an hour, and compete against each other to see which team’s model will go the furthest and fastest.

TWI will also be providing a talk and a demonstration at their next-door facility on additive manufacturing and friction stir welding, showing students how it is being used to produce complex metal components for many exciting industries including aerospace.

Ian Crowston, a chartered engineer with IMechE, who is one of the event organisers, said: "This is a great event which shows our young visitors the exciting and varied careers which are possible by studying STEM subjects.

"The event has gone from strength to strength and we have seen more and more schools wanting to get involved which has led to a much bigger and better event being held at the AMRC every six months.

"It is always very rewarding to see how much the young people enjoy the day and learn from it."

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News: TWI showcases Rotherham expertise

Member of Parliament for Rotherham, Sarah Champion, visited TWI's Rotherham facility last week to find out how advanced engineering technologies are being used to support local companies.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations, with expertise in solving problems in all aspects of manufacturing, fabrication and whole-life integrity management technologies.

The Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

The MP was welcomed and shown around by TWI associate director Rob Scudamore, who oversees activities at the Rotherham base. During the tour Sarah was able to see two of TWI's principal technologies in action: friction stir welding and laser additive manufacturing. She was also given a brief overview of TWI's history of engineering innovation, covering the invention of friction stir welding, 50 years of laser technology development and its current focus on supporting industrial companies wishing to exploit additive manufacturing.

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Sarah was particularly interested in the work of Rachel Sanderson, one of TWI's STEM ambassadors. Rachel highlighted TWI's outreach programme with local schools, including its ever-popular ‘welding with chocolate’ activity, which uses chocolate bars to memorably demonstrate the strengthening effect of joining metals.

Sarah expressed that she was keen to see companies engage not only with pupils, but also with parents and teachers, to encourage more youngsters to take up engineering as a career choice.

Rob Scudamore (pictured, second left), said: "Our facility in Rotherham delivers world-class innovations to industry worldwide. Our work on friction stir welding has made the new generation of light fast trains possible, and is used in products ranging from Apple iMacs to spacecraft.

"TWI's activities in metal additive manufacturing over many years have pushed the boundaries of what is thought possible, and helped numerous industries adopt and use the technology to make real products.

"We are currently developing production-ready processes for clients in numerous sectors, including aerospace and medical, and are delighted to work with Sarah to continue to deliver innovation in Rotherham."

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News: Reach for the lasers at TWI

Industry experts are to gather at The Welding Institute's (TWI's) Technology Centre in Rotherham next week to discuss the impact of additive manufacturing.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations, with expertise in solving problems in all aspects of manufacturing, fabrication and whole-life integrity management technologies.

The Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

TWI is pioneering the manufacturing freedoms offered by metal based additive manufacturing technologies in the aerospace, military and medical industries. The event on October 3 will highlight the use of Laser Metal Deposition (LMD), an additive process where a laser is used to melt metal powder onto a base material.

The process can be used to repair aero engine components or to build an object up layer by layer from 3D CAD data and is also being used in the consumer market.

When compared to subtractive manufacturing - approaches that remove material to form the shape of a work piece such as milling or turning - additive manufacturing reduces waste material, tooling costs and lead times.

Rotherham firm Hydraulic Pumps (UK) Ltd, worked with TWI to repair hydraulic pump shafts made from highly alloyed carbon steel that were previously being scrapped as they could not be repaired by conventional welding techniques.

Experts estimate that the additive manufacturing industry is expected to continue strong growth over the next few years, reaching a net worth of $3.7 billion worldwide by 2015.

The free seminar will discuss what is possible for the industrial use of the process and will include case studies from TWI members including Rolls-Royce and Smith and Nephew plus TWI development partners, LPW Ltd and Fripp Design and Research Ltd.

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News: TWI helps shipbuilding industry move towards friction stir welding revolution

Key representatives from the European shipbuilding sector visited Rotherham recently to learn about the ground-breaking progress in developing the friction stir welding (FSW) technique for steel.

The Welding Institute (TWI) is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations and the Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

Friction stir welding is a solid state welding process where no material exceeds it's melting point and was initially invented by TWI for welding aluminium. It has quickly become the process of choice for world-leading manufacturers such as Boeing, for the fabrication of strong, stiff, lightweight aluminium structures.

Through its involvement in the European research project, Project HILDA (High Integrity Low Distortion Assembly) the company is making further progress in developing the welding technique from the "softer" metals and using it for welding steel, bringing with it the technical and economic benefits of reduced distortion, enhanced weld strength and fatigue resistance, and making manufacturing safer and more environmentally friendly.

Up to 40% of the costs of building a ship are associated with correcting distortion of welded plates and so this new technique has the potential to introduce considerable cost savings during manufacture.

As part of the recent industry day project partners demonstrated a two metre-long friction stir weld in a six millimetre thick DH36 shipbuilding steel, a high tensile strength steel. Recent research carried out at the University of Strathclyde, one of the project partners, demonstrated the technical viability of friction stir welded shipbuilding steel components as the desired mechanical properties were attained with lower material distortion when compared to more traditional submerged arc welds.

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News: Engineers of the future visit TWI's Technology Centre

A visit to The Welding Institute's (TWI's) Technology Centre in Rotherham has shown 50 enthusiastic students and staff at the JCB Academy a glimpse into the future of engineering and manufacturing technology.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations, with expertise in solving problems in all aspects of manufacturing, fabrication and whole-life integrity management technologies.

The Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

As part of the University Technical College programme, the JCB Academy in Staffordshire specialises in engineering. The visitors came away from the day-long tour of TWI and the nearby Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) with talk of new technologies they had seen and the growing number of applications in which they can be used. The students were particularly impressed with novel manufacturing processes such as friction stir welding and laser metal deposition, which they saw demonstrated at TWI.

Paula Gwinnett, team leader in engineering at the JCB Academy said: "At the JCB Academy, our mission is "developing engineers and business leaders for the future." Fulfilling this mission is in no small part down to the inspiration that organisations like TWI provide. Sowing the seed of curiosity, and establishing the notion that everything and anything is possible is key to developing tomorrow's technologists. This visit was successful in both senses."

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News: A new dawn for metals

A recent event on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham brought together visionary engineers who are leading a new industrial revolution to showcase some of the emerging manufacturing techniques for metallic structures.

Organised by The Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the seminar called, "A new dawn for metals" highlighted the application of innovative techniques in designing and manufacturing that are revolutionising many industry sectors including aerospace, automotive and power.

Representatives from academia and industry included Professor Keith Ridgway CBE, research director at the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) with Boeing discussing high performance manufacturing and Stephen Cater, senior project leader at TWI giving an update on friction stir welding.

Other topics included additive layer manufacturing, pressurised vapour deposition and plasma-based and nano coatings.

Dr Jacob M Hundley of HRL Laboratories in California, introduced microlattice materials and the world's lightest metallic structure that could revolutionise the way aeroplanes, cars and even buildings are constructed.

HRL Labs is jointly owned by Boeing and General Motors and has developed a way of creating an ultra lightweight piece of metal using a complex criss-cross polymer template that can be etched away leaving a metallic structure that is 250 times lighter than Styrofoam.

In creating the next-generation of lightweight materials, the experts incorporated design into the material itself, replicating architectural features, such as the lattice of the Eiffel Tower, on a nano-scale.

Dr Hundley explained: "The design philosophy is to mimic what is done on the architectural scale using existing, commercially available materials. This is the important thing for the automotive and aerospace industries: there is no need to use exotic materials; for these sectors, you just want to take existing materials that the sectors are familiar with, but engineer and architect them so that they have new, innovative properties.

"In effect, it's about architecting a material to make it the most efficient: putting material only where you need it."

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News: TWI causes a stir in the world of welding steel

Pioneering work by experts at The Welding Institute (TWI) in Rotherham is set to improve the steel manufacturing industry, in the same way that it has for manufacturers pioneering their technique with aluminium.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations, with expertise in solving problems in all aspects of manufacturing, fabrication and whole-life integrity management technologies.

The Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

Friction stir welding was initially invented by TWI for welding aluminium and has quickly become the process of choice for world-leading manufacturers such as Boeing, for the fabrication of strong, stiff, lightweight aluminium structures.

Following its widespread acceptance by the aerospace, shipbuilding, train making and automotive industries for manufacturing aluminium structures, TWI is developing the process for application to steel.

The work undertaken at TWI Technology Centre on the AMP has shown that welds in steel made by friction stir welding have considerably better mechanical properties than those made by conventional arc welding. This means that steel structures have improved toughness and can last longer. The lack of melting also means that less heat is used, reducing distortion in the welded structures.

Stephen Cater, a researcher at the TWI Technology Centre on the AMP, recently presented ground-breaking results on friction stir welding of steel at an international conference in Chicago. He said: "The results just published show that for 6mm thick, high strength shipbuilding steel, friction stir welding reduces distortion along the length of a 2m welded plate from 115mm to 15mm while tripling weld toughness and increasing fatigue life compared to submerged arc welding.

"As up to 40% of the costs of building a ship are associated with correcting distortion of welded plates, this new technique has potential to introduce considerable cost savings during manufacture."

The technique is not just for improving shipbuilding, it was recently used in a joint project involving the art and design sector of Sheffield Hallam University. The work involves a novel method for producing mixed metal multi-coloured layered materials using friction stir welding and compares the results with the ancient Far Eastern art of Mokume Gane.

Mokume Gane is a unique process involving sheets of different coloured metal alloys bonded together. Materials from a number of different metals including gold, silver, platinum, palladium, copper and brass have been created using the new welding process.

Stephen added: "The visual effect is stunning, whether it be with the noble metals of silver and gold, or the industrially popular materials of brass and copper. Early on in the development of friction stir the process was identified as ideally suited for joining dissimilar materials.

"Using these multi-coloured layers in the process has given TWI a unique insight into how the material flows around the friction stir tool and has thereby enhanced TWI's tool design capability."

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News: Darron SBO announces TWI membership

Rotherham manufacturer, Darron SBO has become an industrial member of The Welding Institute (TWI) to help improve their performance.

Darron manufactures a range of high quality components which are supplied to the oil and gas industries. Part of the Schoeller-Bleckmann Group, their Canklow facility has modern machine tools and state of the art manufacturing capabilities.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations, with expertise in solving problems in all aspects of manufacturing, fabrication and whole-life integrity management technologies.

The Cambridge organisation has a Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham where experts provide technical support in joining and technologies such as material science, structural integrity, NDT, surfacing, electronic packaging and cutting.

As member of TWI, Darron now has access to a wealth of knowledge and research that will allow them to progress their already first-class welding and hardfacing processes. They will be able to pose technical queries and get involved in R&D programmes. TWI also provides consultancy services and help with standards, training and qualification.

Darron already has extensive welding capabilities, carrying out various manual hardfacing processes as well as laser deposition. Membership of TWI will ensure Darron can enhance these processes even further as well as explore new technologies.

The firm are experts in gun drilling, the flexible and effective process for producing close tolerance holes with smooth surface finishes; and laser hardfacing which applies a thin layer of tungsten carbide to downhole tools.

Darron SBO website

TWI website

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News: TWI Yorkshire friction stir welding seminar

TWI Yorkshire are running a seminar next month on the use of friction stir welding in the low distortion welding of steels at their Yorkshire Technology Centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham.

Friction stir welding of steel has been in development for over a decade, however recent developments in tool technology are now taking this technique out of the laboratory and into industry.

Tool materials have been developed that have excellent high temperature wear resistance and can consistently weld lengths in excess of fifty metres.

The seminar will provide an overview to this exciting technology and provide attendees with the opportunity to assess the potential benefits of applying this joining technique to their products.

Taking place on October 19, the day will include a series of presentations highlighting the recent technological advancements and also a range of live welding demonstrations including joining a six metre length panel. There will be an opportunity for attendees to participate in discussions on routes for exploitation, and also to arrange one to one discussions the following day with TWI staff on their own particular interests in this technology.

Shipbuilding, bridge decking, pipe seam welding, large steel platforms and just about any application which requires long uninterrupted steel welds, are now attractive target markets for the friction stir process.

The ability to create long, repeatable welds, with excellent mechanical strength and low distortion, means that the joints demand little post weld processing. The process can also weld very high-strength steels, such as pipeline steels, shipbuilding steels and pressure vessel steels, some of which are difficult or impossible to weld using fusion processes.

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News: RJD Engineering achieves prestigious welding certification

Rotherham firm, RJD Engineering has become one of a select few of UK companies to be awarded a prestigious welding accreditation.

The ISO 3834 Part 2 Award covers fusion welding of metals and is recognised by the achievement of certification to three governing bodies - TWI (The Welding Institute), EWF (European Welding Federation) and IIW (International Institute of Welding).

Based at Hellaby, fabricators and design engineers, RJD have clients from a diverse range of industries including the oil and gas industries, rail, construction, engineering industries, the water industry, process engineering, highways/roads, leisure industry, food and sugar industry, in retail hotels and shops and local authorities, plus the steel industry and glass industry.

Alan Powney, responsible welding coordinator at RJD said: "We are delighted to be one of a select few whose welding activities have been recognized in this way, we have always strived to improve our quality and this achievement should provide our clients with added confidence in RJD's welded fabrications."

Mike Howard, managing director at RJD added: "Our successful Certification indicates RJD's constant strive for improvement. We now feel we have a solid base to not only protect our existing Client base but to reach out into more diverse markets."

The accreditation was awarded by TWI Certification Ltd, a member company of The Welding Institute. TWI (Yorkshire) Ltd is pioneering new welding techniques from their premises on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham.

RJD Engineering website
Rotherham

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News: Rotherham's AMP impresses business chief

One of Yorkshire and Humber's leading business figures has praised the high-tech activity at the region's Advanced Manufacturing Park, in Rotherham.

The regional director of the Confederation of British Industry, Andrew Palmer, said the Park – the only one of its kind in the UK – was a jewel in the crown not just of South Yorkshire but of the entire region.

"In fact, having seen the wide diversity of companies and nations represented here, it’s clear this is an international resource," he said. "We're lucky in our region that we have so many facets to our economy, but this mix of high-quality R&D and hi-tech manufacturing has to be one of the most important.

"This is the future. I've seen it, and it is clearly working for the UK."

He was speaking after visiting several AMP companies, large and small, on a tour organised by Rotherham Investment & Development Office, the Borough Council's regeneration arm.

He took in Dormer Tools UK, Fripp Design and Research, welding-specialist TWI Technology Centre (Yorkshire) and the University of Sheffield's Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre with Boeing (AMRC).

Fripp Design and Research provides 3D computer-aided design, support and rapid prototyping for companies and organisations including Boots, Rolls-Royce and the NHS.

It aims to more than double its workforce on the park in 2010. Steve Roberts, managing director said: "Being located on the AMP is of strategic importance to our business as it is the UK centre of excellence for Advanced Manufacturing and associated industries and services – everything from rapid prototyping to rapid manufacture.

"Our mission is to take best practice in advanced manufacturing from industry and apply this within the health care sector, where we see plenty of opportunity."

Andrew Palmer said: "I've been so impressed not just by the expertise packed into the Park but by the sheer enthusiasm among the businesses. With people and companies like these, the region's future is bright."

AMP website
Rotherham

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News: Best practice on show at TWI

TWI are throwing open the doors of their high tech centre on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham.

The Inside Industry factory visit, organised by the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) Yorkshire, will allow visitors to see the wide range of technical expertise and technology at TWI, and gain an insight into the future of manufacturing.

TWI is one of the world's foremost independent research and technology organisations. It provides industry with engineering solutions in structures incorporating joining and associated technologies.

TWI's expertise covers materials properties and applications; joining, fabricating and assembling technologies; and manufacturing management. The two main technologies housed within TWI's Yorkshire Technology Centre are laser processing and friction stir welding.

The event takes place on October 6 at 9:00am.

TWI website
MAS website

Rotherham

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News: Japanese deal puts TWI on track

The Welding Institute (TWI) is helping one of Japan's leading manufacturers put together new lightweight aluminium railcars.

The £18,000 deal has seen TWI partner with Nippon Sharyo, a 110 year old company based in Nagoya, to develop a high speed, low heat input, non-contact welding process.

In high speed rail transport, reducing weight whilst maintaining performance is all important. Railcar structures are often fabricated from aluminium alloy sections, which offer lightweight performance from a combination of high specific strength and stiffness.

Conventional welding techniques can lead to strength loss and distortion, compensated by the thickening of material, but this adds weight to the vehicle.

In developing a hybrid laser-MIG welding process, the partners hope to overcome these problems in a cost effective way and trials have shown that high quality welds can be made at high speeds.

The hybrid process is capable of producing high quality welds in a variety of materials and thicknesses, including steels, stainless steels, titanium alloys and nickel alloys, typically up to 10mm in thickness (depending on the laser source), as well as aluminium alloys.

The TWI Technology Centre (Yorkshire) is based on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham and delivers services focused on the key technologies of fibre laser processing, friction stir welding, laser direct metal deposition and cold spraying.

TWI website
Nippon Sharyo website
Rotherham

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News: Robot causes a stir at TWI

The investment in a new robotic system at TWI has seen friction stir welding enter a new dimension.

The Robotstir system has been introduced at the The Welding Institue (TWI) Yorkshire facility on the Advanced Manufacturing Park to investigate the effectiveness of friction stir welding in welding complex structures from a three dimensional platform.

Since installation, the robot has demonstrated success in a variety of configurations and the system has the potential to benefit welding in the aerospace, automotive and electronics industry.

Tests have shown that the robotic friction stir welding is capable of producing high quality friction stir welded parts and that the system is ready for industrial integration.

TWI Technology Centre (Yorkshire) delivers services focused on the key technologies of fibre laser processing, friction stir welding, laser direct metal deposition and cold spraying.

TWI Newsletter
TWI website
Rotherham

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News: TWI part of UK nuclear consortium

The Welding Institute has been named as part of a UK consortium formed to bid for construction of the main reactor vacuum vessel of the €5 billion ITER (International Tokamak Experimental Reactor) nuclear fusion reactor, being built in Cadarache, France. The consortium comprises Davy Markham, a Sheffield specialist in the fabrication and machining of large structures, and precision fabricator Metalcraft. Engineering consultancy AMEC and The Welding Institute are providing specialist support that will be needed during the construction of the vacuum vessel segments. One of the world’s largest international co-operative research & development projects, ITER will demonstrate the integrated physics and engineering needed for a fusion power station and is expected to produce 500 MW of power.Europe and Korea are building the ITER vacuum vessel; consisting of nine D-shaped, vacuum vessel sectors, each weighing about 450 tons, its external diameter will measure 19.4 m, with an internal diameter of 6.5 m. Once assembled, the entire structure will be 11.3 m high. Kevin Parkin, Managing Director of Sheffield-based Davy Markham, explains the background to the consortium: "ITER represents an exciting business opportunity for ourselves and the rest of UK engineering. The vacuum vessel is a significant engineering challenge that no single company is capable of supplying. "So we've put a consortium together with fabrication specialist Metalcraft, AMEC providing design and programme management services, and The Welding Institute offering technical support, to enable us to present a solid technical and commercial case." Europe is providing seven vacuum vessel sectors and the remaining two will be supplied by Korea. Contracts for the ITER vacuum vessel are likely to be placed during 2009 / 2010. The TWI Technology Centre (Yorkshire) is on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham and is an extension of the resources at company headquarters in Cambridge.

Davy Markham website
TWI Yorkshire website
Rotherham

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News: TWI to help technicians gain higher education qualifications

TWI together with the Open University has created a scheme for the development of latent talent within the UK's technician workforce to tackle the shortage of qualified engineers. TWI explain that many engineering technicians show an aptitude and ability beyond the requirements of the shop floor, but their lack of formal qualification inhibits career progress. Those that do make their way from bottom to top of an organisation make formidable employees because of their wide-ranging understanding of the working of the company. TWI is aiming to enhance this career path. Welding engineering courses taught at TWI have been assessed by the Open University (OU) for national Credit Accumulated Transfer Scheme (CATS) points. These courses start from a level designed for the practical person, and success in the examinations gives the candidate points towards an OU degree. Furthermore, the OU is developing Foundation Degrees in engineering, one specifically designed around the TWI courses that will make the steps to higher qualification more manageable. TWI Technology Centre (Yorkshire) is located at the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham where they focus on the key technologies of fibre laser processing, friction stir welding, laser direct metal deposition and cold spraying.
TWI Yorkshire website
TWI Training website
AMP website
Rotherham

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News: Energy - opportunities in the sector supply chain

The Innovation Technology Centre in Rotherham is hosting an event this morning on the continually changing UK energy sector. Organised by TWI Technology Centre (Yorkshire) Ltd, Energy - opportunities in the sector supply chain is designed to give an insight into how the energy sector has created a challenging but potentially lucrative market for engineering, fabricating and manufacturing companies in the Yorkshire and Humber region. Attendees will hear from representatives of TWI and NAMTEC on topics such as supply chains in the energy sector, low carbon power generation and access to technical support.
TWI website
NAMTEC website
Rotherham

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