Processing Machine for Vitrified Clay Pipes

Task

The machine is intended for processing vitrified clay pipes that are installed by drivage operations for sewer pipes. Vitrified clay pipes ensure an economical, reliable and sustainable sewage disposal due to their outstanding features such as extreme longevity, absolute resistance against physical and chemical loads as well as enduring impermeability.
To ensure that the individual pipe ends can be connected reliably without leaks, a precise machining of the pipe ends is necessary. The required precision is ± 0.1 mm in the concentricity and 0.2 mm for planar parallelism.
Main dimensions of the pipes:
Diameter 250 – 1400 mm
Length 1000 – 2500 mm
Weight up to 2500 kg

Solution

The clay pipe processing plant consists of two independent machines. One part is a gantry robot, which Güdel offers as a modular system in many variations. A total of 23 drive axes ensure the handling of the pipes, the adjustment of the feed table and the removal of the sawed-off pipe pieces. The second part of the plant, the actual processing machine, includes 20 axes employed for the planar parallel sawing of the front faces and the milling of the pipe ends; integrated are also the measuring axes and the movement of the spray protection.

Scope of supply

Handling:
Module FP-7 with two gantry bridges and multiple carriages

Milling machines, gantry construction:
All linear axis without play, electrically pretensioned (pinion/rack)
Racks hardened & ground, planetary gear GSP4
Duralloy-coated guide rails hardened & ground
Water-cooled milling spindle
Interior-cooled tools

Centering station:
Duralloy-coated guide rails hardened & ground
Gearbox FA045
Trapeze spindles

Result

In total, 30 different pipe types can be manufactured. For the large pipes (diameter greater than 1 meter), the output today is four pieces per hour; that equals a day's output in the past. The plant operates with a net availability of 98 percent; practically no waste is produced.