Dedicated to Toolmakers and Maintenance, and Fair Awards

Today was dedicated to toolmakers and maintenance workers, who participated in various professional seminars and lectures. The fair was visited by a large number of people, including many high schools and universities who were extremely impressed with the event. For them, the fair is an extension of the school curriculum and a great help in applying theoretical knowledge to practice, as well as an easier decision for their career paths.

In the evening, the fair awards were presented to exhibitors for their exhibited products.

The commission evaluated the products based on the following criteria:

• technical and technological (innovativeness, technological level, use of new materials, use of new technologies, product quality, tolerance range, design);
• business and economic (cost reduction, increased productivity, waste reduction, added value, market attractiveness);
• environmental and energy-related (environmental friendliness, energy efficiency, risk of use, impact on health).

In the REPRESENTATIVES OF BRANDS category, the highest awards were received by:

Bronze Award – IPRO ING d.o.o.

Silver Award – TOP TEH d.o.o.

Gold Award – Mikrotvornica d.o.o.

In the MANUFACTURERS/DEVELOPERS category, the highest awards were received by:

Bronze Award – VIRS d.o.o.

Silver Award – NPPower d.o.o.

Gold Award – Pilih d.o.o.

The LVD company NV received a SPECIAL AWARD for the outstanding presentation of their machine, Puma 3015, a machine for laser material cutting.

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Explanation of acknowledgments:

REPRESENTATIVES

1 . Mikrotvornica d.o.o.

The company presents a 3D printer for producing prototypes made of plastic materials. It is a printer from a Finnish manufacturer that enables the use of a wide range of plastic materials as building blocks for prototypes. It should be emphasized that the printer is also equipped for the use of high-quality plastic materials such as PAEK and PEEK, as well as various fiber-reinforced materials, as the extruder head allows for deposition temperatures up to 470°C in a chamber heated to 250°C. Environmentally friendly FDM/FFF technology enables the production of prototypes with practically no waste. In line with the guidelines of Industry 4.0, it enables an appropriate certificate of production for each produced prototype/product.

2. TOP TEH d.o.o.

The company presents a top-of-the-line plastic material dryer used in the plastic processing process. Due to the requirements of the process, the plastic material must be properly dried before processing. Classic methods of drying the material are based on heating, while the presented solution from the manufacturer Maguire dries the material in an innovative way, namely by using a vacuum. This process also reduces energy consumption by up to 90%. This enables companies to have lower energy costs and therefore to be more competitive on the market, while also reducing their carbon footprint.

3. Ipro ing d.o.o.

The company presents a patented welding process – Tip-TIG. Tip-TIG is an innovative welding process where a patented oscillating motion of the welding wire is used, which can be current preheated during welding. This is crucial for the quality of the weld joint as well as for the productivity of the welding, as productivity can increase up to 300% compared to the classical TIG process. With this process, it is possible to weld virtually all types and thicknesses of steels regardless of the welding direction. Due to the higher welding speed, the heat input into the material is lower, resulting in a smaller heat-affected zone.

MANUFACTURERS/DEVELOPERS

1 . Pilih d.o.o.
The company presents an automatic production line for making oven hinges at the fair. The line consists of six units and operates with a cycle time of 6 seconds, producing an oven door hinge made up of 13 different semi-finished products. The entire production process is automated, which has made the line more productive by reducing the production cycle time by 25% compared to the traditional manufacturing process. The assembly line integrates both dosing and assembly procedures, as well as quality control and measurement processes that allow for high-quality and quantitative tracking of individual products. Each product is equipped with a QR code that ensures 100% traceability of the product even during use. The assembly line also integrates three robots, which replace five workers, as the company pursues the goals and principles of Industry 4.0.

2. NPPower d.o.o.
Additive technologies represent a modern technological process that allows for the personalized production of complex products. The company has developed and produced its own 3D metal printer using L-PBF technology. The 3D printer presented enables the production of demanding 3D metal products and semi-finished products, as well as various metal powders. The key advantage of the technology is that it does not require additional sintering after 3D printing. This avoids dimensional changes associated with sintering shrinkage. This allows the company to produce dimensionally stable products that can be used directly. Additionally, the company’s technology allows for the use of different powders from different suppliers, allowing customers to freely choose their powder suppliers. An important factor is also 100% powder reuse, which means there is virtually no waste in the process.

3. VIRS d.o.o.
The company offers an advanced turnkey system solution for fast, easy, and cost-effective welding with a collaborative robot for laser welding. The presented solution can be tailored to the needs of any production and enables a welding process that is up to 10 times faster than other conventional methods. It is considered a technologically sophisticated product that follows the guidelines of Industry 4.0. The robot achieves a repeatability of 4 hundredths of a millimeter. The laser’s ability to oscillate output power contributes to both the quality of the weld and lower energy consumption. Additional energy savings can be achieved with the CoboLas cell, which, when technical conditions are met, provides an integrated WeldCockpit AI© application. This is a self-learning software application that enables quick and transparent monitoring and documentation of technical and economic parameters, as well as energy efficiency in robotic welding.

SPECIAL RECOGNITION

LVD company NV deserves special recognition for the outstanding presentation of the Puma 3015 machine, a laser cutting machine. This machine can perform cutting of all kinds of metal materials up to a thickness of 30 mm and with a footprint of 3 x 1.5 m. The displayed machine, in addition to its characteristics and size (it is the largest exhibit at the fair), also represents the importance of the international industry fair, as the installation of such a machine is a significant undertaking for the exhibitor. With this, LVD has recognized the importance of Slovenian industry.