A combined, automated, CNC system for laser cutting of tube and flat steel sheet takes less than three minutes to change automatically from the tube to flat steel sheet machining.

It takes less than three minutes to change automatically from the tube machining configuration to flat steel sheet machining - and vice versa - when operating the new Adige LT Combo now available from BLM Group UK. The savings that result from installing this computer-controlled combination laser cutting system are considerable, making it cost-competitive with the alternative of traditional multi-machine operations. The LT Combo is of modular design, which means the system can be configured to suit individual requirements in terms of floor space, machining capacity and the degree of automation involved.

Automation levels range up to the integration of multi-column pallet warehousing for unmanned machining.

The maximum sheet size that can be machined on the LT Combo is 3000mm by 8000mm, while maximum tube section sizes of 225mm (round), 160mm by 160mm (square) and 200mm by 100mm (rectangular) can be machined along a maximum length of 6500mm.

An integral database with a complete range of cutting parameters guarantees repeatability of cutting quality, with the machine control generating the optimum working parameters (cutting power and speed) at any point in the machining cycle.

Machining of flat sheet is completed to a positioning accuracy of 0.05mm and a positioning repeatability of 0.03mm, while 3D design and programming of tubular components and complex tubular structures (frames) is made simple with Adige CAD/CAM Tubework and Assembler software.

Machining programs can be completed in minutes rather than hours, drastically reducing the time and cost of translating a completed design into a prototype or a full-scale production component.

And the end result in either case is improved product quality, especially when the opportunity is taken to re-engineer existing designs of sheet/tubular structures to gain the maximum benefit from the dimensional and profiling accuracy of the LT Combo laser cutting system.