News
CUSTOMER MAGAZINE 2017
THE WORLD OF WELDING AUTOMATION
Strong partnership, high efďŹ ciency
Thin panel fabrication in shipbuilding
Customer service worldwide
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CUSTOMER MAGAZINE 2017
IN THIS ISSUE 3 Editorial 4 Innovative world of welding automation
TECHNOLOGY 6 Thin panel fabrication in shipbuilding 8 Intelligent robotized welding and programming
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CUSTOMER SOLUTIONS AROUND THE GLOBE 12 Laser-hybrid to STX France’s shipyard 14 Strong partnership provides efficiency 16 Innovative approach brings quality and capacity 18 Growth driving solution for ST3 Offshore
PEMA
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20 Customer service worldwide 22 Your industry - PEMA´s solution
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From the Editor
PARTNERSHIP - THE MOST VALUABLE ASSET In today’s constantly changing and globally expanding markets, partnerships are at hand everywhere, but the question is which opportunities are worth of taking a hold on.
As solutions and sizes of investments grow, choosing the right partner becomes more and more valuable. Indeed, making the decision can be difficult and time consuming, but it will pay back once the right partners have been found. In the industry of automated welding, the definition of partnership extends all the way to customer relations, too, since projects can last from one to two years. Throughout the project almost daily communication and collaboration are present and so a long lasting partnership is more likely to be formed. When working at its best, partnership involves mutual trust and understanding, but also it generates great results and new ideas that benefit both parties. At Pemamek, we have managed to team up with right partners and build a global network, but also we are committed to be the best partner for our collaborators and customers. Despite the industry or size of the company, success and growth is not achieved alone. Through different partnerships and collaboration, company will maintain competitive edge and expand its opportunities. That is why partnership is one of the most valuable assets.
LET’S MAKE MORE - TOGETHER
Jaakko Heikonen CEO Pemamek Ltd
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PEMA HFF - Horizontal Flange Fitting Station Pema has introduced a new revolutionary way of fitting and welding of flanges to the wind tower and tower foundation sections. Continuously growing size of wind turbines needs larger diameters and heavier weights in flanges and tower sections. This makes handling of these components with overhead crane more challenging. PEMA HFF - Horizontal Flange Fitting station allows fast, safe and accurate fit-up of flange to the shell in horizontal position. Traditionally this is done in vertical position and then tilted back to the horizontal position. This is time consuming operation requiring special skills and tools from a crane operator and also causing safety issues. With PEMA HFF station production time for flange fitting and welding is reduced and quality of fit-up increased. The station can be integrated with PEMA Column&Boom to do also welding in the same place. This new way of working has been proved also in offshore wind tower foundation production where a customer finalized last year a large scale transition piece project without a need for single straightening machining work after flanges were welded. HFF stations are available for onshore tower industry for diameters up to 6 m and for offshore tower and foundation industry for diameters up to 8 m.
PEMA Robotized Door Frame Cutting and Welding In wind tower manufacturing, cutting and welding of door frame is the phase that significantly slows down the production. The process requires a lot of welding hours, plus the work is demanding for the welders. When including all the work phases, the traditional way of door frame manufacturing can take up to 100-150 working hours. Noticing a great potential for improvement in the production process, Pemamek found a solution for this bottleneck of wind tower production. As a result from the R&D work, patented “PEMA Door Frame Cutting and Welding� was launched. The solution is robotized, which enables extremely fast and accurate cutting and welding. The process is based on WeldControl 300 CREATE and SCAN softwares, which make it fast to program and easy to control.
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INNOVATIVE WORLD OF WELDING AUTOMATION Cylindrical workpiece production with PEMA Assembly Line PEMA Assembly Line is an efficient production solution for large scale cylindrical and conical pieces. It is based on self-aligning rollerbed design which allows to work with wide diameter area without need for adjustments. The station enables precise and fast shell fit-up and tack welding. Furhermore, when integrated with welding Column&Boom, shells can be welded together in the same station. The solution speeds up manufacturing process, ensures precise quality and provides safer working environment. Assembly line consists of high-end special PEMA Rollerbeds and PEMA Column&Boom, which enable growing of tower, pipe or tank without a need to use cranes. Workpiece diameter can range between 1500-8000 mm while loading capacity is up to 800 t.
Large-scale factory expansion In May 2016 Pemamek began a major project to expand its factory in order to respond the growing global demand and ensure prompt deliveries to its customers. The expansion is also a part of Pemamek’s future plans to grow but also to further develop its high-tech welding solutions, such as laser and robotic automation. The overall expansion, worth of several millions, totaled 6,000 m2 making the complete factory area 20,000 m2. Brand new premises are now fully utilized and enable efficient manufacturing of large-scale applications.
WeldControl 200 Over the past years Pemamek has focused on development projects to further advance automated welding. Much of this work has also included development in robotized welding. PEMA WeldControl 200 is a robotized welding solution for shipyard panel welding that enables efficient and high-quality production of every essential shipbuilding installation from micro panels to the most complex open block installations. The WeldControl 200 consists of three different levels; VISION, CREATE and AUTOCREATE. There is an extensive range of versatile features available for PEMA WeldControl 200 which makes it suitable for every type of shipyards.
PEMA CM 55 - Cutting-edge Milling Solution Pemamek launched new and advanced milling machine PEMA CM 55 specifically for joint preparation of circumferential seams. The new milling technology significantly improves welding efficiency and quality Milling depth can be up to 140 mm while providing 55 kW spindle power. The depth control is equipped with high accuracy servo slide and sensor feedback. The main frame is supported and levelled with hydraulic legs. Milling machine has lifting points that enable easy moving.
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Pema turnkey installation of fully automated laser-hybrid panel welding station with integrated plate handling.
Advanced shipbuilding – AUTOMATED THIN PANEL FABRICATION Usage of thin panels is constantly increasing in shipbuilding since it provides lower fuel consumption, faster speed and agility for ships. Even though distortion and productivity challenges are common in thin panel fabrication, they can be solved with dedicated automated production.
Towards thin panel production In modern shipbuilding ships are built lighter to increase the speed and agility while still appreciating the green values, such as better fuel economy. Moreover, ship-owners are looking for faster delivery times with reduced investment and the same ship functions and functional constructions should be maintained. This requires ship designers to figure out ways to meet the demands and e.g. reducing plate thickness even down to 3mm everywhere that is possible.
Reduced plate thicknesses are not only a big challenge for ship engineering but also for automated manufacturing. In order to answer the demands on today’s shipbuilding, it’s needed to make a shift from traditional methods and processes to modern automated shipbuilding. 6
Tommi Reponen
Thin plates and stiffeners In special ships like navy, cruise, ropax and ferries, the main amount of interior panels can be built from thin plates – target being 3-4 mm. By decreasing of material thickness the length of welds is increasing – more stiffeners and more butt welds. Preparation for weld edges must achieve machining tolerances to able the success in welding - poor edge preparation cannot be corrected by welding. Welding process must be controlled on-line to keep the heat input on the optimum level to avoid distortions. For secondary elements like T-beams and Bulkheads the same laws apply – dimension tolerances must be under control all the time.
The production from the cutting to the block assembly must be under good dimensional control and all work phases
must be predictable. Interfaces to and from MES system, even up to the 3D design system, thanks to digitalization are available. By digitalization it is possible to run panel lines nearly fully automated and also to gain high level of productivity with on-line feedback. Automation enables high level of productivity During past years Pemamek has developed and made full set of machinery and HMI to support the thin material steel production together with world’s leading yards in navy and cruise shipbuilding. Fast material handling with minimum operator interfering, material preparation, automatic material dimension control, WPS process control, operation free welding processes, quality control and communications with superior MES
Technology
Welded panels with minimum deformation on the way to stiffener assembly.
PEMA has facilities and resources to test advanced welding methods - customer’s WPQR under development.
systems. Modular and proven panel line machinery is always done by listening customer wishes and with modern welding processes combined with the PEMA ideology. To ensure productivity and quality also in the end of production line, T-beam assembly and T-beam welding stations need to be established and automated. This is something that differs from the existing traditional panel lines. Especially in cruise ship building the ratio of transversal and longitudinal Tees is quite high compared to the traditional tanker or bulk carrier manufacturing. Research & Development in LHAW and GMAW The latest research and development has been the integration of Lincoln Electric high-end welding processes together with PEMA’s high quality welding technology. For plates one-sided butt welding with single pass, PEMA has developed a process library for laser-hybrid welding to cover plate thicknesses from 4 mm up to 25 mm for high strength steel. Nominal workcycle for normal thin panels within 20...25 m plate length is around 30 minutes.
For stiffener fillet welding the high quality is achievable with LHAW or advanced MAG process. With LHAW process the welding speed ~2-3 m/min
High speed tandem MAG ďŹ llet welding has been in PEMA process portfolio already for many years.
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High end conveyor solutions guarantee the smooth transportation of panels through the production line without panel deformations.
and with advanced MAG ~1.5-2 m/min can be achieved. According to chosen profile handling configuration and amount of welding heads the cycle time in this process per profile is changing from 6 to 15 minutes. Using the high speed Lincoln Eletric RapidArc® welding GMAW/ MCAW process for secondary elements together with PEMA WeldControl 200 robot on-line programming and controlling software we are again step ahead to control the productivity and quality of thin panel production. To support efficient thin panel production PEMA is offering also other production lines:
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WeldControl 200 VISION system with special double robot welding solution for effective and flexible micro panel fabrication.
Profile processing lines, with ideology – from storage to welding station without operator interference • T-Beam fabrication stations to support special T-beam fabrication for thin panel production • Flat panel robotic stations and assembly manipulators • Micro panel lines utilizing robots with special PEMA WeldControl 200 VISION system For thin panel manufacturing PEMA is the “One Stop Shop” – engineering, experience, machinery, productivity, quality – we will help you to make more.
At the end of the panel line PEMA Weldcontrol 200 robot welding solution gives high quality and flexibility to weld horizontal and vertical welds for secondary elements.
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Technology Research & Development
EFFICIENT ROBOTIZED ONE-OFF PRODUCTION WITH
WeldControl 300 Designed and developed by Pemamek, PEMA WeldControl 300 is the
PEMA adaptive robotized welding of K-nodes with WeldControl 300 SCAN.
most advanced robot programming and welding system available in the markets. Thanks to its modern modules the programming software is fast to adapt e.g. to one-off production.
Versatile WeldControl 300 software family Robot welding is fast, efficient and accurate, but in many cases, the programming of the robot is the factor that slows down the schedule. WeldControl 300 software for robotized welding is designed so that no extra hours will be spent on programming. Ensured by the three different software versions, OFFLINE, CREATE and SCAN, even programming one-off production can be completed rapidly without any manufacturing interruptions.
WeldControl 300 OFFLINE software is developed for 3D CAD-based offline programming. Operator, user-friendliness and efficiency in mind, the system has received tremendous amount of good response also from the experienced offlinesoftware users. Contrary to OFFLINE, in WeldControl 300 CREATE the dimensions and features of the workpieces are entered to the system in parametric form. Based on these given parameters, the system create a model of the workpiece and generates the welds. Thanks to the automatically generated welding paths, programming speed of the welding robots is incredibly fast. Additionally, CREATE programming system is suitable for automated programming of one-off products that are similar in type but may have different dimensions. To enable this, in the definition phase a base is created for geometrical variation of workpiece dimensions and features.
WeldControl 300 SCAN and extra heavy duty robotized SAW welding station for branch pipe connection components in process industry.
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PEMA welding robot station with two integrated Skyhook positioners. The other positioner can be loaded while the other is in welding process. All this is controlled by WeldControl 300 OFFLINE.
Workpiece geometrical inaccuracies and WeldControl 300 SCAN When welding large steel structures, the biggest challenge is the inaccuracies in geometric dimensions caused by the inaccuracy on prefabrication phases. These inaccuracies in geometrical dimensions and shapes, originating from prefabrication of parts and subcomponents, are one of the biggest factors that are often blocking and slowing down an efficient robot welding.
The problem is that inaccuracies cause the fluctuation of the welding groove cross-section and position. In other words, the designed structure and prefabricated tack welded structure have large geometrical deviations. Traditionally fixing these errors with simple robot welding systems has not been able to bring out welding quality that would be good enough. Now, PEMA WeldControl 300 SCAN, has outdistanced that challenge. The system will scan the real geometry and will correct the robot welding paths accordingly. In brief, the robot software is re-positioned according to the actual measurement information so that the workpiece and its position will be consistent with reality.
Adaptive robot welding and one-off products Usually large-scale steel structures require multi-pass welding. The volumes of the grooves vary which causes variation in the needed amount of welding consumables. In adaptive welding, filling ratio i.e. amount of filler material per weld layer, is controlled according to the actual need in respect of the welding parameters.
Unlike in ordinary welding automation systems, in PEMA WeldControl 300 SCAN the workpiece is scanned and the data is analyzed within the software’s built-in system. With the help of the data received, each welding pass is located layer by layer to appropriate welding groove. The system calculates the groove volume and the amount of needed passes in each section of the weld.
Automatically created robot program is simulated and possible conflicts can be detected.
PEMA WeldControl 300 and example of parametric designing of the workpiece.
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Thanks to WeldControl 300 SCAN a robot is able to fill the grooves according to deviations - real adaptive robotized welding.
Technology
Testing of patented application for wind tower door frame cutting and welding.
PEMA WeldControl 300 SCAN is designed particularly for the special welding needs of one-off products thick walls. The software has several features for example for 3D-tubular pieces due to the different welds and adjustments. The software does not require product-specific data import from customer’s CAD-program. The geometry is entered to the system as parametric. In the beginning of work-cycle, the robot system scans the actual geometry of the workpiece. Based on this product-specific data the system generates welding paths for the robot. Thanks to the adaptive adjustment, robot is able to fill the grooves according to deviations. This results in high-quality one-off product. The most effective tool for robotized welding Like in WeldControl 300 OFFLINE and CREATE, also in SCAN the most important features are simple implementation and programming. The user-friendly, yet unique interface is developed according to feedback received from the operators.
The innovative software enables operator to learn the crucial basics just in few days, where operator needs only a sufficient amount of welding experience. There is a possibility also for additional features and training for the most advanced operators.
Optimal production in cutting, assembling and welding is reached with PEMA’s patented welding automation system controlled by WeldControl 300 SCAN.
WELDCONTROL 300 OFFLINE
CREATE
SCAN
User-friendly and fast offline programming tool for PEMA robot solutions.
Parametric workpiece creation and ideal tool for one-off products.
Adaptive multipass welding for large grooves, which has variation in groove geometry. Enables also large workpiece welding with robot.
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MORE CAPACITY WITH
PEMA laser-hybrid A world-renowned maritime company, STX France SA, gains higher capacity and maximum quality with innovative PEMA’s laser-hybrid welding system.
PEMA customer STX France Location France
Customer segment Shipbuilding
The operator controls and follows all the functions of the whole station from the monitoring room.
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More efficiency with maximum quality STX France SA, an expert in maritime construction and fleet service company, has been working on the Atlantic coast for over 150 years. As one of the world leaders in its industry, STX builds one the biggest cruisers and commissions highly complex ships and offshore installations all over the world.
- In May 2016 we delivered the biggest cruise ship of the world called Harmony of the Seas to the RCCL company. - The ship is 362 meters long and 66 meters wide with capacity of 6,360 passengers and 2,100 crew, tells Florence Camaret, Project Investment Manager of STX France. The French shipyard’s specific need demanded optimizing and boosting the process of deck panel welding. One of the main goals was to find a solution to eliminate deformations and work hours needed for fine-tuning. Also, due to a strong order book, STX called for more capacity, but also impeccable quality and faster performance combined with new technology. To maintain its expeditious pace in fleet building and to have more efficient equipment for the shipyard, STX France faced the need to modernize and replace its older panel welding and milling machinery.
Customer solutions
PEMA laser-hybrid plate butt welding in action.
To the next level in efficiency with PEMA technology PEMA’s solution for STX’s needs was highly advanced PEMA M & OSWLHAW 20200, integrated one sided laserhybrid welding and milling station with extensive conveyor solution. The demand was to minimize distortion of deck panels and to eliminate excess hours of rework. so as a solution a heavy duty milling station was integrated in the machine. Additionally, in the core of the investment was that the machine could feed the two of STX’s already existing panel lines, and hence a special conveyor including PEMA’s technology was adapted to the system.
In the beginning, the investment and needs considered only renewal of their milling station, but as the negotiations and project charting proceeded, sustainability and long-time investment became prominent. Thanks to PEMA’s innovative and unique solutions, such as making welding of thicknesses up to 25 mm with one pass possible and integrating a special conveyor, were factors that impacted on the decision for Pemamek’s favor. During the sales discussions the teams
from both parties came up with an idea of integrating milling and welding process into one machine. The idea did not only support a more efficient way of working, but also provided safer working environment. Thanks to a seamless communication and collaboration between STX France and Pemamek, a tailored solution according to specific needs was created and the massive project turned out great.
“As the order book is full, it’s time for improvements and investments in faster and better quality processes. That’s why we invested in a machine that was able to make the work of three actual machines of the workshop. “ Accurate edge preparation is done by integrated milling machine.
MAKE MORE - TOGETHER
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
BENEFITS
A good amount of orders requires higher capacity, loyal machines and flawless quality. To replace older machines which currently cause too much distortion and re-work.
Efficient PEMA’s integrated one sided laser-hybrid welding and milling station.
Higher capacity with less man-hours. Provides precise quality and minimizes distortion and re-work.
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STRONG PARTNERSHIP,
Efficient solutions For seven years E-Profiil AS and Pemamek Ltd. have teamed up to solve variety of challenges related to production automation. The high-flying collaboration has resulted efficient solutions and new opportunities.
PEMA customer E-Profiil Location Estonia
Customer segment Heavy Fabrication
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Strong partnership E-Profiil AS, located in Tallinn, Estonia, is a contract manufacturer of complex, big and heavy steel structures. Since 1997 the company has provided equipment and solutions for offshore, energy process and machine building industry. As the business has rapidly expanded, the future plan is to further develop production and grow through investing in new technologies.
The history of E-Profiil and Pemamek’s collaboration goes back to 2009 when the two companies banded together to find a solution for E-Profiil’s need to acquire a welding positioner. After a well ran project, foundations for strong partnership were established. In 2012, the solid cooperation led to commissioning of PEMA Column&Boom SAW Welding station including two positioners. Additionally, in 2014 E-Profiil invested in PEMA Robotic Station and a year later, in 2015, in large set of rollerbeds. Throughout the seven-year partnership, convenient locations and mutual understanding have been crucial factors for smooth collaboration. - Pema is our partner in welding automation and we have PEMA Positioners and Column&Booms. Pema is experienced in integration of robotic system solution and not only in GMAW welding but also other welding methods. Also, they are our neighbor, which makes our cooperation easier and faster, says E-Profiil’s Business Development Manager, Martin Mehilane. To increase efficiency in steel structure fabrication and to maintain precise quality in their production, E-Profiil decided to invest in automation. After
Customer solutions
YEARS OF PARTNERSHIP 2012
2015
PEMA C&B SAW Welding station
PEMA Rollebeds
2009
2014
PEMA Positioner
PEMA Robot station
visiting convincing reference sites and being assured by the previous cooperation, E-Profiil chose to join forces with Pemamek. - We had good proposals from multiple technology companies which met our expectations, but we decided to go with Pema due to their good references, solid solutions and our previous good cooperation experience, Martin Mehilane notes. E-Profiil reaches the expected ROI with PEMA robot station Due to the one-off product nature of the company and “One stop shop”philosophy, the requirements for the machine were pinpoint accurate, such as off-line- programming module, versatility, traceability, yet still it is affordable. In the core of E-Profiil’s commission was that the solution is able to weld different types of products and to shift from one product to another rapidly with little effort.
- Many challenges, related to automation and production, were solved thanks to great cooperation of Pemamek and E-Profiil teams, says Mehilane. The robotic station, designed in collaboration with the teams from E-Profiil and Pemamek, has already showed evidence of enhancing several business functions, such as providing
Significant benefits from transitioning to automated welding Making the decision of replacing manual welding with automated and robotized way of working is never an easy task. There are several aspects to consider, such as which solution has the best return on investment or how much other changes must be done in the production chain. The transition might include several challenging steps.
Satisfied customer team in front of PEMA Column&Boom SAW welding station.
accurate quality and reaching the expected level of return on investment. When compared to manual methods, the station provides five times faster production. To boost manufacturing, E-Profiil utilizes PEMA Offline programming, which enables full control and visualization on customer projects. - As a basic rule – one robot operator replaces four to five manual welders. This new technology allows us to enter into 24/7 operation with welding. We have been able to reduce the self-cost of welding, reached expected level of ROI and but also improved our fabrication quality, tells Mehilane.
- There are many challenges when executing such a complex task. We have spent time on solving topics, such as finding the right people for robot operation and programming, preparation of materials and fit-up suitable for robot welding, finding right welding parameters, elimination of errors in system, says Mehilane. According to Mehilane, in order to make transition smooth and to be able to make the most out of new technologies, a profound planning and good professional team are main keys to make the transition smooth. - It is very important to make good planning and allocate sufficient amount of time for development project, build up good development team. Don’t be afraid to robotize and have the courage to make this step, concludes Mehilane.
MAKE MORE - TOGETHER
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
BENEFITS
In the latest project the challenge was to automate welding of geometrically complicated parts.
PEMA robot station with a large 2-axis positioner having 50tons of loading capacity.
The manufacture process is now done five times faster enabling 24/7 operating, which was not possible with manual welding.
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Recently acquired PEMA robot welding station with several advanced technical features.
Long collaboration SUPPORTS FUTURE INVESTMENTS Over ten years of collaboration between Lehtosen Konepaja and Pemamek has brought benefits to customer’s production efficiency and opened up new opportunities. Now, the collaboration has been crowned with an extensive PEMA Robot Welding Station.
PEMA customer Lehtosen Konepaja Location Finland
Customer segment Heavy Fabrication
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First delivery in 2004 Let’s go back to 2004 when the first PEMA 15000 positioner was delivered to Lehtosen Konepaja, located in the Western Finland. The positioner with 15,000 kg capacity was ordered to improve welding capacity and provide better ergonomics at work. This brought significant benefit to their manufacturing throughout the years, so Lehtosen Konepaja commissioned additional PEMA Positioners and PEMA Column&Boom.
- Our long partnership started in the early 2000’s. Pemamek knows us as a company and understand our demands. Time after time, we have turned to PEMA products due to their clear positive impact on production efficiency, quality and work ergonomics tells the CEO of Lehtosen Konepaja, Erkki Lehtonen. Today, Lehtosen Konepaja employs 140 people and is a key-player in the field. The company is specialized in supplying tailored heavy metal structures for a wide range of segments, such as energy and marine industry. - We deliver to large international contractors who have exact and high requirements. The workpieces are extremely heavy and complex in shape. In order to maintain safety, precise quality and competitiveness, the machinery needs to be superior, describes Lehtonen.
Customer solutions
The collaboration started in 2004 with a commissioning of PEMA positioner.
In the frontline For Lehtosen Konepaja, increase in demand and plans for global growth have resulted in new investments. New manufacturing premises for welding fabrication, totaling 2,500 m2 in size, will be ready by the end of 2017. Also, the company has recently ordered a modern welding solution from Pemamek.
“Competition is extremely tough. One of the advantages in our collaboration with Pemamek is that we stay constantly updated with what is new in the world of welding.” - One example is the new PEMA robot welding station, for which we only recently invested, Lehtonen tells. The company needed a solution that could further advance their efficiency especially in manufacturing of one-off heavy products. - Our manufacturing processes require a lot of welding hours. If we want to
Erkki Lehtonen, CEO of Lehtosen Konepaja, believes robot welding will increase and investing in it is a major competitive advantage for the company.
maintain our competitiveness in the global markets, we need to be in the frontline with our machinery. This is why we have invested in the most advanced and efficient robot welding technology, explains Lehtonen. The extensive PEMA robot welding station consists of 3-axis semi-gantry that has X-,Y-and Z-movements. The solution is equipped with Yaskawa robot and Lincoln Electric MIG/MAG power sources and wire feeder unit. To ensure precise welding process with 100% success rate, the solution is adaptive for groove width changes. For safe and smooth workpiece handling, the robot station includes PEMA 2-axis 20 t Skyhook positioner together with its counter-part PEMA TS-20000, enable overall capacity of 40 t. Additionally, the station has another PEMA Skyhook with 3-axis and 5tons capacity. Offline programming The complete PEMA Robot station is programmed by WeldControl 300 and PEMA CellControl 700. The hi-tech
OFFLINE and parametric CREATE systems in WeldControl 300 provide easy re-programming of the robots, whereas CellControl 700 guarantees full control and real-time report from the production. - It is a huge development for the welding industry that the same welding station can weld one-off products. Before one welding station could allow only mass and serial production, but now the robots can be easily re-programmed as the manufactured workpiece changes, tells Lehtonen. A major benefit is the PEMA designed software for offline-programming. It allows programming of the next welding project, while the robot is still welding the previous one. Thanks to the offline feature, the time that robot is welding will be maximized. Lehtonen summarizes, - Even though manual welding will never be fully replaced with automation, robotized welding is on the rise. It enables more efficient, accurate and safer production, which is a major advantage for company’s competitiveness.
MAKE MORE - TOGETHER
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
BENEFITS
Manufacturing includes lots of one-off products that are time-consuming and hard to fabricate with traditional robot systems.
PEMA robot station with WeldControl 300 OFFLINE + CREATE and CellControl 700 interfaces.
Fast programming of one-off products and maximized welding capacity.
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GREENFIELD FACTORY RECEIVES
PEMA heavy welding automation As a new greenfield project starts, everything from premises to machinery are designed and built from a scratch. Polish ST3 Offshore, former Bilfinger, decided to explore new ways of heavy automation and invested in modern and efficient PEMA production line for offshore wind tower foundations.
PEMA customer ST3 Offshore Location Poland
Greenfield factory for offshore transition pieces and wind towers When European manufacturer of offshore steel foundations ST3 Offshore, former Bilfinger Mars Offshore, started to plan their brand new offshore factory, one of the main priorities was to acquire upto-date and efficient manufacturing machinery. The production site, located in Ostrów Brdowski island in the north of Szczecin in Poland, was opened for operation in the end of 2015.
The aim was to find a turn-key supplier who would have former experience in providing a complete heavy automation production lines and could bring out innovative and modern production line for offshore and wind energy sectors. Pemamek’s ability to provide integrated complete solutions was one of the key factors that draw the company to start co-operation with Pemamek. Customer segment Wind power
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Innovative approach brings results Requirements for the machinery were that it would be state of art technology for heavy tubular production bringing competitive edge in manufacturing process for ST3. Furthermore, it should be fast to learn and easy to operate, but also it would provide quick return on investment. To turn the goals into practice, ST3 Offshore invested in full PEMA production line with specifically designed systems, such as welding and material handling stations, for TP manufacturing.
Thanks to the PEMA know-how and profound understanding of automated production lines, the complete TP production solution was designed with optimal welding processes and high capacity work flow. The delivery included efficient plate joining station fully integrated with other plate processing machinery. Plate joining station has plate
Customer solutions
manipulation functions to facilitate accurate aligning and it has effective Tandem SAW welding process with integrated inductive pre-heating equipment. The delivery also included two longitudinal seam welding stations with Extra Heavy Duty welding Column&Booms and a innovative gas burner pre-heating system. Additionally, PEMA Horizontal Flange Fitting (HFF) station, that also enables welding in the same station, was supplied to carry out the demanding work phase of heavy flange assembly. The core of the solution is the assembly of TP which is done in PEMA 400 t assembly line that is equipped also with gas burner pre-heating system. The line consists of PEMA Assembly station, PEMA C&B Tandem SAW process, Rollerbeds and Welding Platform with two SAW Tandem heads for outside welding, but also Rollerbeds for milling. Another three sets of 400 t Rollerbed stations were also included in the delivery to enable material handling for secondary steel and welding processes.
PEMA heavy duty welding platform equipped with two SAW tandem heads for outside welding of wind tower sections.
Significant impacts on capacity As a result of successful partnership between the teams from ST3 Offshore and Pemamek, the solution was completed ahead of schedule, which enabled fast implementation and start of operation. To support the start of the production and speed
up ramp-up time, PEMA Customer Support Team gave a large amount of on-site production support. In addition to fast project start-up, PEMA solution provided high capacity and minimized unintentional interruptions in the production.
MAKE MORE - TOGETHER
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
BENEFITS
To acquire modern and reliable Transition Piece (TP) production machinery for the company’s greenfield factory.
Production line for 8 m diameter TP’s consisting of plate joining station, longitudinal seam welding stations, flange fitting station, assembly line, heavy welding platform and various rollerbeds.
Smooth transition and fast implementation. High production capacity and stable quality. Monitoring system of process parameters according to Offshore requirements.
PEMA SOLUTIONS FOR WIND TOWER PRODUCTION Pemamek’s experience in optimizing production flow combined with your knowledge brings out the best solutions and practices to boost your productivity.
1. 2. 3.
PLATE JOINING
LONG SEAM WELDING
LONG SEAM MILLING
7.
6. 5. 6.
SECTION WELDING
CIRCULAR MILLING
SECTION ASSEMBLY
FLANGE FITTING
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INNOVATIVE BOILER PANEL LINE PROVIDES
Efficiency, quality, and high production capacity With higher capacity and quality in mind, Babcock & Wilcox modernized its membrane wall panel welding machinery in its manufacturing facility in Monterrey, Mexico with Pemamek.
PEMA customer Babcock & Wilcox Location Mexico
Customer segment Industrial boilers
Growth in demand Babcock & Wilcox (B&W), founded in 1867, is a leading global provider of energy products and services, with approximately 5,700 employees worldwide. The company has operations around the world, including offices in the United States, Canada, China, Denmark, India and Mexico.
As B&W noticed a clear growth in demand for the products it produces in Monterrey, the company decided to invest in new, more efficient machinery. B&W had received referrals from several sources about PEMA’s solid reputation of being the leader in membrane wall welding systems and providing reliable, yet innovative solutions. “During the proposal phase of our project, Pemamek worked with us to develop customized solutions for our needs. Throughout the project, Pemamek’s focus on schedule and timeliness was greatly appreciated.” - B&W PEMA adds desired automation to membrane wall panel welding Pemamek’s solution for B&W’s demand was PEMA’s highly automated membrane wall panel welding line which is able to provide mass production rates while ensuring high quality. Thanks to an integrated fin-bar calibration, the machine produces those precise in size before the welding process, efficiently and accurately welding tubes and fin-bars together to form a part of a membrane wall.
Modern design, flexibility and advanced features were factors that led to B&W’s decision to invest in PEMA’s panel line. Additionally, PEMA’s stateof-art WeldControl system, utilizing Lincoln Electric’s Power Wave technology, was another winning recipe. PEMA’s solution provided the ability to modify the production line according to B&W’s specific needs. In the future as the demand and need of capacity grow, the line can also be extended with additional PEMA machinery. “We had a very positive experience in dealing with Pemamek. Pemamek provided quick responses throughout the project.” B&W.
Pemamek’s innovative WeldControl system is included to give full control and process report to the operator.
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Customer solutions
Complete delivery of advanced PEMA membrane wall panel welding line.
LONG PARTNERSHIP Pemamek provided also automation for TBWES factory in India In 2011 Pemamek supplied a complete membrane wall panel production line to Thermax Ltd and Babcock & Wilcox power Generation Group Inc. (TBWES) factory, located in India. The solution, consisting of a membrane wallpanel production line and four tube prefabrication lines, enable efficient process production with uncompromising quality. The entire process requires only one operator. The overall delivery included two PEMA 3000/6 membrane wall panel welding stations, able to weld 25m long and 3m wide membrane wall panels with 12 sets of Lincoln Electric PowerWave AC/ DC 1000SD submerged arc welding equipment. Additionally, complete panel transportation tracks, a fin-bar calibrating line, an automatic tube and special fin-bar feeding system and required buffer stores for sub-panels were also included. The heart of the line is equipped with the most advanced SAW welding technology enabling top quality for membrane wall panels.
MAKE MORE - TOGETHER
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
BENEFITS
To increase production rates in B&W’s Monterrey factory. To increase quality in manufacturing through automation.
Complete delivery of advanced PEMA membrane wall panel welding line.
Production capacity has increased signiďŹ cantly. Quality of the panels and easiness of operation has been as promised.
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PEMA CUSTOMER SERVICE -
PEMA´s remote access to its machines ensures the maximum customer´s production rate and minimizes downtime.
Intelligent maintenance Prompt service and preventive maintenance keeps the wheels in motion. Digitalization opens new opportunities to provide accurate fault diagnoses and fast support to the other side of the world. Customer Service to ensure maximum production rate worldwide The power of globalization is obvious. Thanks to digitalization, small and large companies can reach future and current customers faster than ever and grow their international sales network. PEMA products and solutions are sold across the world bringing new challenges, but also wider range of opportunities for companies.
- Pemamek has customers in more than 50 countries and in fact we have solutions in each continent of the world. At PEMA Customer Service, our mission is to be present at all times to all of our customers, tells Matti Lahtinen, Customer Service Manager. Pemamek’s Customer Service consists of service, spare parts, support and training. The biggest part, Service, includes preventive maintenance, emergency and repair service. All the services are designed to support customer’s functions right from the beginning of installation and continue throughout the whole long life cycle of the solution. 22
PEMA PointR is a worldwide remote support between the customer and PEMA - one excellent example how digitalization is coming to the industry and enabling real-time support.
PEMA Expertise
Fast evolving customer service systems The department, consisting of eleven experts, is divided in four different units; robotics, emergency cases, spare parts and the travelling crew.
Large-scale projects and rapidly increasing international customer network across the oceans required Pemamek, headquartered in Finland, to rethink outside the box and figure out new ways to serve their globally located customers in the best possible way. - Customer’s production cannot wait and many times our customers need the assistance immediately. Our location cannot be an excuse for not providing prompt assistance, and in fact, our mission at Customer Service is to provide support that ensure the maximum production rate where customer support is a major factor, explains Lahtinen. As the distances grow between solution and provider, bigger advantages must be taken out from the options that technology and digitalization are able to offer. As a part of delivery, Pemamek requires its customers to have an internet connection available at the site in order for Pemamek to have constant remote access to PEMA solution. The connection is made from Pemamek’s Loimaa office straight to customer’s location.
“Customer Support is to ensure maximum production rate” - In case of malfunction, remote access enables us to establish a constant connection to PEMA machine and make a fast fault diagnosis right at our Finland office. Additionally, our crew gets a profound understanding of the state of the machine before they even arrive at the site, Lahtinen tells. For a while now Pemamek’s customer support has been adapting software called PEMA PointR into their operations that enables real time picture transmission between mobile device and PEMA HelpDesk. The software not only uses video, but also symbols and text-boxes to provide as accurate description of the fault as possible.
Matti Lahtinen discussing with support team member before customer visit.
- The new software opens a range of new opportunities for customer support. As an example, when compared to talking on the phone or sending emails, the software makes it possible to go a stand next to the machine, give a full description of the situation even if there were loud noises in the background or there were language barriers existing, summarizes Lahtinen.
INCREASED CAPACITY, MINIMIZED INTERRUPTIONS PEMA Production support takes ST3 Offshore’s efficiency into new dimensions Before requesting assistance from PEMA Customer Service, ST3 Offshore, had been experiencing challenges in getting the best possible efficiency out of their PEMA production machinery. After adding shifts in production, further technical training and productional advantages were in demand. To analyze the situation, the Customer Support Team was charting machine conditions through a remoteaccess. After receiving an overall view, the team was able to be sent to the site with a good amount of valuable information. - Throughout the whole time that our
team spent at customer’s site, they worked closely with our customer’s team to provide training, but also to solve how machinery would work even better to excel in customer’s project, describes Lahtinen. As a result of the successful collaboration, the customer is now able to benefit from the good results, such as optimal welding parameters that have had straight positive impact on factors, such as unintentional production interruptions. - The project was a proof of how important a good partnership is between customer and provider in solving challenges. Additionally, this
case proved the partnership among PEMA personnel since the whole team over department boundaries brought in their knowledge and expertise.
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PEMA SOLUTIONS Pemamek is a global leader in welding and production automation. Specialized in designing and manufacturing automated welding and production systems, as well as work-piece handling equipment, our competence has been recognized worldwide.
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