Miscellaneous special-purpose machinery

Tender description

The High Temperature Research Centre (HTRC) in collaboration with Rolls-Royce Plc (RR) have been funded by innovate UK to automate the loading of ceramic cores into a powder bed. Therefore, there is the requirement for the design, manufacture, FATs, installation, commissioning, SATs and training in the use of an automated core loading cell that contains the following: — automated pick and place of ceramic cores into a powder bed, — Siemens Plc, — 6-axis robots with changeable End of Arm (EoA) tools, — force feedback control, vision system to detect macro defects and intermediate fixtures to aid robot loading. This system is to be integrated into an existing cell at the HTRC that fills a container with media to create the powder bed surface. The High Temperature Research Centre (HTRC) in collaboration with Rolls-Royce Plc (RR) have been funded by innovate UK to automate the loading of ceramic cores into a powder bed. Dimensional variation of turbine blade cooling channels can be reduced by controlling the geometry of the ceramic cores leached from within to produce them. Therefore, there is the requirement for the design, manufacture, FATs, installation, commissioning, SATs and training in the use of an automated core loading cell that contains the following features: — automated pick and place of ceramic cores into a powder bed to manufacture production quality parts unattended (the resolution, feedback rate and processing of KPVs like force are critical to the research capabilities of the cell), — Siemens Plc to monitor, output and adjust “real time” KPVs of the cell, — intermediate positioning fixtures, — 6-axis FANUC robot with changeable End of Arm (EoA) tools to complete a variety of operations: pick and place HTRC trays, pick and place ceramic cores from HTRC trays to intermediate positioning fixtures without damage, manipulate the core to mimic the manual loading into a powder bed, — vision system to detect macro defects (parts loaded into the cell will be free from visible micro defects). The HTRC intends to contract these activities to Loop Technology Ltd, who have shown they are capable of providing a bespoke automated core loading cell containing all of the required features within a lead-time that ensures project milestones are achieved. The MTC were funded by the HTRC to design a powder filling cell and chose LOOP as the preferred builder and integrator of the equipment. Therefore, contracting an automated core loading cell from LOOP adds additional capability to the powder filling cell whilst integrating the 2 systems together. Both systems can be designed and built in tandem significantly reducing the overall lead time which is critical to achieving associated milestones. There is also the advantage of reducing the cost and IP shared but it is the benefit gained to the lead time that allows the project to continue.