Insight

A review and preview of the global fastener market

Named after the Roman god who is often depicted as having two faces – due to its ability to look to the future and to the past – the Janus Perspective is a unique feature that includes a wide cross section of global fastener business leaders, who have all contributed their retrospective of 2019 and thoughts on prospects and challenges for 2020.

Joachim Krüger, head of sales support for forming and stamping

Persistent tensions in world trade has led to an economic downturn throughout the euro area. Also, the transformation of the automotive industry towards e-mobility has led to global change and the associated reluctance and uncertainty. The BREXIT issue and trade disputes have also led to a slowdown in strong growth in recent years.

Nevertheless, the issue of process monitoring in connection with ‘Smart Factory’ is a driver of innovation. Many manufacturers of fasteners are driving the issue of Industry 4.0 and thus the horizontal and vertical networking of production facilities. Via interfaces such as OPC-UA or MQTT, the various components communicate on the production level right up to the higher-level IT management system.

The bundling and evaluation of data is becoming more and more important. By exchanging and comparing the process monitoring data with the machine data, new analysis options are developed that take the topic of preventive maintenance, tool life and reproducible processes to a new level. The subject of quality assurance during ongoing processes is indispensable for our customers and an integral part of our corporate philosophy.

The Brankamp process monitoring solutions, which are part of the MARPOSS Group, are of great interest to the manufacturing industry for several reasons. On the one hand, the monitoring devices provide important information about the forming processes, which can be used to optimise them and thus ensure reliable production of the fasteners. On the other hand, the process data stored in the Industrial Internet of Things environment can be used for evaluation and analysis and the collected operating data can be passed on to higher level systems. All Brankamp monitoring devices of the X-series have the above mentioned possibilities and have established themselves as an integral part of customers’ operations worldwide.

The uniform user interface and the very flexible connection options for various sensors, such as force, acoustics and voltage signals, are particularly noteworthy. Different evaluation algorithms take over the analysis and evaluation of the signals in the background and in the best case regulate the machine, sort out parts, stop the machine or provide the machine operator with specific information about the process abnormalities. Linear drives offer completely new setting options for material deviations. Continuous efforts are being made to expand the application range of FactoryNET 4.0.

Further database connections and new interfaces to other production stages are being added. The documentation of process information is a growing issue, combined with a growing need for traceability, not of the individual part during cold forming, but of the movements of the machine material load. The provision of data for statistical analysis becomes another task of the process monitoring system itself. Condition monitoring is also becoming more and more important and is indispensable for predictive maintenance.

Condition monitoring can be implemented by means of vibration and oscillation evaluations at the relevant measuring points of the forming machines. For these special monitoring methods, we work closely together with the manufacturers of the forming machines.

The wire® 2020 show in Düsseldorf (Germany), which will have more exhibitors than ever before, is regarded by the entire industry as an indicator for further business developments. In addition to the various monitoring options, our focus here will be on networking at the production level.