The Wardjet Z-2543 in
situ at CME
Inset: The PAC head on
Westcut’s waterjet can
produce countersink
holes, taper-free edges
and ±60° cuts
Mouthwatering
potential
Job shop adds 5-axis Techni waterjet; high school opts for Omax; WJS proves ideal for Inconel cylinders;
WardJet supports bridge project; plus more. Steed Webzell has the details
It was in mid-2019 that the management
team at Melksham-based Westcut
Engineering made the call to invest in the
latest abrasive Techni Waterjet package.
The machine that Westcut speci ed was a
Techjet TJ4100 supplied by Techni agent
AMC Jets (https://is.gd/liquve), which offers
a 4 by 2 m cutting area, the latest
generation Quantum NXT electric servo
pump (ESP), an abrasive removal system,
submerged cutting capabilities and a PAC60
5-axis cutting head, which is capable of
creating up to 60° bevels and includes a
taper compensation feature.
Mike Scott, operations manager at
Westcut Engineering says: “The growth of
our waterjet department was increasing yearon
year, so were our maintenance costs.
I decided to research the viability of
modernising our current machine, which was
installed in 2005, or to simply replace it with
a newer model. Over the next three-four
months, we spoke with several waterjet
manufacturers, including AMC Jets, to
identify how the market had changed and
what new technologies were available going
forward.
“We decided to partner with AMC Jets
and Techni by investing in a larger waterjet
with 5-axis head,” he adds. “The PAC head
can produce countersink holes, taper-free
edges and ±60° cuts. These additional
processes were previously completed by our
machine shop, so having the PAC head has
released extra hours each week to take on
more work.”
On Westcut’s previous machine,
maintenance staff previously had to strip
down the high pressure hydraulic pump every
50 hours, taking 30 minutes each time to
change the seals. Due to the way the latest
Techni Waterjet Quantum ESP pump is
designed, the company can now achieve a
minimum of 500 hours’ cutting without any
maintenance intervention. Furthermore,
when a seal does require replacement,
it takes less than 10 minutes.
Remaining in the southwest, Plymouthbased
Cutlass Mechanical Engineering
(CME) selected a WardJet Z-2543 waterjet to
help it prepare parts for two notable recent
bridge projects. The rst project involved the
restoration of the Royal Albert Bridge, a
railway bridge that was built in 1859 to span
the River Tamar between Plymouth and
Saltash. CME selected the Z-2543 waterjet,
WATERJET CUTTING JOIN THE JET SET
due to its ability to cut parts distortion-free,
avoiding any type of stress-related cracking.
In the second project, 40 tons of duplex
stainless steel and approximately 3,000
parts measuring 0.5” (12.7 mm) thick were
cut for Tintagel Bridge in Cornwall. Over a
period of six months, CME operators were
cutting almost continuously, totalling 600
hours on the WardJet machine. Offering a
large 3.35 by 5.7 m cutting envelope, two
cutting heads and an optional camera for
remote viewing, the Z-2543 waterjet handled
both jobs, ensuring parts were cut with
precision while maintaining structural
integrity. WardJet machines are available in
the UK from AXYZ Automation (https://is.gd/
tulapo).
At Water Jet Sweden (https://is.gd/jaturo),
recent focus has been put on minimising
waste when processing expensive materials.
The following case shows how waterjet
technology can produce features on Inconel
cylinders and save material in the process.
By using waterjet technology from WJS to
generate holes instead of drilling them, the
residual material can be stored, shaped and
reused. This strategy not only delivers better
economy, but new product opportunities.
www.machinery.co.uk @MachineryTweets February 2020 43
/liquve)
/
/jaturo)
/www.machinery.co.uk