Product category:
Fabrication Subcontracting Services
News Release from: Superform Aluminium | Subject: Superforming
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 13 August 2002
Superformed components supplied for new
trains
Proving that it is not all doom and gloom in manufacturing, UK based fabricator has secured a major new contract to supply key components to train giant Siemens for the new Desiro UK project.
Proving that it is not all doom and gloom in manufacturing, UK based Superform Aluminium has secured a major new contract to supply key components to train giant Siemens for the new Desiro UK project Superform will be creating the train front components and assemblies for three variants of the Desiro
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 19 Aug 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Superform gains DIN 6700-2 Class C2 weld standard
Recently Superform Aluminium, the world's leading supplier of superformed components, has become one of very few UK companies to have gained the stringent DIN 6700-2 Klasse C2 welding standard.
Aluminium panels up to 10mm thick superformed
Capacity at Superform Aluminium now offers formed aluminium parts up to 10mm thick following the completion of a new GBP1m at its Worcester, UK, production facility.
The front corners of the Desiro UK are made in two large Superformed panels measuring 2 and half metres high, a metre wide and 700mm deep.
A mammoth task by any standards, the Desiro train front is one of the largest and deepest components that Superform produces.
A total of 153 trains will be going to South West Trains and First Great Eastern.
Further reading
Leading board skills and testing support offered
AB Electronic Assemblies (ABEA) has invested over GBP500,000 to add new services to its portfolio, including bar coding, optical and BGA inspection, finer controls on screen printing and BGA re-work.
Display systems fabrication qualifies to ISO 9001
Leading retail display systems manufacturer has joined the first wave of companies working towards compliance with the new ISO 9001: 2000 quality standard.
Electronics assembly company expands engineering
In September 2004, Allendale moved into its newly developed and larger UK Engineering and Test areas to keep up with the growing demand for its services.
The bulk of the contract comes from Angel trains who have ordered 132 Class 450s (otherwise known as Desiro UK) from Siemens Transportation comprising 100 x 4 car units and 32 5-car units.
All 132 will be leased to South West Trains (SWT).
Worcester based Superform have an impressive history of supplying complex parts to rail vehicle manufacturers on a variety of major projects ranging from the London Underground to the Stockholm Metro and so were on the 'right track' to handle this contract.
The Superform process offers great advantages in terms of design freedom enabling rail clients to be unrestricted both technically and aesthetically.
Siemens Project Manager, Hans Stiedl said, "The contract was tendered to several suppliers who underwent a rigorous selection process.
We chose Superform as we had worked successfully with them on previous projects.
Their price was extremely competitive and the flexibility of their process unbeatable".
Project Manager Phil Taylor said, "The flexibility of the process would seem to be the key to our success in the rail market.
Whilst working on the initial Desiro project (for SWT) a modification was needed to widen the window of the train by 60mm to improve driver visibility." "To achieve this cost effectively and within a tight lead-time we modified the existing tools.
Working this way prevented the need for new tooling which would have been both expensive and time consuming.
The Superform process is unrivalled in offering that kind of flexibility within such time constraints." Indeed, as Superform continues to develop and invests in new technology and production processes the advantages for rail vehicle manufacturers and suppliers increase.
With the new high pressure forming technology, and increased forming and trimming capacity coming on stream now, Superform can produce parts that are simply impossible to achieve in any other way at a rate which will satisfy even the most demanding build schedule.
With a combination of unrivalled forming capability, a typical lead time of 8 to 12 weeks for first parts, and economical, modifiable tooling it is easy to see why many of the rail companies are choosing Superformed parts for both new build and refurbishment work.
The SWT vehicles are produced in 2 variants and will be constructed by Siemens SGP in Vienna, Austria and Seimens Duewag in Krefeld, Germany.
In addition, Siemens are producing another version for First Great Eastern (FGE) in an order for 21 train sets for delivery in early 2003.
This version is tailored to a new specification and has a single large window in the driver1s cab and will be supplied as a kit of parts comprising left and right hand corners, central panel and canopy, along with a range of machined extrusions for the support structure.
SWT versions are supplied as left and right hand corners as complete welded assembly (comprising of formed parts with machined extrusions as sub structure welded to the forming), and a canopy skin for over the central door.
The trains will be supplied at a rate from 12 a month to 3 or 4 a month up until the end of 2004.
Superform gain new welding standard - to service the rail market in particular, Superform recently joined the welding elite as one of very few companies to gain the stringent DIN 6700-2, Klasse C2 welding standard, a necessary qualification for producing the extremely high quality essential for the production of all railway vehicles and vehicle parts with high static or dynamic loading or high safety requirements.
Andy Lowerson, Superforms Sales Manager says,"The new welding standard follows our recent GBP 250,000 investment in welding technology and places us at the forefront of UK suppliers for this type of work" he added, "combined with our new forming capabilities and increased capacity we can offer a complete package tailored to their requirements." General Superform Technical information - superformed components are produced using the unique Superforming process where a single sheet of aluminium alloy (in this case grade 5083) is heated to 450degC then forced under air pressure into a tool.
The formed sheet is then removed and the finished part trimmed using 5-axis trimming centres.
Using this process Superform can form complete complex 3D parts as a single component up to 3m x 2m x 0.6m in size in material up to 6mm thick.
After trimming the part is washed and made ready for any further treatments such a s welding, folding or surface finishing.
Finally the components are inspected using in house CMM equipment and manual inspection to ensure the parts meet the design tolerances.
The company has manufacturing bases in the UK and USA, and supplies customers such as Siemens Bombardier Transportation, Boeing, Airbus, Morgan, Aston Martin, and AdTranz, specialising in components for the rail, aerospace and automotive sectors.
(This was Manufacturingtalk's Top Story on 12 August 2002).
• Superform Aluminium: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Manufacturingtalk email newsletter
• Manufacturingtalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
