Festo_Technology Plant

Scharnhausen Technology Plant: Perfect in form

02 The components’ surfaces

are enhanced in the electroplating

department.

01 The machine inserts seals in the

pre-produced valve cartridges.

Safe, clean and efficient

Metal-cutting facilities require a lot of energy due to the effort

needed when machining metal. Machines and ancillary units were

therefore efficiently designed from the start using innovative tech-

nology. As soon as they are idle, they switch to a suitable ener-

gy-saving mode that takes start-up times, product quality and

safety into account. The functionality of the machines and the

product quality are continually checked and ensured. The worksta-

tions of the specialists for maintenance and test procedures are

therefore located in the middle on the machining department level,

where they are most needed.

The mechanical metal machining results in chips and exhaust air

containing oil. An ultra-modern extraction unit is used to filter the

air and recover heat. Even the finest particles are therefore unable

to get into the air in the factory. The chips created are collected,

pressed into briquettes and resold as aluminium scrap.

»I startedmy training at Festo 33 years ago. Our machines

in the Technology Plant produce the cartridge sleeves

in a matter of seconds. We develop the special tools

that are needed for this ourselves.«

Plating and pickling

The components are immersed in plating tanks to give them the

necessary surface properties using electrolysis. The washed

and degreased aluminium parts from the machining department

are firstly pickled, whereby a layer of about ten micrometres

is removed. In the anodising process they are finally given a

20 micrometre thick coating, which protects them from corrosion

and ensures a low-friction surface. The plating process at the Tech-

nology Plant is energy efficient. Several components can thus be

anodised simultaneously in one tank and no retooling is necessary

to change the anodising substances. A heat exchanger allows

energy to be recovered from the ventilation system.

Roland Knuth, Head of Valve Cartridge Production