Regular cleaning of machine tools should be an essential part of any maintenance plan. In practice, however, this means hours of tedious manual work, and standstill of the machines at the same time.
Machine tool cleaning in the metalworking industry and the tooling industry
With the unique ph-cleantec process, on the other hand, the cooling lubricant of the machine tool is sucked in and heated, and the machine tools are cleaned effortlessly and in the shortest possible time with their own cooling lubricant. This motivates the colleagues and, above all, saves time and money.
Cleaning machine tools (tooling machines)
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Cleaning a modern machining centre with low pressure hot cleaning technique
OUR SOLUTION: LOW-PRESSURE HOT CLEANING AS IDEAL ALTERNATIVE
The low-pressure hot cleaning process combines a pressure of 3 bar to max. 14 bar with a high working temperature of up to 95°C.
The low pressure ensures that no damage or splash effects occur. The high temperatures, in turn, are ideal for loosening greasy and oily contaminants - i.e. cooling lubricant and cutting oil.
Easy handling is achieved by means of a lance which allows to access even hard-to-reach places effortlessly. The operator does not have to reach into the machine with his hands, so that injuries are excluded. The tools remain in the holder and are cleaned at the same time.
The time saved, that is working time and machine downtime, compared to manual cleaning is enormous. Even a tool magazine with 60 places can be cleaned in a few minutes. For the cleaning of a whole machine, our customers speak of 20 - 30 minutes instead of 3 - 4 hours.
The machine's own cooling lubricant is used as the medium. This means that the emulsion is not diluted and no foreign substances are introduced. The coolant can be filled into the tank of the hot cleaning device or sucked directly from the tank of the machine tool. Cutting oil can be filled into the tank of the hot cleaning device.
We recommend the following devices:
- Machine tools with cooling lubricant: Devices of the SRE- and the SR-line
- Machine tools with cutting oil: Device 1000 OSE
YOUR ADVANTAGES
- Efficiency: At up to 95°C, stuck cooling lubricant is easily softened and gently cleaned off by the low pressure.
- Time savings: Machine tools are simply sprayed off, thus saving an enormous amount of time: Our customers need 20 - 30 minutes instead of 3 - 4 hours.
- Quality: Thanks to the lances, even hard-to-reach areas are easily accessible.
- No damage: No washing out of bearings, no damage to electronics, hoses, sensors and no rust formation.
- No ingress of foreign substances, as machine tools are cleaned with their own cooling lubricant or cutting oil.
- Greater occupational safety at work, as there is no risk of injury.
- Easy handling motivates the employees.
- Economic efficiency: Low investment, low running costs, but significant time savings.
ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY
- Experience shows that cleaning takes 20 - 30 minutes instead of 3 - 4 hours. This means that you can work through until 3 p.m. instead of 12 a.m. on the cleaning day. This saves valuable working time and you can produce for longer.
- With €25 full costs for one hour of work and €150-€250 less loss of earnings for one hour of downtime, you come to savings of over €500 per month (per machine, assuming monthly cleaning cycle).
- With 10 machine tools, the investment in a hot cleaning device pays for itself in 1-2 months.
- Also: Tendency of decreasing costs for maintenance and servicing, as faults such as leaks in clean machines can be found and repaired much more easily and quickly.
- Risk of injuries, for example when cleaning the drive trains or the tool magazine, is minimised - this increases work safety and saves downtime and trouble.
- If you want to calculate the payback for your site, click here for our amortisation calculator.
OPTIONS
In combination with an on-top parts cleaning level (collector), the ph-cleantec devices can also be used as mobile wash tables for parts cleaning.
Furthermore, it is possible to thermally sterilise (pasteurise) the cooling lubricant in bypass-mode. This reduces or even totally avoids the addition of biocides, i.e. fungicides and bactericides.
SEE ALSO
The low-pressure hot cleaning process is perfectly suited for cleaning tool magazines and tools.
In applications in the field of precision and ultra-precision mechanics, heat exchangers and electric motors must be used to ensure that the bath temperature of the cooling lubricant is as constant as possible in order to ensure trouble-free operation even in summer or at high outside temperatures. Here, too, the low-pressure hot cleaning units offer an ideal solution.
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Heavily contaminated blue tool magazine - before cleaning -
Heavily contaminated blue tool magazine - after cleaning
Cleaning the machine tool magazine / milling cutter magazine: Chain magazines, disc magazines, plate magazines, side loaders...
REQUIREMENTS
When cleaning a machine tool, the tool magazine poses a special challenge: It is particularly dirty, very difficult to access and it is easy to injure oneself on the sharp tools.
The tool magazine in particular should be cleaned properly and regularly, because adhesions due to coolant, oil or chips cause damage to the tool holders and the handling systems.
The tool magazine is usually cleaned manually with the help of rags and, if necessary, brake cleaner, with which heavy contamination may be sprayed.
This takes a lot of time and involves the risk of foreign substances being introduced into the coolant. In addition, there is a non-negligible risk of injury while cleaning.
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Heavily contaminated blue tool magazine - before cleaning -
Heavily contaminated blue tool magazine - after cleaning -
These heavily oil-contaminated tool grippers require particularly gentle and careful cleaning -
Heavily contaminated tool magazine - detail tool holders
OUR SOLUTION: LOW PRESSURE HOT-CLEANING AS AN IDEAL ALTERNATIVE
The ph-cleantec devices are ideally suited for cleaning the machine tool including the tool magazine. The tool magazine is simply sprayed with hot cooling lubricant or cutting oil. The lances make it easy to reach even the furthest corners.
YOUR ADVANTAGES
- Quality: Sticky cooling lubricant and chips or cutting oil are gently flushed away by the high temperature and low pressure, without damage and without splash-back effects. Cleaned contaminants are easily removed, but no bearings are washed out, there is no damage to electrics, hoses or sensors, and there is no rust formation.
- Efficiency: With the lances, even the furthest corner of the tool magazine - chain magazine, plate magazine, disc magazine or side loader - can be reached with ease.
- Efficiency: Tools remain in the holders and are cleaned at the same time.
- Time savings/costs: The savings in working time and downtime compared to manual cleaning are enormous. Even a tool magazine with 60 places can be cleaned in a few minutes. Customers regularly save 80-90% in working time and downtime.
- Medium/no foreign substances: Machine's own cooling lubricant or cutting oil. Therefore, no dilution of the emulsion and no entry of foreign substances. Coolant can be filled into the tank of the low-pressure hot cleaning unit or sucked directly from the tank of the machine tool.
- Occupational safety: The operator does not have to reach into the machine with his hands; therefore no injuries.
- Environmental protection/resources: No chemicals, minimal resources (electricity).
- Economic efficiency: Low investment, low running costs, but high time savings.
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Cleaning a tool magazine with low-pressure hot cleaning technology - plate magazine -
Cleaning an add-on complete tool magazine (chain magazine HSK 63) with low-pressure hot cleaning technology
ECONOMICS
- Experience shows that cleaning an entire machine tool takes 3 - 4 hours - with low-pressure hot cleaning, however, it only takes 20 - 30 minutes.
- Even a tool magazine with 60 tools can be completely cleaned in a few minutes. This saves valuable working time and production can continue for longer.
- With €25 full costs per working hour and €150-€250 less loss of earnings for one hour of downtime, you can easily save more than €500 per month (with monthly cleaning).
- With 10 machine tools, the investment in a hot cleaning device pays for itself in 1-2 months.
- Tendency of decreasing costs for maintenance and servicing, as faults such as leaks in clean machines can be found and repaired much more easily and quickly.
- Risk of injuries, for example when cleaning the drive trains or the tool magazine, is minimised - this increases work safety and saves downtime and trouble.
- If you want to calculate the profitability for your site, click here for the amortisation calculator.
Cleaning of tools with internal coolant supply
Applications
During the production or while the application of tools with internal cooling, the cooling channels need to be cleaned very neatly. However, the accessibility of the tight clearance holes is quite difficult with the conventional cleaning procedure.
Solution approach with ph-cleantec
The tools can be integrated in a compression fitting. On the opposite side the pistol is connected to the low pressure hot cleaning device.
With a pressure of 3 to 8 bar and 95°C hot water the cooling channels can be rinsed efficiently with a flush volume of ca. 1,8 l/min. The water can be added with alkaline detergent, if necessary.
Advantages with the ph-cleantec cleaning technology
- High accessibility
- Fast and simple change of tools
- High efficiency
- Universal procedure, inter alia for the machine cleaning and periphery
Serial cleaning
Application/Requirement
- Cleaning of 1,600 connecting rods in series production
- Small design of device; means little space requirement
- Low cost solution
Solution
- Integration of cleaning machine into the system control technology
- Pistol no longer required and replacement through ring nozzles; operated by a slow electrovalve
- Use of cooling lubricant in the system cycle
- Cleaning machine especially designedfor continuous operation.
Advantages
- Compact design; easy to be integrated
- Mode of action of the low pressure hot cleaning
- Cleaning system operated with machine cooling lubricantand thus very good lubricating and corrosion protection properties
- Less use of resources
- Very good cost-performance ratio
1000 RRS
Automated flange cleaning
Robot cleaning
Cleaning extrusion machines
General information
Extrusion means the processing of plastics.
After the liquid plastic has been obtained, it is pressed via a nozzle into a so-called calibration (tool), which has the shape of the future profile. During these thermal processes, waxes are released or added as lubricants. These waxes harden in the system and must therefore be cleaned.
Nowadays, a wide variety of profiles are produced by means of extrusion. Mostly, the material is cooled in a water bath after forming.
Advantages of low-pressure hot cleaning technology
- Optimum accessibility in complex tools, e.g. the various cooling channels can be cleaned very well with our tools.
- Our devices can also be used directly in the plant, as usually the profile is cooled down in a water bath
- No aggressive cleaners
- Compared to ultrasonic bath an efficient and fast process
- Corrosion protection can be added if necessary
- Mobile system