PTG heavy industries provides a stirring solution to aluminium foil jointing for Andritz Sundwig GMBH

Powerstir Friction Stir Welding from PTG Heavy Industries

Precision Technologies Group company, PTG Heavy Industries, has secured an order valued at $1.5 million to supply two of its Crawford Swift Powerstir Friction Stir Welders to Andritz Sundwig GmbH, of Hemer, Germany.

Andritz Sundwig GmbH is a leading specialist in the design and development of specialist
turnkey systems for the production of hot‐ and cold‐rolled strip, made from stainless steel,
coated metals, non‐ferrous metals and special materials.

The Crawford Swift Powerstir Friction Stir Welders will be used in two aluminium foil
processing lines that Andritz Sundwig GmbH is currently developing. They will joint
aluminium foil strips of up to two metres wide and from 0.4 to 6mm in thickness.

“We are particularly pleased to have been asked to supply two Crawford Swift Powerstir
machines to Andritz and, in doing so, work with them on this exciting project,” comments
Chris Cheetham, Sales Manager PTG Heavy Industries. “Andritz
Sundwig GmbH is a premier global provider of strip processing lines, cold rolling mills,
finishing lines and plant automation. It is, therefore, immensely rewarding to be recognised
by them for the advantages that can be gained by incorporating our internationally
acclaimed Powerstir Friction Stir Welding technologies into their manufacturing solutions.”

Traditionally, aluminium foil strip ends are joined by ‘stitching’ them together, to
provide a continuous roll for production purposes. By its very nature, however,
stitching can create rough joints that can sometimes cause damage to elements of
the processing line. By contrast, Powerstir Friction Stir Welding uses frictional heat
combined with precisely controlled forging pressure to produce high integrity, full
penetration welded joints that are smooth and virtually defect free.

Ever since their launch in 2000, Crawford Swift Powerstir Friction Stir Welding
machines from PTG Heavy Industries have attracted considerable interest from
organisations seeking an innovative way of creating superior, high strength welded
joints, without the detrimental and visible effects typically associated with
conventional welding.

PTG Heavy Industries’ expertise in Friction Stir Welding ranges from small travelling
table R&D machines to large gantry, multi‐axis models. The company’s Crawford
Swift Powerstir Friction Stir Welding machines have been developed for a broad
range of industrial applications where special attention is paid to structural rigidity.
These include locomotive and passenger carriage panels, aircraft fuselage
development, ship panel sections, truck bodies, fuel tanks, bulk containers and
electronics enclosures. Offering far‐reaching opportunities for jointing often difficult
to weld alloys, Powerstir machines are able to accommodate even the heaviest of
welding loads and offer superior weld properties.

Incorporating the brands of Binns & Berry, Crawford Swift, Holroyd and Holroyd
Precision Components, PTG has established itself at the forefront of high precision
machine tool design, build and supply. The PTG range includes heavy duty lathes,
deep hole drilling machines, Friction Stir Welding (FSW) machines, ultra precision
grinding machines for rotor, thread and gear operations; rotor milling machines and
special purpose machine tools for the manufacture of precision components.
Industrial sectors served range from aerospace, medical and mould tool and die to
marine, power generation, mining, oil & gas, steel, high end and heavy automotive.