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The magazine for today’s metal fabricating & forming technologies www.ffjournal.net A TREND Publication November 2016 ® SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS/ERP Thorough inspection prepares rockets for flight TOOL & DIE “Square” deal secured with the right process, partner + EXTREME FABRICATING Maneuvering and manipulating metal into colossal works of art

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  • The magazine for today’s metal fabricating & forming technologies www.ffjournal.net

    A TREND Publication

    November 2016 ®

    SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS/ERP

    Thorough inspection prepares rockets for flight

    TOOL & DIE

    “Square” deal secured with the right process, partner

    +

    EXTREMEFABRICATINGManeuvering and manipulatingmetal into colossal works of art

  • Stamping/Presses BY LYNN STANLEY, SENIOR EDITOR

    37November 2016 FFJournal®

    Adust explosion and fireripped through AL SolutionsInc.’s New Cumberland,West Virginia, titanium re-

    cycling plant in December 2010, killingthree employees and one contractor. TheU.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Inves-tigation Board (CSB) reported that a“spark or hot spot from a metal processingblender likely ignited the zirconium pow-der inside the machine, creating a flashfire that lofted the particles and formed a

    burning metal dust cloud.” At an Omaha, Nebraska, animal feed

    plant, grain dust was the culprit behindthe January 2014 industrial accident thatclaimed the lives of two employees and in-jured 10 others. The CSB cited 50combustible dust accidents in the U.S. be-tween 2008 and 2012, prompting it toissue a voluntary standard in 2015 aboutthe hidden hazards of combustible dust.The same year the National Fire Protec-tion Association (NFPA) also introduced

    a preliminary draft of NFPA 652, a stan-dard on combustible dusts.The checklist for identifying potential

    danger zones is short. If combustible dustexists in high enough concentrations, ifthere is an ignition source, if oxygen ispresent, and the dust cloud is contained—then a company’s risk for fire and ex-plosion is high. These are stories that FikeCorp. is all too familiar with. The BlueSprings, Missouri-based company has de-signed and built explosion protection,pressure activation, pressure relief and fireprotection products since 1945. Fike alsooperates a world class test facility where ex-perts study the physics behind dustexplosions to develop effective preventionand suppression systems.

    A broad playing field

    In the last decade, digital technology andequipment, like Beckwood Press Co.’scustom hydraulic presses, have helpedFike shape and support its manufacturingstrategies. The ability to scale capacity isanother objective. The company is look-ing to reach beyond traditional markets togain shares in new industrial and com-mercial spaces.“We’re actively looking at a much

    broader playing field to identify where firesuppression and protection might beneeded,” says Bill Schwagerman, seniorproject manager-engineering for Fike.The search for new territory has also un-covered some trends. Although the Occupational Safety and

    Health Administration began the rule-making process regarding combustibledust hazards for general industry in 2009,OSHA remains hampered by the fact thatthere is no comprehensive regulatory stan-

    The big HE ATManufacturer uses custom technology

    to produce pressure relief and fire

    protection products

    [ COMBUSTIBLE DUST ]

    IDENTIFYING POTENTIALDANGER ZONES■ Combustible dust

    in high concentrations■ Ignition source■ Oxygen is present■ Dust cloud is contained

    Fike’s large

    pressure relief and

    explosion products

    are built to

    eliminate loss of

    life and assets.

  • Stamping/Presses

    38 FFJournal® November 2016

    dard on the books, according to the CSB.Yet a growing list of government regula-tions and codes for new plant constructionis spawning stricter specifications for Fike.“We’ve seen an ever-increasing trend inprecision requirements,” confirms Schwa-german, adding that performancecharacteristics are critical because Fikeproducts are being built to “eliminate lossof life and assets.”Demands for greater accuracy meant

    the company needed manufacturingequipment whose precision matched thatof its own patented technology develop-ments. The supplier found its counterpartin St. Louis-based Beckwood Press Co.when it bought a 1,400-ton hydraulicpress in 2005. That purchase was followedby a Beckwood 125/250-ton tandem pressin 2010, a 30-ton press in 2013, and a 470-ton press in 2014. “I started working with Charlie Becker

    [who founded Beckwood in 1976] in 2004and later with Jeff Debus [Beckwood’spresident],” says Schwagerman. “Just threehours away, the company was a lot likeours: Very grass-roots, easy to work withand committed to servicing the customer.”

    Pinpoint precision

    Fike turned to Beckwood once again whenit needed to build large pressure relief andexplosion protection products. In April2016, Fike installed a new Beckwood2,500-ton bulge forming press featuring an8-point gib guidance system and a largebed. Today, Fike uses its array of Beckwoodpresses to produce medium-sized to mas-sive pressure relief and explosion protectionunits. It holds an American Society of Me-chanical Engineers third-party test labcertification and is authorized to use the Uand UD stamps in accordance withASME’s Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code.Stainless steel is the standard material usedfor these products, but Fike also uses otherhigh-performance alloys based on per-formance needs such as corrosionresistance, cycle life and temperature.In addition to its comprehensive line of

    standard rupture and bursting discs, Fikecustom builds products for sealing, vent-ing, small space, pressure relief valveprotection and other specialty applications.Intelligence gathering regarding a project’s

    performance factors, such as operatingconditions, inlet/outlet configurations, rup-ture disc specifications and burst pressures,response time and leakage requirements,assists Fike with the design/build process.Beckwood approaches its press projects

    in much the same way. Efficient largeproduct tool handling, better part quality,repeatability and an advanced control sys-tem were some of the challengesBeckwood had to address to meet Fike’sexacting prerequisites for its newest equip-ment purchase.“With any project, especially a complex

    job with precise requirements, we includeour engineering and sales staff up front toexplore and evaluate a customer’s pressconcerns; the types of parts they want tomake; and the features that are importantto [provide] efficient, accurate processingof those parts,” says Josh Dixon, director of

    sales and marketing for Beckwood. “We’rethen able to recommend the right ma-chine features and point out newtechnologies that can support forming andhelp revolutionize the way a customerdoes business.”Following the analysis, Beckwood’s en-

    gineering phase includes milestones forstructural, hydraulic, electrical and con-trol designs. “Once we solidify the largedetails, we’re able to move to the smallerdetails,” says Dixon. “We also have theflexibility to modify the layout of the pressat that point, like the location of the hy-draulic power unit or the electrical controlpanels, to meet aesthetic goals or bettersuit a customer’s floor plan.”A single point of contact makes it easy

    for customers like Fike to communicatewith the company throughout the process.Beckwood then sends technicians with

    We’ve seen an ever-increasing trend in precision requirements.

    Bill Schwagerman, Fike Corp.

    With precision

    requirements on the

    rise, Beckwood’s

    2,500-ton bulge

    forming press

    controls pressure

    and force accuracy

    with +/-1 percent.

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