At the recent AMB 2024 exhibition in Stuttgart (10th – 14th September), Matthew Farnsworth, Commercial Director at the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) (www.amrc.co.uk), located in Rotherham, UK, announced that 4- and 5-axis machining centres manufacturer Heller has become its latest Tier 1 member.
The German-owned machine tool company has numerous factories including one in Redditch, UK (https://uk.heller.biz), where in excess of 300 four- and five-axis machining centres are built on two assembly flow lines for global markets. More than 150 employees work at the machining and manufacturing facility, providing unparalleled machine tool solutions, service and support.
As part of the agreement with the AMRC, a Heller F 6000 5-axis mill-turn horizontal machining centre (HMC) will be installed in the Rotherham centre in June 2025 to further the development of aerospace-related applications, especially those involving the machining of titanium structural and aero engine components. Digitalisation, automation and alleviation of the skills shortage prevalent in engineering and manufacturing across Europe and beyond will be key themes in the implementation of the research and knowledge transfer.
Dr Thorsten Schmidt, CEO of Heller commented: “Our company brings decades of experience from many very demanding sectors, including the mechanical engineering and automotive industries, where high reliability and maximising machine availability and uptime are critical.
“With the aerospace industry now moving in a similar direction due to increasing production rates, our expertise is perfectly positioned to meet the demands. That is why we are delighted to be collaborating with the AMRC, which has been ongoing informally for the past 15 months.”
Mr Farnsworth added: “The strategic partnership with Heller is already making an important contribution to aerospace research for our members, which include primes such as Airbus and Boeing, OEMs such as Collins Aerospace, Rolls Royce, BAE Systems and Siemens, and a host of SMEs in their supply chains.
“In particular, Heller’s in-depth knowledge of machining the difficult materials frequently found in aviation and space exploration, as well as its hardware and software solutions for deskilling machine operation, will prove invaluable to our research and development activities going forward.
“The Heller F 6000 5-axis mill-turn HMC machine, which will be installed at our facility next year, will form a key part of our new autonomous tool room demonstrator and will become a vital piece of equipment to aid our digital manufacturing environment.”
