The fact cannot be denied: Potential skilled workers choose their employer according to the level of sustainability of the company. But you can't make an omelette without breaking eggs. This also applies to welding. ABICOR BINZEL has developed the "clean" arc welding cell with the support of TWI (The Welding Institute) Cambridge. This cell demonstrably enables low-emission, energy-saving and raw material-saving production.
The equipment
This welding cell is equipped with a cobot (collaborative robot) especially for entry-level automation. This robot is cheaper to purchase and much easier to program than an industrial robot. The cobot is equipped with a MIG/MAG welding torch including extraction at source to capture the welding fumes at the point of origin. A dust monitor is also integrated into the cell and a gas saving system is connected.
Consumption and optimisation potential
With the equipment of this welding cell, welding process parameters, the welding fume concentration and the consumption of gas and energy at the mains connection including all auxiliary consumers can be measured. For this purpose, sensors are installed at specific points in, on and next to the welding cell. The recorded data is processed and visualised via dashboards. These can be viewed both directly in the welding cell and remotely, for example in the welding supervisor's office.
The result shows an exact documentation of how much energy, gas and welding wire are consumed. On the one hand, this makes it possible to determine the ecological footprint of the welding cell for the respective welded products. On the other hand, the aggregated data can be used to compare and optimise different welding cells.
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More precise data
Conventional calculations usually only include the process data of the robot power source. Other approaches additionally take into account materials and filler metals. However, this welding cell solution provides much more precise data because all ancillary devices and their efficiencies are also included.
An example of this is the power consumption of the extraction unit by extraction at the source. Even as a compact system at low welding power, its performance can be at almost the same level as the power source power consumption. In comparison: With a large hood extraction system, the energy consumption would even exceed that of the actual welding process. Therefore, extraction at the source is the better solution for a welding cell, also in terms of energy consumption.
The development of this "clean" welding cell shows:
- even with automated welding, it is possible to produce in a way that is low in pollutants, saves energy and conserves raw materials
- by using a cobot and additional sensor technology, SMEs have clear advantages in terms of application technology when it comes to higher order volumes
- health protection, data monitoring and productivity can also withstand the demands of tomorrow and beyond
Please also have a look at this video on the construction and functioning of the "clean" arc welding cell:
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