Inspecting Tubes Is Easy with TubeInspect

“If you want to be world class, you need the best measuring equipment”

Published: Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 09:28

Uwira Oy , based in the West-Finnish harbor town of Vaasa, is part of the Leinolat Group, a corporation of six companies. Since 1993, the company has successfully manufactured welding products for the energy, shipbuilding, and machine-building sectors. One of Uwira’s special fields is the production of oil and fuel pipes, as well as cooling water lines.

Uwira’s key to competitiveness is its close contact to the customers. “It is very important to react immediately to customer wishes. Currently, the most important subject is quality assurance,” says the company’s president, Samuli Kuusisto. “As our customers themselves have to meet increasing quality standards with their products, as their supplier we have to meet the strictest quality demands, too. By procuring the highly-precise tube measuring system TubeInspect from AICON, we are now disposing of state-of-the art measuring equipment for inspecting bended tubes. Thus we are well-prepared for future demands. Beyond that, with TubeInspect, we are in the position to document the measuring results in a traceable way. This builds confidence in our company.”

AICONs TubeInspect, which measures the tube with 16 high-resolution digital cameras, calculates the tube’s geometry within only a few seconds. The measurement results are reported in an easily understandable way, making it very clear to detect whether the pipe is within or outside of tolerance. At the push of a button, TubeInspect generates a user-independent and reproducible measurement report that can be forwarded to the customer.

However, Uwira faces more than quality demands. With respect to lead times, the company sees potential for improvement by also applying TubeInspect. “Not only does TubeInspect measure the pipes, but the machine also transfers the correctional values to our Herber 700S and AMB20 bending machines,” Kuusisto explains. “This is particularly useful when setting up a bending machine for a new tube. Because TubeInspect provides the correctional data within only a few seconds, we can set up the machines in a flash. Due to the fact that we produce in very small batches, the setup time of the bending machine is a decisive aspect in the whole production process. That means that we can start production quickly and therefore deliver faster than before.”

Kuusisto also appreciates the ability to measure free-form geometries with TubeInspect. “After having acquired AICON’s measuring system, we are now the first ones in Finland who are able to do this. This gives us a true competitive advantage. Our goal is to be one of the top suppliers in the world, and if you want to be world-class, you need the best measuring equipment.”

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AICON 3D Systems

AICON Americas is a wholly owned subsidiary of AICON 3D Systems, serving customers in North and South America. AICON 3D Systems GmbH is one of the world’s leading providers of optical 3D metrology. The company, founded in 1990, develops and supplies portable coordinate measuring machines for universal applications, as well as specialized optical measuring technology for vehicle testing, aerospace component analysis, and tube manufacturing. Since the acquisition of Breuckmann in August 2012, AICON’s portfolio also includes optical 3D measuring systems for contact-free surface measurement of objects. AICON’s reference list boasts renowned global automotive manufacturers and suppliers, companies from the aerospace industry, and the areas of shipbuilding, renewable energies, and mechanical engineering.