Workholding and automation products

For example, Erowa's mineral cast tombstone cube combined with the company's MTS (Modular Tooling System) zero-point workholding system results in a high efficiency fixturing system. It is said to maximise the working area and allows the operator to set up the workholding while the machine is in operation.

The tombstone and finished machined parts are exchanged quickly for a freshly loaded one, keeping the spindle downtime to a minimum. The MTS system ensures precise positioning and stability even with heavy machining operations. 

Made of quartz sand, sand, rock flour and epoxy resin, the new mineral tombstone offers low weight with a lower density than aluminium, combined with a high degree of vibration damping that is reported to be up to 10 times better than cast iron, and a low degree of thermal conductivity, making it a suitable base for precise workholding.

Every successful product has the potential for improvement, and Erowa’s MTS zero point clamping system is an example. Launched in 2001 and supplemented with the advanced MTS+ version in 2008, at MACH 2016 REM Systems will launch Erowa MTS 2.0 that combines the advantages of the two previous versions in one single product: 60% more clamping power with a reduced opening pressure.

The Erowa MTS (Modular Tooling System) is an open system so the maximum workpiece size simply depends on the working envelope of the machine. Whether it is a case of small pallets on just one MTS chuck or large pallets on several MTS chucks or base plates - any combination is possible.  Positioning accuracy is better than 0.005mm. MTS+ provides monitoring of the clamping system, ensuring the pallet is clamped securely each time as well as providing the feedback required for automation.

Produced from high strength INOX material, the latest MTS 2.0 is fully compatible with the existing Erowa zero-point systems and offers increased performance with a clamping power of 20kN equating to a holding power of more than 60kN. 

Also new at MACH is Erowa's CleverClamp system with clamping elements that are specially tailored for producing one-off and low volume parts. The seamless, modular tooling system is simple to handle and serves a wide variety of applications. The elements are designed to fit together flexibly combining to decrease setting-up times, increase machining times and improve productivity.

Base rails provide the backbone of the CleverClamp workholding system, and they can be used horizontally or vertically. Suitable clamping elements can be quickly and precisely located using the rail’s positioning grid. The combination of stops and linear or pull-down clamping elements support to accurate and secure holding of workpieces in any orientation.