Coolant saver

Using very few component elements, it efficiently collects the cutting fluid which is normally dragged out of the machine tool by the swarf that is evacuated by the automatic chip conveyor or swarf auger and wasted. The neat oil or water miscible (soluble oil) cutting fluid is reclaimed by siphoning it from the chip-container and returning it to the machine tools main coolant tank for reuse.
 
Using a vacuum generated within its body to draw the fluid out of any container the Wogaard unit is powered by the machine’s coolant pump, so no additional power source is required and fitting remains a straightforward operation requiring just a few pipe joints that can be specified in an optional fitting kit available for most popular machine tools.
 
MD, Kevan Kane, points out:“Waste is a great consideration. We initially tested the Coolant Saver on one machine, and the benefits were both clear and immediate. It was then a case of fitting a unit to all of our milling machines and all of the fixed-head turning centres. We also fitted the new Oil Saver to our sliding head machines, where the savings on neat oil and disposal of waste have an impact on the bottom line that is even more dramatic.”
 
The downtime for any machine tool waiting for the coolant levels to be replenished has been reduced to a minimum, and the operators appreciate not having to fill the sump so often. “We run a core day with overtime,” Kane says. “The nature of the material we machine plus the tight tolerances required do not lend themselves to running ‘lights out’. However, we often leave the batch running on the machine at the end of the day, which we can now do confidently knowing that the sumps will not alarm out because the coolant level is low.” 
 
Each of the Coolant and Oil Savers has been installed in-house by Technoset staff. While the initial investment required to purchase and fit the units is very reasonable the benefits are very long lasting. As Kane states: “In a year or so we will have the accurate figures on the savings achieved, but right now it is just making life much more simple for all of us.”
 
Today, except for one, each of the machine tools on our shopfloor has a Wogaard unit fitted and the housekeeping on the shopfloor is much improved. “We like to think that we are a forward-thinking company. As such, no stone should be unturned; you should look at the business from every facet.
 
“There is simply no way we would go back to a shopfloor without the Coolant and Oil Savers fitted to the machines. Walk around now and the swarf bins are dry with material that is ready to be responsibly recycled. And we know the coolant, be it oil or water-based, is getting reclaimed and recycled quickly and efficiently back into the same machine tool’s sump so there is never any worry about cross contamination.”