New from Salisbury-based 1st Machine Tool Accessories Ltd (www.1mta.com) was a range of workpiece-handling cells.

Designed to allow components to be clamped manually onto pallets, automatically loaded into store and subsequently retrieved for robotic transfer into and out of three-, four- and five-axis machining centres, this equipment allows long periods of unattended and ‘lights out’ running.

The cells are manufactured by the French company Engineering Data (located in Fondettes, near Tours), which appointed 1st MTA as its sole sales and service agent for the UK and Ireland with effect from 1 March.

These systems are said to increase production output from non-pallet-change machining centres by up to 50%.

The demonstration model at MACH was an EasyBox T30, a compact system (with a footprint of just 2m square) that can be configured to feed a machine from the left, right or front.

Two versions are available, for storing 42 or 64 pallets. They are equipped with a three-axis robot capable of handling components up to 200 x 200 x 180mm and a maximum load of 30kg (including workpiece, fixture and pallet).

The larger EasyBox T100, is available for handling 100kg pallets, will be available from the second quarter of 2018.

There are also rail-mounted linear versions (L-range) for feeding up to six machining centres, plus a 350deg R-range rotary version for feeding one or two machining centres.