Picture: Paul Allen, HV Wooding sales director and Simon Stewart, technical manager

Investment in a refurbished precision high-speed press, supplied by Bedfordshire-based Bruderer UK Ltd, is helping a Kent-based sub-contract manufacturer to deliver a significant aerospace contract that has been reshored from Spain.

HV Wooding, which offers laser cutting, wire erosion, busbars, motor laminations and presswork to customers all over the world, has invested over £120,000 in new tooling and the installation of a Bruderer BSTA 25H to produce more than 28 million precision parts every year.

The contract will utilise the repeatable bottom dead centre accuracy and 1,500 strokes per min capability of the press, with its industry-leading RAM guidance system to ensure unparalleled stability and longer tool life.

Components will be used in a number of tamper-proof products for the aerospace sector and should account for 60% of the machine’s capacity, leaving the other 40% for new opportunities in areas including electrification and green energy.

HV Wooding sales director Paul Allen said: “This is the second Bruderer press we have installed, after inheriting our first when an electrical client outsourced its press shop. There are few machines in the world that can offer the speed and accuracy in such high volumes and this is going to make a major difference to our ability to meet the requirements of our aerospace customer.”

He continued: “The material we are using is really thin gauge and tolerances are within microns - that is why we decided on the BSTA 25H. The RAM guidance system eliminates the possibility of movement during the stamping process, prolonging the tool life and giving us consistent repeatable quality, something the customer was not getting beforehand.

“It was a real partnership approach, with Bruderer working with us to identify the right machine and then planning the timeline so that we could manage the installation without disrupting production. This meant running the initial parts off at its Luton factory while we were putting the machine in place.”

HV Wooding, which exports 30% of its £10 million turnover, has also invested in a Unidor Multi-Sensor die-protection system and a Unidor press force monitor. Both additions to the machine are designed to ensure the tool safety at both low and high speeds and provides protection against overload and potential damage to the tool and press.

Simon Stewart, technical manager at HV Wooding, said: “We have been really impressed with the performance of the BSTA 25H and are already looking at ways where we can standardise the set up process to move other projects on to it.

“There is also the potential to target new opportunities, with the 1,500 strokes per min speed giving us plenty of capacity to take on high-volume electrical, lamination and motor orders.”

Bruderer UK has remained operational throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and, despite the difficulties, has posted an impressive last 12 months with increasing demand for new and refurbished presses and its Zani range of stamping presses.

A lot of this has been driven by clients supplying into the medical and automotive sector, who require precision parts in high volumes.

Bruderer UK managing director Adrian Haller said: “This is a perfect example of our partnership approach, working with the production team at HV Wooding to identify a solution that fulfills both immediate and future manufacturing needs.

“The BSTA 25H is a fantastic high-speed press and capable of easily meeting the 28 million parts per annum demanded by the aerospace contract. Importantly, it has also opened up new opportunities for the client to go after orders that they previously wouldn’t have been able to compete for.”