Apart from military sector which is a huge part of the Krass Maffei Group, the KraussMaffei Group has been shaping technological development in all three areas of Injection Moulding, Reaction Moulding and Automation for decades. More than 1,800 visitors at the Competence Forum in Munich experienced a veritable celebration of innovative machines and technologies on June 6 and 7.
The occasion was the 180th anniversary, celebrated with the slogan of “Technology Pioneers – from Tradition to Innovation”. The KraussMaffei Group is systematically expanding its digital excellence with new digital solutions and services.
“The KraussMaffei Competence Forum was a great success. The broad spectrum of groundbreaking machines and technologies that we were able to show our customers at our in-house trade show made it a unique event indeed. It was very well received by the visitors” stated Frank Stieler, CEO of the KraussMaffei Group. More than 1,800 visitors came to the Competence Forum, among them a considerable number from abroad.
Each decasde one injection molding machine
The visitors were impressed by a total of 25 machine presentations. In injection moulding machinery alone, there were 18 exhibits (about one machine per decade) that presented live applications within the clamping force range from 25 to 1600 t. Among these were numerous innovations such as the new PX 25 and PX 320, with which KraussMaffei is expanding its all-electric series by adding two clamping force sizes, one lower and one higher. The new PX 25 impressed visitors with its micro-injection moulding of liquid silicone (LSR). A radial sealing ring was produced with an intricate undercut and a weight of only 0.15 grams. The new “big one” of the PX series, with a clamping force of 3,200 kN, was displayed together with the IMD SI DUO film feed, made by our partners at Leonhard Kurz. This enables the world’s first independent positioning of two single-image designs, which not only increase output using multi-cavity molds, but also enhance production flexibility.
Additional highlights of injection moulding machinery at the Competence Forum were the GX 650 with the new Speed Option, thermoplastic lightweight construction with Fiber-Form technology, ColorForm applications in piano black and new technologies for fibre glass direct feed or for direct compounding.
Experiencing Plastics 4.0 live
At numerous exhibits, the KraussMaffei Group presented its entire Plastics 4.0 product line and made the possibilities and advantages of Industry 4.0 in plastics processing come alive for the visitors. The presentation of the new MES system, MaXecution, and the live application of the DataXplorer on the GX 650 FiberForm system were highlights. With its microscopic view, it records up to 500 signals on the machine, including the organic sheet heat-up time. All injection moulding machines were equipped with the intelligent APC plus (Adaptive Process Control) machine function, which provides extreme weight consistency of parts and the highest process reliability.
In order to bring even more effectiveness into digital solutions and services, the KraussMaffei Group is starting the Digital Service Solutions business unit on July 1. It will deal with service and aftermarket and link classic and digital activities.
180 years of KraussMaffei – a success story. The KraussMaffei Group has been able to continue its pioneering spirit and continually reinvent itself. As one of the global leading providers of machines and systems for plastics and rubber processing, it is now moving into the digital age with vigor.
