Key technologies

ANTICORIT WMD 9200 is a new aqueous emulsion that provides excellent long-term anti-corrosion protection, and at the same time offers the advantages of oil and solvent based products. However, it avoids some of their drawbacks.

When it comes to improving tool life and performance, there are few things more important than lubrication.

Using specialist high-performance lubricants – and using them properly – has been proven to increase tool life by up to one-and-a-half times. Multiplied over many expensive tools, that can add up to a significant operational saving.

FUCHS Lubricants’ water-miscible cooling lubricants in the ECOCOOL range are exceptionally durable and economical in terms of consumption. 

Thanks to their excellent lubricating properties, they achieve extremely high machining and cutting performance.

There are more than 10 products in the ECOCOOL range for a variety of functions.

FUCHS has unveiled a new member of the product family, ECOCOOL GLOBAL 20. A robust, patented FAD-FREE, globally-approved water miscible cutting and grinding fluid for automotive component manufacturers.

Alex Holmes, UK Industrial Product Manager, said: “Customers have reported up to 43% reduction in tooling costs when using the latest ECOCOOL ‘Global’ platform with existing tooling. Greater savings can be realised when tools are optimised for the process. In other studies, tool life increases of up to 150% have been recorded.

“In the FUCHS UK R&D laboratory, cutting speeds have been increased to provide real benefits in productivity whilst maintaining excellent tool life. The rate of metal removal can also be increased. Results have indicated a 16% increase in cutting speed is possible.

“ECOCOOL GLOBAL 20 is set to be the most innovative fluid yet to be introduced into the market. 

“Our experts will be on hand to discuss this new OEM-approved product as well as our comprehensive range of metalworking process fluids and services.”

On top of industry-leading products, FUCHS also offers quality monitoring services thanks to the introduction of its innovative FLUIDS LIVE system.

Already utilised by more than 100 companies globally – many of which are based in the UK – FLUIDS LIVE is an easy to navigate web-based recording, tracking and reporting tool with integrated KPI measurements.

In short, the system can be the key to unlocking a successful maintenance strategy, with real time data providing immediate and remote access to data showcasing the current condition of fluids in use.

Within two hours of the collection of data under Fluids Live, information can be updated and production professionals able to make informed decisions on maintenance scheduling, production planning and other operational activities.

Alex said: “The feedback we are getting back from the customers who are utilising FLUIDS LIVE is extremely positive.

“It helps determine which machinery is working most effectively and highlights any that are not functioning to their capacity.

“We use our own internal department to design the software and produce bespoke versions for each customer, some of which can be set up in a matter of days.

“We will provide the optimum lubricants settings for operators which best suit the needs of our customers, giving real flexibility to the many different maintenance management packages available.

“The whole idea is to obtain information from measurements such as oil sampling and vibration monitoring and to ensure asset care is being maximised. It’s all designed to cater for increasing skill shortages and to take the guess work away, resulting in a hugely significant saving for manufacturers.

“Using the data in the right manner will allow for improved inventory control, reduced and simplified waste management activity and accurate analysis of fluid consumption by any machine, cell or process.”

For an average production facility, lubricant purchases normally amount to only 3% of a maintenance budget, but lubrication-related activities can influence an estimated 30% of total maintenance costs, highlighting how crucial this process can be.

FLUIDS LIVE is constantly evolving, with recent innovations including the development of an API to enable the live measurements to be recorded on a customer’s data boards. Increasingly sophisticated recording procedures are also set to be introduced soon.

Alex added: “Another important feature of FLUIDS LIVE is that the software is portal driven, offering management teams from companies working within the same group the ability to view other site information and share best practices both locally and globally. Most software packages are sold with license fees but customers using our lubricants enjoy free use of the software, making additional savings.”

FLUIDS LIVE customers are encouraged to work closely with the FUCHS Lubricants UK team to ensure trend data is best presented in a format that suits the organisation.

Wax-based protective coatings are used for the very long-term protection of hollow bodies and assembled parts in the automotive industry. They are also suitable for many applications in other sectors such as the railway industry, aeronautics, military ...

Micro-spray machining has developed exponentially in recent years, combining performance and HSE compliance. FUCHS is one of the leaders in this technology and enjoys a comfortable feedback from the partnership with the automotive industry and the manufacturers of application equipment. The wide range of MQL machining lubricants makes it possible to cover 100% of machining on all types of material.

Pastes are mixtures of synthetic fats or oils with a proportion of solid lubricants greater than 25%. They may also contain additional additives and different from the original fats. The solid lubricants added to it have the function of improving the characteristics of the grease during extreme operation. It may equally well be an application in which high vacuum operation is necessary, or at very low temperatures (up to -280 ° C. with certain solid lubricants) or at very high temperatures (see table below For some examples) or for very high local loads.

The pastes are mainly designed for mounting and installation (eg screw fittings) but can also be used in applications subject to very slow speeds and extreme loads. These applications correspond to the limit area of the Stribeck curve.

With the cooling lubricant ECOCOOL GLOBAL 10, we have succeeded in catering to the various requirements and release specifications within the aerospace industry. The product, developed specifically for machining aluminum and titanium alloys, complies with legislation in 19 leading aerospace countries. It is free from DEA, TEA, DCHA, chlorine, formaldehyde, silicone and boron and is highly resistant to microbiological contamination. In addition to this, it boasts excellent hard water stability, does not tend to form foam and is also designed for use with very soft water. The cooling lubricant has passed comprehensive laboratory tests in line with the machining protocols of leading aerospace companies and was able to confirm the high expectations of international customers in many field tests.

The new biodegradable grease range is also certified ECOLABEL. This certification allows, among other things, to guarantee a reduced impact on the aquatic environment and the soil during its use, to achieve a reduction in CO2 emissions, to reinforce a high content of recyclable raw materials and to limit the use of hazardous substances in the formulation. Our grease range ECOLABEL has many solutions in terms of viscosity and grade to meet the needs of all applications in direct contact with the environment.

RENOCLEAN® ECO 2001 is a neutral pH neutral detergent formulated on the basis of biodegradable raw materials. In addition, a significant proportion of these raw materials come from renewable resources.

ECOCOOL FG-BF is a new boron-free cutting fluid that is very economical to use due to very low chip loss and the ability to completely decant leaking oils. Ideal for machining cast iron and steel, it will advantageously replace borated microemulsions in all their applications and oil-rich emulsions on ferrous metals when a cleaner working environment is sought.

Advantages :

• Economical in use because very little loss by the chip
• Total decantation of leaking oils Without formaldehyde liberator
• Wide range of compatible materials Low oil content
• No smell in service Cleanliness of machines and their environment
• Absence of concrete formation in hard water (TH> 100 ° F)
• No corrosion even with very high chloride content

For several years now, Fuchs has developed a range of quenching oil from Group III semi-synthetic base oil. This new technology in the field of quenching oils offers better resistance to the phenomenon of cracking encountered especially on Batch furnaces. Manufacturers and caterers have already made the choice of this technology and have been able to measure the benefit.