Massive Machining of Large Hydro Turbine Components

To enable it to work on large components used in hydro turbines, the company Alstom Power Hydro Lam turned to the specialists in massive machining centers, Schiess GmbH (Aschersleben, Germany). Its trademark are gigantic machining centers that work at the highest possible precision.

The Vertimaster VM 10 4-axis vertical turret lathe with drilling/milling drive is another milestone in developments that have already taken place at the Aschersleben site, as Jörg Amend, Schiess’ regional sales director of Asia, Middle East and South America, confirmed, “Even with all the experience we have gathered with machining centers, this machine, with a face plate diameter of ten meters and a maximum face plate load rating of 350 tons, was a real challenge, even for us.”

The machine tool has now been assembled and is ready to use as planned. The vertical turret lathe has the capacity to handle parts with diameters up to 13 m and a maximum height of 5 m, and matches Alstom’s requirements in Brazil perfectly. Alstom is carrying out a large number of dam projects there, and is using the Vertimaster VM 10 to manufacture large components for hydro turbines.

Founded in 1866, Schiess can look back on 150 years of experience in the manufacture of large machine tools. The majority of its machines have been used successfully in Europe and the rest of the world for many decades. In 2004 Schiess GmbH became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Shenyang Machine Tool Co. Ltd., China’s largest machine tool manufacturing company.

Thanks to on-going investments at the Aschersleben site, from this financially strong, visionary partner, and the development work carried out there, Schiess GmbH continues to design powerful and innovative products that will secure its leading position at the forefront of global competition for the future.

Schiess GmbH, Ernst-Schiess-Straße 1, 06449 Aschersleben, Germany, +49 3473 968260, [email protected], www.schiessgmbh.de.