Glass cutting masterclass
Bohle hosted an industrial glass cutting master class as part of its campaign to support industry up-skilling.
Held at the company’s Manchester base, the event was attended by more than 20 guests drawn from the glass processing and IGU sector, plus machinery specialists and its own inhouse experts.
Proceedings began with a presentation from Hegla’s Steve Goble and Jörg Zimmermann on the latest innovations in glass cutting tables, loading, storage and automation.
This was followed by a presentation by Dr Michael Emonds, senior chemist at Chemetall on the science that underpins efficient glass cutting and the critical role that the choice of cutting fluid plays within it.
He argued that glass processors and IGU manufacturers who relied on dry cuts or used substandard cutting fluids were losing £tens-of-thousands a year in increased processes and poor edge-quality.
He said: “The cutting fluids are doing several things. They lubricate the grinding wheel, minimising friction and reducing the cutting pressure by on average 10%-15%. This means you get fewer chips and create a better scoreline with fewer branches.
“It also acts as a ‘chemical wedge’ penetrating the cut and increasing the depth of the median crack, supporting a more effective soft break-out. This again reduces the amount of energy required to create the cut and the speed of the cut, also reducing branch formation.
“This creates a major advantage, particularly in the processing of thicker glass, reducing the risk of run-out of the cut. It also means that far less edge work is required, delivering significant labour savings.”
This was followed by a presentation by Dennis Kampmann, director of Industrial Glass Cutting, Bohle. He explored themes previously touched on by Emonds on the critical importance that choosing the right cutting wheel for different glass types, and therefore, the right cutting wheels play in edge quality.
“We have some customers who will change cutting wheels during production runs according to what they’re processing,” he said. “Yes, there’s a little downtime involved, but the edge – and therefore product quality and strength – is that much greater.
“They’ve worked out that the positive impact changing to the right cutting wheel has is worth a little downtime and the change of wheels.”
A global leader in glass cutting wheel design and manufacture, Bohle works with leading glass machinery companies, including Glaston Bavelloni, Bottero, Bystronic, Benteler, CMS Brembana, Grenzebach, Hegla, Intermac, Macotec and Lisec, among others.
This includes the supply of an extensive range of tungsten carbide and PCD (polycrystalline diamond) cutting wheels and their holders.
Bohle’s premium cutting wheels are the Cutmaster Gold and Cutmaster Platinum.
