Unison Ltd, the UK’s leading manufacturer of tube bending technologies and the inventor of all-electric tube manipulation, has launched a new, ultra-precise tube and pipe end coning & thread-rolling machine.
Called the Unison CT-38, the machine has been developed with a particular focus on creating the gas-tight seals required for many of the components used in the growing hydrogen energy sector, as well as in the global oil & gas industry.
That said, Unison believes the CT-38 will also be of significant interest to organisations in the hydraulics, lubricants, liquid processing and chemical industries.
Depending on customer requirement, the CT-38 will cone and thread medium pressure (up to 20,000 psi), high pressure (up to 60,000 psi) and ultra-high-pressure (up to 150,000 psi) connections in stainless steel and exotic alloys, such as thick-wall super duplex pipes.
The maximum tube diameter the machine will accept is 38 mm (1 ½ inches).
Machine setup time is rapid, and the coning/threading cycle typically takes around five minutes to complete, including tool changes, for a one-off component.
Additionally, as a further time-saving benefit, in many cases the tube or pipe can be pre-bent before threading and coning takes place.
As the quality of the coning surface is critical to ensure a successful seal, the CT-38 machine completes an ‘overturn’ clean-up process following thread rolling and before precision coning occurs.
Thread rolling produces a stronger thread than thread cutting and also generates zero swarf.
“Traditionally, the coning and threading of exotic tube – particularly when working with larger diameters – has been cumbersome and slow, often involving labour-intensive processes,” comments Unison’s Sales Projects Manager, Steve Chambers.
“Looking for a faster, easier alternative to the solutions currently on the market, a number of our energy-sector customers – users of our all-electric bending technologies and tube washing machines – approached us to ask if we would consider developing a high-capability coning & threading machine.
“Taking on board their requirements, as well as their frustrations with existing coning and threading technologies, we developed the CT-38.”
Able to cone and create both left-hand and right-hand threads in tube and pipe of as little as 6.35 mm in diameter (¼-inch) up to that maximum diameter of 38 mm (1 ½ inches), the CT-38 is largely constructed of aluminium and stainless steel to ensure it is able to easily withstand operation offshore as well as in other harsh, often corrosive environments.
Unison’s easy-to-use 15-inch touchscreen control provides intuitive programming and infinite recipe storage, while tooling changes between coning and threading cycles are simple and straightforward.
“During factory acceptance tests for the first of our new CT-38 machines, we were delighted to hear comments of ‘revolutionary’ and ‘transformational’ from our customers,” adds Steve Chambers.
“We really do believe that, going forward, the CT-38 will redefine the way in which cones and threads are applied to high-pressure tubes.”
Unison Ltd: intelligent tube technology
Unison Ltd is the UK’s leading manufacturer of tube and pipe bending machines and continually innovates the tube and pipe bending marketplace.
The company manufactured the world’s first all-electric tube bender in 1994, followed by the world’s first all-electric multi-stack tube bender, then the world’s largest all-electric tube bender for the shipbuilding industry.
Available in single-stack, multi-stack and right/left varieties, Unison machines are delivered to more than 20 countries globally.
Unison’s tube bending software is recognised as the most user-friendly control system for tube bending machines.
The software is written and supported by Unison, ensuring complete control of its evolution, with no need for third party support.
