The High Purity field has been particularly highlighted in the last few months and now appears even more important. Many governments are paying a great deal of attention to the Pharmaceutical, Food and Electronic industries in order to relocate manufacturing back to their home country.

Solutions for problems due to the logistics of manufacturing and distribution arising from the current health crisis should be considered now, as well as the continuation of the implementation of Industry 4.0. The change effort needed is highly important according to concerns voiced by customers who more and more are demanding long-term solutions to meet the current situation, particularly in terms of productivity but also safety and accident prevention.

In High Purity industries, liquids or gases are regarded as corrosive elements which severely test manufacturing systems. That is why most flanges, valves and pipes are made of high-strength materials such as stainless steel, Duplex or Inconel.

Machining of these materials requires very special cutting conditions using rigid machines and quality cutting tools. PROTEM & SERCO are able to meet these challenges and are resolutely forward-looking in terms of research and development of special machine-tools which allow tubes to be machined frequently without producing material incompatible with High Purity processes.

Our companies have banned the use of band saws or guillotines, as well as the grinding method, which generate significant burrs on the tube ends, very sharp chips, and of course dust which is harmful to human health.

We propose different machines for various applications.

The US range (PROTEM), and particularly the US3 and US6 machines, are used for orbital cutting of tubes with diameters ranging from 0.196" (5mm) to 6" (168mm). Its advantages are multiple: automatic centering onto the tube, concentric clamping without any deformation of the tube and a perfectly perpendicular and burr-free cut.

The SE range (PROTEM), including the SE2T, SE25 and SE65 machines, is used for beveling, cutting to length and squaring of tubes with diameters ranging from 0.118" (3mm) to 2.5" (63.5mm) depending on the model. It is ideal for thin-walled pipe welding preparation. The machines are clamped to the outside diameter of the tube by a collet system which prevents deformation of the tube.

The SE-NG range (PROTEM), including the new generation of SE60NG, SE90NG, SE120NG and SE219NG machines, is used to carry out various beveling operations (I, V, U, X...) as well as to square, cut to length and counterbore tubes. These operations can be managed simultaneously or individually. This equipment can machine diameters ranging from 0.393" (10mm) to 8.622" (219mm) depending on the model. The tool-holder plate can hold up to 4 tools simultaneously.

The SL range (PROTEM), including the SL30, SL60 and SL120 machines, is used for beveling and squaring pipes, fittings, micro-fittings, T's and elbows. This equipment is capable of machining tubes with diameters ranging from 0.118" (3mm) to 4.724" (120mm) depending on the model. The clamping is done on the outside of the tube with collets, allowing a perfectly concentric clamping which is particularly suitable for electropolished tubes. An indexed barrel allows precise feed set-up.

The new generation of the XP range (SERCO), and particularly the XP400NG and XP600NG machines, is used for facing of flanges or valves. This equipment has a large radial stroke, and the parallel and concentric setups are independent. Once installed, they are easily adjusted with a high degree of accuracy (to a hundredth of a mm) and are able to machine a surface finish quality between Ra 1.6 and Ra 12.7 depending on the application concerned. The inclinable head option allows RTJ type grooves to be machined.

Finally, our new UG1 electrode sharpener (PROTEM) allows accurate sharpening, pointing and cutting to eliminate inconsistent or unstable arcs. It considerably improves electrode life and promotes a better ignition of tungsten electrodes. The sharpenable electrode diameters range from 0.04" (1mm) to 0.157" (4mm) and sharpening angles are 15°, 18°, 22.5° and 30°.

The PROTEM & SERCO machines are the ideal solution for your weld preparation works in the High Purity field.

Our teams remain at your disposal for any further information.

More than 50 years of experience and technical expertise worldwide.