The PLC-based industrial control panels will be used to control a large AFM grinding machine using distributed control.

Randolph, MA -- (SBWire) -- 09/19/2017 --The Horlick Company, a systems integrator and manufacturer of industrial control panels, announces the delivery of several, PLC-based, industrial control panels for a customer of the Winbro Group.

Winbro is a manufacturer of Abrasive Flow Grinding (AFM) machines, a developer of AFM processes and a supplier of abrasive media. AFM was developed in the 1960's as a technology for producing precision finishing, smoothing and polishing of internal surfaces, and for producing controlled curvatures. The technology is used in a variety of industries for processes such as deburring, edge radius generation, and internal polishing.

The AFM grinding machine that is the subject of this article is of the larger variety and it is destined for a customer in Europe that manufactures aircraft engine parts. This particular grinding machine will be used for deburring.

Winbro has been working with the Horlick Company since 2012. Originally, Winbro built the control systems for their machines themselves. They later decided to outsource the work and they approached their control panel component supplier and inquired about local control panel builders. The supplier referred Winbro to the Horlick Company.

For this latest project, Horlick built four (4) separate control panels and they were mounted at specific locations around the machine. The control panels each contained distributed control that allows them to communicate with each other via Ethernet. The distributed control monitors all of the machine parameters that are being sensed by switches and transmitters and it controls the operation of all of the pumps and valves mounted on the machine. In this case, the utilization of multiple control panels and remote I/O communicated via Ethernet is much more efficient and economical than mounting one main control panel with all of the machine devices hard-wired back to it.

The centerpiece of design for this control system is a Siemens SIMATIC safety-PLC. The fail-safe controller and I/O control modules is used to monitor critical features such as the emergency stop buttons, operator push-buttons, end of travel sensors and hydraulic pressure. The safety components utilized in this design comply with all regulations and they satisfy the maximum requirements as they relate to functional machine safety.

"Horlick has worked out very well for us" Said Winbro president Winfield Perry "We give them explicit specification information and they design and build the control panels. They are a very good supplier to work with"

Mr. Perry continued "Horlick's design capability meets all requirements and standards. Horlick builds all our control panels and has done so since we started working with them. We expect to continue to do business with them in the future and are very happy to offer a testimonial for their work".

About WinBro
Winbro Group companies have been leaders in the development and manufacture of advanced machining and finishing technologies for over forty years. They offer industry leading solutions for laser machining, electrical discharge machining, electrochemical forming and drilling, electrochemical deburring, and abrasive flow machining. Winbro has locations in Coalville, Leicestershire in the UK, and in Rock Hill, SC and Woburn, MA in the United States. Edge and surface finishing processes are located in their Woburn facility. The Woburn facility also specializes in surface refinement, deburring and radiusing utilizing Abrasive Flow Machining and Electrochemical Deburring.

About Horlick
The Horlick Company designs and manufactures industrial control panels and motor control centers for motor and process control applications. Specialties include the fabrication of both relay-based and PLC-based systems.

The Horlick Company is also the worldwide leading supplier of motor-generator sets to be used for both frequency conversion and load-isolation. Horlick motor-generator sets deliver a clean source of electrical power that is utilized in the defense, manufacturing and technology industries.

For more information on Horlick's motor-generator sets, control panels and engineering expertise please visit http://www.horlick.com.

Source: The Horlick Company, sales@horlick.com