Short delivery times at low costs and consistently high quality are playing an increasingly important role for machine tool manufacturers in the market. As production downtimes of permanently moving machine tools cause high costs, it is important to be able to rely on safe machine elements. The motion plastics specialist Igus has developed maintenance-free energy supply systems especially for moving applications on and in machine tools. The low-vibration and chip-resistant energy chains and highly flexible Chainflex cables not only increase safety, but also withstand various challenges such as heavy loads or high temperatures and can also be installed quickly. After all, the "umbilical cords" of modern machines play a key role when it comes to production quality, energy costs or the compact design of the machine.

Predictable service life
Igus has been developing highly flexible cables for use in energy chains specifically for moving industrial applications for over 25 years. The range includes control, servo, motor, bus and fiber optic cables. The user can choose from various abrasion-resistant jacket materials, which can be selected depending on the environmental conditions. One feature of Chainflex cables is that the cable cores are stranded in short lay lengths around a high-tensile core element. This stranding ensures a long and, above all, predictable service life in motion. In our in-house test laboratory, the cables and e-chains are tested for their load-bearing capacity in long-term tests. As it is important to precisely reproduce the real application conditions in the test, test axes with a wide range of travel distances, accelerations and ambient conditions are available. The data obtained allows the service life of the e-chains and cables to be calculated precisely. The company therefore guarantees its range of cables for 36 months, which it claims makes it the only supplier in the world to do so. To date, Igus has developed a total of 1,354 different cables specifically for use in e-chains under the Chainflex name.

Save maintenance costs and energy
Energy chains protect the cables and hoses in machine tools. The chains are made of special high-performance plastics and have a low dead weight, which is often many times less than that of comparable metal solutions. This makes them highly dynamic and saves energy during operation. In contrast to steel versions, they are corrosion-free and insensitive to water, chemicals and temperatures. Their material is self-lubricating and therefore requires no grease or oil on the joints. The insensitivity of the energy chains to dirt reduces the need for routine maintenance. Igus has a total of over 90,000 e-chain articles in stock for the user.

Igus has the R2.1 series of energy tubes in its portfolio, which are available in new sizes.

Protection against chips plays a particularly important role in the machine tool industry. Under the name R2.1, the company has developed e-tubes that protect cables from chips especially for such applications. "Our chip-proof E-tubes are particularly interesting for the machine tool industry, as safe energy supply in the chip area is often required here," explains Lukas Czaja, Head of Industry Management Machine Tool Manufacturing at Igus. "This industry is facing the major challenge of coping with increasing price pressure in combination with rapidly growing technical requirements. The R2.1 series offers excellent chip protection, can be assembled efficiently and also impresses with its good price-performance ratio." The tubes consist of just two parts: a chain link and an opening bar, which acts as a positive-locking cover. This can be easily opened and swung open on both sides - and in some cases either on the inside or outside radius. This allows users to choose the variant that suits them best, making installation and maintenance work even easier. The completely new size with an internal height of 48 millimetres is available as a variant with covers that open on the inside. The sizes with an internal height of 26 millimetres and 40 millimetres are now also available as variants that can be opened from the outside. The fact that the R2.1 series pipes are among the tightest energy pipes on the market was proven during a chip test in the 2,750 square meter test laboratory. In this laboratory test, the tube is continuously moved in a chip drum filled with two kilograms of metal chips of different sizes and shapes. After 100,000 cycles, the R2.1 size 40 had only 0.5 grams of chips inside.

For customers who want to quickly assemble their own e-chains according to their own preferences, the specialist offers the E4.1L energy chain, an easy-to-fill e-chain. This is made possible by its design principles. "The easy accessibility of the entire interior from both sides, the internal partitioning system with new dividers, a new type of honeycomb strain relief and one of the fastest opening mechanisms - these are the features that make the E4.1L the fastest to fill E-Chain," emphasizes Michael Blaß, authorized representative for E-Chains at Igus. "The advantage: customers can save up to 80 percent of time with this energy chain."