Downloads Available:  in cooperation with  April 2010 A PROGRESS REPORT ON THE COOPERATION BETWEEN SPARK CNC AND WICKMAN BENNETT BACKGROUND TO THE COOPERATION • Wickman Bennett is a company of people with a huge history in designing and building vertical lathes. The WB people have long time experience in Webster & Bennett when it was one of the best known and respected builders in the vertical turning market throughout the world. • This experience is combined with innovative thinking and new technologies and the result is the production of designs and machine tools of outstanding quality. • Spark has purchased a shareholding in Wickman Bennett together with a license to produce WB machines for the huge Chinese market • Spark has more than 50% of China’s huge market for horizontal lathes and turning centres, producing around 200 heavy duty lathes, mainly CNC, each month. • Spark group companies already produce good quality basic Vertical Lathes. The cooperation with WB will enable Spark to produce both standard and highest specification vertical turning centres in China and take a major part of the home market. • Spark has started to build a huge new factory for the production of vertical turning centres. The factory will be operational later in 2010  BENEFITS OF THE COOPERATION • For WB the major benefit is to have top quality components at lower cost because Spark is producing in batch sizes WB has not been able to consider for more than 30 years! • Castings and components for WB – to the highest quality and with short, on time delivery • WB will now be able to produce vertical turning centres in greater numbers with delivery in shorter timescales. • Machines with the very best in design, quality and performance available at surprising prices NEWS 1. WICKMAN BENNETT – THREE NEW MODEL RANGES WB has designed three new models of Vertical Turning Centres – • The AEROTURN Single Column machine. Models with capacity to 2000mm diameter • The REVELATION2 Single column machine. Models with capacity to 3500mm diameter • The REVELATION DC Double Column machine. Models with capacity to 6000mm diameter These are already in process in Spark, including components for WB to assemble for the markets outside China AEROTURN – a powerful machine with features very suited to machining aerospace metals • The first two Aeroturn machines have been produced in Coventry and delivered to European customers  WB Aeroturn 180-200 [two rams, installed in Germany, turning, drilling and grinding large valves] REVELATION2 – possibly the most precise and most powerful single column machine in the market • The first customers for the Revelation2 and Revelation DC are a German company’s subsidiary in China • To save production cost for this customer and to speed up the transfer of technology these machines are being assembled and commissioned in Spark by teams led by WB “hands on” personnel. • This process is part of a 6 month commitment by WB engineers to be at Spark, assisting Spark personnel to get into production whilst ensuring the quality. • The Chinese market is hungry for these machines, Spark have reacted and have made a huge commitment to win the no. 1 position for Vertical Turning Centres, just as they have the No. 1 position for Horizontal Turning Centres REVELATION2
   REVELATION DC – A VERY HIGH PERFORMANCE, HEAVY DUTY MACHINE. Double column models with capacity up to 6000mm diameter and working height to 4000mm • The first models being built are the DC 350-400 and the 400-500 models • These machines have 2 rams, one with live spindle -34Kw, 4500rpm and one turning only ram. Elevating cross rail • The unique table drive design enables very high power / high torque turning and the market’s most powerful rotary C axis table drive for continuous milling     THE REVELATION DC DESIGN INCORPORATES SEVERAL UNIQUE FEATURES • TO FACILITATE THE HIGHEST QUALITY MACHINEING AND THE MOST PRECISE ASSEMBLY • TO INCREASE OPERATING PERFORMANCE FOR THE USER THE DETAIL OF THESE FEATURES WILL BE AVAILABLE WHEN THE FIRST MACHINES FOR THE EUROPEAN MARKET ARE BEING ASSEMBLED HERE LATER THIS YEAR 2. WB SALES AND SUPPORT ORGANISATION • Outside of China Wickman Bennett and their distributors, sales agents and service agents will take responsibility for Vertical turning centres built in Wickman Bennett and Horizontal turning centres built in Spark. • The Spark VTL’s will be refined by WB without adding high cost and will provide large conventional and CNC VTL’s for the customer with less demanding requirements • These machines will be assembled in WB with the minor modifications necessary for Western markets • WB will take full responsibility for these machines’ performance and reliability • WB will install, commission and provide full warranty and planned maintenance programs for these machines • WB will ensure conformity to CE marking or any other required conformity o SPARK WB 160-200 CNC 2 axes single ram vertical turning machine o SPARK WB 160-200 CNC 3 axes single ram vertical turning centre o SPARK WB Double Column CNC Vertical Lathes up to 5000mm diameter, 4000mm high o SPARK WB Double Column Conventional twin ram Vertical lathes to 4000mm diameter 
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