Wheelabrator
| RGB_Wheelabrator_Transparent.png | |
 | |
| Limited | |
| ISIN | 🆔 |
| Industry | Manufacturing |
| Predecessors | Wheelabrator & Equipment Company |
| Founded 📆 | |
| Founder 👔 | Benjamin Chew Tilghman |
| Headquarters 🏙️ | Altrincham, UK |
Areas served 🗺️ | Worldwide |
Key people | EVP and President Wheelabrator Wheel - Lars Priess |
| Products 📟 | Shot-blast equipment |
| Members | |
Number of employees | 1001 - 5000 |
| Parent | Norican Group |
| 🌐 Website | https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/ |
| 📇 Address | Metelen, Germany |
| 📞 telephone | +492556880 |
| 💼 LinkedIN] | wheelabrator-group |
Wheelabrator Group, part of Norican Group is a multinational manufacturer of shot-blasting[1] equipment, with headquarters in Altrincham, UK. The company's focus is the development and manufacture of wheelblast and airblast shot-blast technology.
History[edit]
In 1869, Benjamin Chew Tilghman invented the sandblasting process, also known as air blasting. He filed the patent for his invention in the USA[2] and established "Tilghman's Patent Sand Blast Co." in London, UK, relocating the company to Altrincham, near Manchester, in 1879.
ALouis D. Peik of the American Foundry Equipment Co. patented the wheel blast process in 1933, leading to the introduction of the first Wheelabrator machines that same year. In the UK, Tilghman's started constructing Wheelabrator machines under a license in 1935.
In 1945, the American Foundry underwent a name change to become the American Wheelabrator & Equipment Company. In 1966, the business acquired a 40% stake in Tilghman's. This paved the way for the company to be known as Tilghman Wheelabrator until is eventually became fully owned by American Wheelabrator in 1973. American Wheelabrator subsequently became the Wheelabrator Group and continues to trade under this name today.
In September 2008, the merger between Wheelabrator Group and DISA Group resulted in the formation of the Norican Group. DISA’s heavy-duty shotblast equipment brand came under Wheelabrator brand.
Mission and Vision[edit]
Wheelabrator‘s mission is to keep pushing the boundaries of shot-blast technology to enhance its customers’ productivity, profitability and sustainability.
Headquarters[edit]
Wheelabrator Group’s headquarters is located in Altrincham, UK.
Products[edit]
Wheelabrator manufactures a wide range of shot-blast machines used in various industries for tasks such as cleaning, peening, descaling, and deburring of metallic surfaces.[3]
Wheelblast[edit]
Wheelblasting is a process by which one or more electrically-powered blast wheels accelerate shot towards a target surface. There are various types of wheelblast machines[4] designed for light, medium, and heavy-duty applications, catering to robust or fragile, simple or complex components.
Machine types are often defined by how components are transported through the wheelblast process. Examples of machine types include roller conveyer[5], hanger[6] and horizontal belt[7] machines.
The key component on a wheelblast machine is the blast wheel, which determines the performance of the machine and is a focus for innovation. Decades odl machines can be given a performance boost by upgrading their blast wheels to the latest technology.
Airblast and wetblast[edit]
In airblasting, dry media is pneumatically accelerated by compressed air and then projected by nozzles onto the component. Wetblasting is similar, except that the media is first mixed with water.[8]
The machines are equipped with blasting cabinets or entire rooms that contain the media. The nozzles can be fixed or moved manually[9], automatically controlled by nozzle manipulators[10] or operated by robots[11].
Airblast machines are also useful for cleaning internal surfaces, such as complex engine block castings.
Digital products[edit]
Wheelabrator offers digital products[12] designed to reduce blasting costs and improve process precision. Digital solutions are developed on Norican Group’s Monitizer[13] platform.
Global centers[edit]
Wheelabrator operates global manufacturing and research & development (R&D) facilities in strategic locations around the world.
Manufacturing Centre[edit]
The European manufacturing centre and global aftermarket hub are situated in Czech Republic, NAM, India, and China. It employs over 500 people and focuses on producing large mid-duty or heavy-duty shot blast machines.
Global technology centers[edit]
Wheelabrator's technology centres are responsible for research, development, design, and testing of new blasting processes and machines. These centres are located in Switzerland, Germany, and France, each specialising in different applications and industries.[14]
Switzerland[edit]
The technology centre in Zurich, Switzerland designs and supplies heavy-duty machines for foundry and primary steel applications, including desanding, decoring, and cleaning.
Germany[edit]
The technology centre in Metelen, Germany, focuses on air and wheelblast equipment for automotive and industrial applications, such as steel plate and aluminum shot-blasting.
France[edit]
The technology centre in Charleville-Mezieres, France, specialises in shot peening machines for the automotive and aerospace sectors. It includes CNC[15] and robotic airblast technologies[16] for various applications, including jet engine component peening and structural strengthening.
The center designs and manufactures the CFX[17] range of gear peening machines for the automotive industry.
Charleville-Mezieres is also the French base for Wheelabrator Impact Finishers[18], a specialist subcontract provider of shot peening services and technology. There is a second subcontract shot peening facility in Slough, UK.
Target Customers[edit]
Wheelabrator Group's comprehensive range of products and services caters to diverse industries, including automotive, aerospace, construction, foundry, and metalworking.
References[edit]
- ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/my-application/application-by-process/what-is-shot-blasting. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/innovation-and-technology/design-and-development/a-history-of-innovation. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/my-application/application-by-process/what-is-shot-blasting. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/wheelblasting-machines. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/roller-shot-blasting-machines. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/equipment/wheelblast-machines/hanger-type-machines. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/horizontal-industrial-blasting-equipment. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-gb/airblast-wet-blast-equipment. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-gb/equipment/airblast-cabinets-and-machines/manual-air-and-wet-blast-cabinet. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-gb/internal-cleaning-machine. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-gb/equipment/airblast-cabinets-and-machines/frame-machines. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Foundry Planet". https://www.foundry-planet.com/de/d/new-digital-tools-unlock-quick-win-cost-savings-for-blast-machine-operators/. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-gb/equipment/digital-solutions/monitizer. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/innovation-and-technology/wheelabrator-innovation-centres. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wikipedia". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numerical_control. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/innovation-and-technology/wheelabrator-innovation-centres/tc-aerospace. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-us/equipment/airblast-cabinets-and-machines/peening-cells-and-systems. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help) - ↑ "Wheelabrator". https://www.wheelabratorgroup.com/en-gb/shot-peening-service. Retrieved 2023-29-07. Check date values in:
|access-date=(help); External link in|website=(help)
