How to digitize and measure “impossible” parts

ANDRITZ Hydro has chosen Creaform’s portable 3D measurement solutions to expand its metrology tools. Thanks to HandySCAN 3D and MaxSHOT 3D, the company can speed up the measurement and perform it accurately even for challenging sized objects located in difficult to access places. Creaform is part of Ultra Precision Technologies, a division of AMETEK Inc.

Creaform, the worldwide leader in portable 3D measurement solutions and engineering services, has signed an agreement with ANDRITZ Hydro, a global supplier of electro-mechanical equipment and services from “water-to-wire” for hydropower plants. Creaform develops, manufactures and markets portable and automated 3D measurement technologies and specializes in engineering services. The company offers innovative solutions for applications such as 3D scanning, reverse engineering, quality control, non-destructive testing, product development, and numerical simulation (FEA/CFD). These products and services address a variety of industries, such as automotive, aerospace, consumer products, heavy industry, healthcare, manufacturing, oil and gas extraction, power generation, research and education. The company is part of Ultra Precision Technologies, a division of AMETEK Inc, a manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices. With the Creaform solutions ANDRITZ Hydro extends its metrology portfolio, being now more flexible with the portable solutions and able to respond more quickly to internal and external measurement requests.

Improving measurement capabilities overcoming limitations

Headquartered in Vienna (Austria), with over 50 locations in more than 25 countries worldwide, ANDRITZ Hydro was looking to improve its measurement capabilities by addressing limitations experienced with their conventional equipment, such as laser trackers and measuring arms. With their rigid set-ups unsuitable for manufacturing environments due to vibrations and thermal variations, these systems lacked the flexibility, the speed and the ease of use that the company was looking for. They decided to turn to Creaform, that helped them select the perfect metrology solutions to meet their needs, and finally chose to invest in the HandySCAN 3D and the MaxSHOT 3D optical coordinate measuring system. By using the new metrology equipment systems, ANDRITZ Hydro now saves time in component measurement, correspondingly reducing throughput times as well. The technology’s accuracy, versatility and portability enable measurement of difficult to access objects, in harsh manufacturing environments. Furthermore, process reliability has been strengthened by faster measurements in additional intermediate steps, and the annual savings provides them with a quick return on investment.