ESAB Experience
| ESAB has earned its place as one of the most experienced companies in the welding and cutting industry. |
Our success is based on our customer's success. |
We supply the engineering industry with a thousand tons of filler metals every day. |
We have a welding machine for every weld and every welder. |
Computer-aided cutting enhances quality and cuts costs. |
Some people think that we only care about quality - and they are absolutely right. |
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| The faster, better and more environmentally-compatible our customers are at cutting their material and joining their components, the stronger and more profitable they can become. The more ESAB's know-how and products can boost its customers' success, the greater their reason for doing business with ESAB and no one else. The principal strength of ESAB lies in our overall experience and resources and our powerful local presence in every market. Our size has also helped us when it comes to the speedy and reliable delivery of our entire product portfolio. We have been able to reduce costs by standardizing the entire range and eliminate small stocking points and run distribution from just a few central stores. Using modern information technology and logistics, we are able to deliver both routine and less commonly used products quickly and reliably from these stores, regardless of the location of our customers. Even so, the most important part of our work is to transfer technology and help our customers optimize their operations with the support of our lengthy experience, in-depth knowledge and large- scale resources. Back To Top |
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| The filler metals that are used during welding represent a tiny part of the total production cost of a welded structure. Even so, the choice of electrode, welding wire, and flux have a substantial effect on both productivity and quality and thereby the total cost. Ever since Oscar Kjellberg started producing covered electrodes, ESAB has been one of the leading producers of filler metals when it comes to technical developments, range and product volume. At present, we produce some 250,000 tons of electrodes, wire, strips and fluxes every year. As fast, reliable deliveries are essential for users, production takes place at some 20 plants all over the world and as close to our customers as possible. Many rigorous demands are imposed on filler metals. They have to be easy to work with and they have to produce faultless weld joints which require virtually no finishing work. In mild and carbon manganese steels, these demands are hard enough to comply with. New high-strength and stainless steels make it even harder and pose a constant challenge to the researchers and technicians who work at our development centers around the globe. To produce the same high quality, regardless of where production takes place, all our plants use the same raw materials, the same type of equipment and identical test methods and control systems. The principal reason why ESAB has become the world's leading supplier of filler metals is that we, more than most other producers, know what welders require and not forgetting that we have the resources to fulfil their requirements. Back To Top |
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| Despite all the technology, it is still the welder's skill and experience that largely determines how strong and reliable a welded joint is going to be. However, without the technical development of machinery and material the results would not be as good and the work would be more complicated and time-consuming. For many years ESAB has played a leading role in the development of increasingly efficient equipment yet with increasingly simple controls. ESAB offers the market's most comprehensive program of machines for welding of every type. From simple portable models for welding with covered electrodes in small workshops to complete production systems for heavy industry and sophisticated materials. Efficiency, flexibility and user friendliness have been the key words in this development work. For this reason, microprocessors on some of the newest models make it possible for the welder to set the optimum combination of voltage, current, gas flow, pulse time, wire feed speed and other parameters. And, with the touch of a button, the information is stored in the machine memory for later use. ESAB has machines which can be used for different welding methods and which make it possible to change quickly and easily from welding with covered electrodes to welding with solid or cored wire, with or without shielding gas. When the welder changes one parameter, all the others follow to obtain the optimum combination. ESAB sees this development work as an important step toward making the work easier and more efficient for our most important customer - the welder. Back To Top |
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| To construct a modern cruise liner, thousands of parts and components have to be cut from sheet metal of varying thickness. Many of these parts and components can weigh as much as 20 tons and have a length of 90 feet. Others can be held in the hand. Virtually every one of them is unique and cutting productivity and quality both have a decisive effect on the total production cost of the ship. There are similar problems in many other industrial sectors, even if the parts and components are generally smaller and the materials thinner. ESAB is one of the world's leading companies when it comes to the automatic cutting of plates using gas, plasma and laser. ESAB produces both standardized cutting machines and completely customized, turn-key systems for different types of cutting. The standard program also includes equipment for cutting with water, on all kinds of materials such as metal, glass, plastic, insulation material and so on. In a modern cutting system, the computer and its programs play a central role. The entire cutting process is often controlled via a direct link to the design department's computers. The yield from every plate is optimized on the basis of drawings and specifications and, at the same time, every procedure is checked. The programs also control the bevelling angles and the compensation for the materials which are lost during cutting, as well as the marking of the finished parts and components. In some cases, the mechanized and automated handling which takes place prior to and after cutting is also controlled. ESAB has also played a leading part when it comes to improving the working environment during cutting. Today, for example, plasma cutting is often done under water, thereby reducing a great deal of the noise, gases and fumes which are produced by cutting. Back To Top |
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| ESAB has a corporate quality policy which says that, every time we meet a customer, we must try to exceed his expectations. This is an ambitious target which requires the constant and ongoing development of our products, services, production methods and, not least, ourselves. It explains why one in ten members of the staff at ESAB is involved in some form of development. From developing new and more production-oriented filler metals, more productive machines, more rational production systems and safer environmental protection products to developing more effective distribution channels and more reliable delivery systems. It also explains why our highly qualified R&D staff is constantly working with new projects and products, quite frequently together with universities, research institutes, gas companies and the steel industry. Through discussions with customers and presentations at scientific and technical meetings, they also take an active part in the marketing of our products. When it comes to our own production throughout the world, we focus heavily on quality. All our production facilities either have certification according to ISO 9000 or will have it in the near future. Almost as many people as those involved in the development of our products, services and production methods are involved in education and training. As we see it, the development of our staff is an important part of our commitment to quality as it makes it possible to delegate responsibility, improve the efficiency of our operations and increase the level of quality. Quality assurance is further enhanced by the standardization of raw materials and components and by long-term business relationships with a small number of sub-suppliers. By making regular reviews of our quality systems we can constantly step up the demands we impose on ourselves and our various business partners. The overall aim is to exceed our customers' expectations. Everyone at ESAB knows that our total quality has a vital effect on our customers' profitability - and thereby very definitely on our own results and future. Back To Top |