Campetella Robotic Centre is an Italian robotics company specializing in the production and application of industrial robots and automation systems for plastic material injection moulding. Thanks to its ability to design cutting-edge equipment, the company, which is based in the province of Macerata, has established itself as a leading global provider of industrial automation solutions.
Today, Campetella operates in 40 countries around the world and produces approximately 500 industrial robots a year for a variety of industries including packaging, automotive and pharmaceuticals.
Label and packaging providers, for example, are facing an ever-increasing demand from their customers to produce customised labels in a variety of substrates. Therefore, to meet this demand, they need an appropriate automated machine to help. In response to this, in 2019 Campetella decided to invest in an HP Multi Jet Fusion 4200 3D printer for its Montecassino facility. The new printer allows Campetella to produce robotic machines with custom gripping hands that can handle products such as labels of all shapes and sizes, based on the label provider’s specifications. The HP Multi Jet Fusion 4200 allows Campetella to not only to build devices that perfectly match their customers’ requirements, but also enable its customers to use the same machine for different processes by simply replacing the 3D printed gripping hands.
When speaking about their latest installation, Carlo Campetella, Chairman, Campetella Robotic Centre, said: “Automation has changed over the years; today, it is about industrialising processes in shorter timescales. The advent of the 3D printer has been a major facilitator in opening up a world that, in my opinion, is only held back by imagination. Flexible technology has changed the way in which we produce customised automated systems and made us think differently about how we approach new demands and prototypes.”
HP’s Multi Jet Fusion technology allows the company to manufacture mechanical parts and components in an extremely quick and cost-effective way, without compromising on quality, finer details and strength. The Multi Jet Fusion 4200’s on-board sensors monitor the printing process, whilst HP’s support service help to schedule maintenance and minimize downtime, thus fulfilling the high expectations of industrial users.
Most of the components that Campetella produce using HP’s 3D printing technology are those that add the final, personalised touch to the end product. These include gripping systems, pads and label holders. The use of 3D printed parts makes it possible to have gripping systems that sometimes even improves their functionality, compared with those made from subtractive technologies. For example, 3D-printed plastic gripping hands maintain the same performance as those made from aluminium yet are lighter and can guarantee reduced production times.
With the HP Multi Jet Fusion 4200, Campetella has been able to achieve goals otherwise deemed unattainable. When manufacturing machines for labelling systems for example, the company have been able to reduce the weight of spindles by 50%, whilst also reducing speed to market from 8 to 4 weeks.
For Campetella Robotic Centre, having the support of a company of HP’s calibre is extremely important, not only when it comes to products and security, but also the ongoing support which is both rapid and functional.