Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH | ACURA 65, FORTE 65
Field of application: Machine and plant construction | Company headquarters: Dulliken, Switzerland | Employees: 5
From design office to system provider.
Founded in March 2019, Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH from Dulliken is one of the start-ups on the Swiss manufacturing scene. Originating as a small design office, the young company has developed into a system provider thanks to its passion and investment in innovative CNC technologies. The founding brothers and owners Paolo Circelli (CEO) and Marco Circelli (COO) explained the role played by the latest FORTE 65 and ACURA 65 machining centres from HEDELIUS during a visit to the SMM editorial team.
In 2009, the gates of Dihart AG in Dulliken, where Paolo and Marco Circelli had worked and completed their apprenticeship, closed. Twelve years later, CNC machines are back in the renovated halls at Industriestrasse 2 for the first time and the brothers are taking off with their own company.
The core competences of Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH, which now has five employees, lie in the ranges of design, CNC milling and CNC turning. Their wide-ranging expertise and infectious passion is appreciated by machine and plant manufacturers as well as manufacturing companies from all over Switzerland and from all industries - from medical technology to the food industry and vehicle construction. "Before I started my own business with my brother, I worked in design and engineering for ten years and was able to build up a large network as a result. Some of these contacts are among our closed customers today," Paolo Circelli looks back.
In order to expand their production capacities and in particular to be able to process larger steel plates, Marco Circelli (centre, COO/owner, CES) and Paolo Circelli (right, CEO/owner, CES) decided to invest in the FORTE 65 vertical 3-axis machining centre in 2021. Fabio Di Bernardo (left, Regional Sales Manager, Newemag AG) appreciates the trust placed in the two brothers. (Image: Matthias Böhm)
About 3-axis ...
Until 2021, Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH's machine park consisted of three machines. In 2021, Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH decided to invest in a vertical 3-axis machining centre from HEDELIUS of the type FORTE 65 for the first time in order to expand its production capacities and, in particular, to be able to machine larger steel plates.
With travel paths of 1320 × 650 × 600 mm, the travelling column machining centre offers plenty of space with a compact footprint. Advantage of a travelling column machining centre: Thanks to the fixed machine table, workpieces weighing up to 2000 kg can be machined without compromising the dynamics - as a result of the workpiece weight - of the machine.
The highly rigid design of the travelling column, which is made entirely of grey cast iron, ensures highest precision, excellent surface quality and highly productive chipping output. High repeat precision can be ensured thanks to direct position measuring systems in all axes and the most precise control and drive technology.
"As a trained polymechanic, I have worked on various machines in the past, but my favourite were those from HEDELIUS. Their stability impressed me even back then. With the new versions, HEDELIUS has once again made a considerable leap forward in terms of precision," says Marco Circelli, fascinated. "Some of the components we machine on this machine weigh 500 kg and are worth tens of thousands of Swiss francs. Accordingly, we have a zero-error tolerance," says Paolo Circelli, emphasising the importance of precision.
To further increase efficiency in single part production, Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH also invested in a magnetic clamping plate with square pole technology from the company Schunk. "With the FORTE 65, we have a longer table and can process the plates on the left-hand side while we work with vices on the right-hand side. This type of tandem production increases our flexibility," explains Marco Circelli.
... closed to 5-axis
With the 3-axis HEDELIUS FORTE 65 from 2021 alone, Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH soon reached its limits. "We were receiving more and more requests for 5-axis machining, including some free-form surfaces. Although we were able to produce almost everything with the 3-axis FORTE 65, we sometimes had to reclamp in order to finish machining the component. Depending on the complexity of the component, we lost a lot of time due to the reclamping," explains Marco Circelli. In order to relieve the 3-axis machining centre and increase the company's efficiency, a further investment followed just two years later and the leap into the 5-axis simultaneous world.
The 5-axis machining centre ACURA 65 was chosen. This model is also based on a modern travelling column concept and impresses with large travel paths of 700 × 650/465 × 600 mm in the tightest of spaces. The rotating/swivelling table of the machining centre, which is mounted on bearings on both sides, is equipped with hydraulic clamping on the rotating and swivelling axis for high-performance machining. Main time parallel tool set-up is made possible by the front-operated tool magazine with 65 tool positions.
Marco Circelli: "We hadn't actually planned to invest in another machine at such short notice - after all, we're a small company and it's all about big investments - but the order situation was good and the parts were becoming increasingly complex, so we didn't want to miss out. We had to be at the cutting edge of technology." Even Fabio Di Bernardo, regional sales manager at Newemag, was surprised: "After a visit to the HEDELIUS factory in Meppen (D), the decision was made very quickly. I hadn't expected that we would finalise the deal in the same year." Marco Circelli laughs: "When we set our minds to something, we see it through."
The 5-axis machining centre ACURA 65 is designed for stability and guarantees consistently strong milling performance with high process reliability and precision. (Image: Nastassja Neumaier, VCG)
The ACURA 65 has a 15,000 rpm spindle with HSK-A63 tool fitting and 50 kW spindle output. Paolo Circelli (CEO/owner, CES): "The high spindle output was important to us so that we can use state-of-the-art tools without restrictions and are also at the cutting edge of technology in this range." (Image: Nastassja Neumaier)
High-end configuration for maximum precision and flexibility
The brothers also had certain requirements in mind for the new investment: While the HEDELIUS FORTE 65 is still equipped with a 14,000 rpm spindle, the ACURA 65 was to have a 15,000 rpm spindle with HSK-A63 tool fitting and 50 kW spindle output. Marco Circelli: "50 kW is a big number. We benefit from this output in terms of productivity, especially because we machine larger components. The cutting performance of the HEDELIUS ACURA is truly enormous." Paolo Circelli: "The high spindle output was also important to us so that we can use state-of-the-art tools without restrictions and are also at the cutting edge of technology in this range."
In addition, the new TNC7 control system from Heidenhain and a direct drive were to be integrated at the table. "None of these requirements were a problem for HEDELIUS," says Di Bernardo. "The C-axis of the 5-axis machining centre in the ACURA series is even equipped with a liquid-cooled and backlash-free torque direct drive with up to 50 rpm for turning operations with maximum precision."
A digital twin rounds off the investment. "Especially with batch size 1, it is important that the milling strategy is 'marriage-proof'. With the digital twin, we can reliably rule out collisions. We also check the milling strategy via a simulation directly on the TNC7 control. And yet every process is subsequently monitored so that manual intervention is possible if necessary. We therefore do not yet see any potential for automation in the sense of unmanned production in single-part production, although HEDELIUS does offer interesting solutions here (see Automation from HEDELIUS)," explains Marco Circelli, while also providing an outlook: "We are young and open to new things. We are evaluating everything that can increase our efficiency."
Production in full swing
The two HEDELIUS machines were put into operation just as quickly as the decision was made in favour of them. Paolo Circelli: "Thanks to our good preparation, especially when it came to incorporating the new tools and holders into the CAM system, we were already producing within a week of the machines being delivered."
Since then, the machines have been running flawlessly. According to Marco Circelli, this is not a matter of course: "Due to the diversity of our parts, no two production processes are the same. The machines are always subjected to different loads. This places high demands on the machines."
If standard annual maintenance was due or minor service issues opened up, these could be dealt with within 24 hours thanks to Newemag's own spare parts warehouse and the excellent availability of its service and application engineers. Marco Circelli: "The cooperation with Newemag couldn't be better. The service technician responsible for us has been with us since 2021, knows our machines inside out and understands our requirements. We are also pleased to have found a partner in HEDELIUS that has a very high vertical range of manufacture of 85 per cent and is 'made in Germany'. It was very important to us that our machines come from Europe."
"When I visited Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH for the first time, I immediately realised that this young company had enormous expertise and potential. I wanted to promote that. But I also realised that, unlike large companies, the stakes were much higher for them with this investment. I am therefore all the more pleased that we were able to gain their trust," concludes Di Bernardo, looking forward to the future collaboration.
Source: SMM - Swiss Machine Market
Fabio Di Bernardo (centre, Regional Sales Manager, Newemag AG): "When I visited Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH for the first time, it was immediately clear to me that this young company has enormous expertise and potential." (Image: Matthias Böhm)
HEDELIUS machining centres of the customer.
More testimonials.
At Carstengerdes Modellbau und Zerspanung GmbH in Bockhorn near Wilhelmshaven, state-of-the-art technology meets a family working environment characterised by genuine appreciation. With the ultra-modern 5-axis machining centre ACURA 85 and the MARATHON 518 pallet handling system, the company focuses on automation and technical innovation - a major step forward that not only increases efficiency, but also offers young talents enjoyment of their work and long-term prospects.
Circelli Engineering Solutions GmbH from Dulliken is one of the start-ups on the Swiss manufacturing scene. Originating as a small design office, the young company has developed into a system provider thanks to its passion and investment in innovative CNC technologies. The founding brothers and owners Paolo Circelli and Marco Circelli explain the role played by the latest FORTE 65 and ACURA 65 machining centres from HEDELIUS.
Thanks to automation, IWK Verpackungstechnik has been able to significantly increase the production capacity of its HEDELIUS machining centres. By integrating a robot cell, the CNC operators gain valuable time that they can use for the manufacture of single parts. This solution enables IWK to increase its flexibility and further expand production efficiency.
