MACH 2026 is particularly exciting for Unison Ltd, the UK-based inventor of ultra-precise, all-electric tube manipulation. That’s because, at this year’s event, Unison will not only present advanced machine tool and simulation technologies – including those from its wider family of companies – but will also demonstrate the biggest, most powerful all-electric tube bending machine it has ever taken to a MACH show.
Credit: Unison
Nukon Cross fibre laser metal-cutting machine
That machine is an 80 mm (maximum tube diameter) tube bender from Unison’s globally acclaimed and British-built Breeze range. Quite possibly the most widely used all-electric tube bending machine on the market for automotive and aerospace component manufacturers, as well as subcontractors and general fabricators, the 80 mm Breeze is available in both single- and multi-stack configurations. Alongside the 80 mm Breeze will be a smaller 50 mm model – a machine that has become a firm favourite among subcontractors, fabricators, furniture, bus, train and handrailing manufacturers.
Other machine tool technologies on display on Unison’s stand, no. 20-550, will include one of the company’s manually operated and CNC-controlled EvBend 1000 precision tube bending machines, a Pneuform 3D rotary head wire bending machine, and a Cross Series flat sheet metal fibre laser cutting machine from Unison’s sister company, Nukon Lasers UK. Demonstrations of Unison’s advanced Opt2Sim Scan tube measurement system will also take place throughout the event.
Unison Breeze – British-built, ultra-precise, all-electric tube bending
Like all Unison Breeze tube bending machines, the 80 mm and 50 mm models that will be on display at MACH offer rapid setup, fast tooling changes, exceptional power, rigid mechanical design, and all-electric control for right-first-time repeat sub-contract work, or immediately after producing trial parts of even the most complex of geometry. These are attributes that Unison Ltd believes make its Breeze models the ultimate tube manipulation machines for businesses specialising in high-precision bending as well as small batch production runs.
Unison EvBend – high accuracy, CNC-controlled manual tube bending
Unison EvBend models are used widely across aerospace and MRO, Formula 1 and the oil & gas industry. Highly affordable and designed for low volume, high-accuracy prototyping and production, they provide 3-axis mandrel, multi-plane tube and pipe bending at a fraction of the cost of fully automated machines. In addition to the EvBend 1000, which is designed for bending tube of up to 16 mm in diameter (22 mm in copper), a larger machine, the EvBend 2000, is also available. Built to bend tube of up to 50 mm in diameter, its bending function is servo-assisted. Both EvBend machines feature a 15-inch PC-based touchscreen controlled by a CNC that is capable of processing up to 100 bends per component, storing infinite parts and connecting to CAD and most tube measuring systems.
Pneuform wire bending machines
Pneuform wire and small-diameter tube bending machines are widely seen as setting the industry standard by manufacturers of beer coolers, drink dispensers, HVAC equipment, and small-diameter automotive parts. Pneuform’s range of 3D rotary head bending machines includes models capable of precision-bending mild steel wire of 3 mm to 16 mm in diameter, and tube of up to 20 mm in diameter. As standard, all Pneuform machines are equipped with Yaskawa drives and Unison’s user-friendly software for easy programming, operation and control. Other machines in the Pneuform range include twin-head wire & tube bending machines, rotating wire 3D bending machines, enamelled wire stripping & bending machines, and copper & aluminium busbar bending machines. Optional heading machines and press stations are also available for secondary operations.
Opt2Sim Scan – for rapid, precise and consistent results
Unison’s advanced Opt2Sim Scan handheld tube measurement system combines rapid scanning of tube geometry with easy extraction of tube data. Teamed with a Creaform handheld 3D scanner to measure the tube or component they wish to replicate or measure, operators need only enter its bending data into Opt2Sim Scan, then compare measured tube dimensions to master file data and send any corrections directly to the bending machine. Offering considerable scan points without compromising speed, the constant reference geometry provided by Opt2Sim Scan ensures supremely accurate results, with ‘compare to master’ and feedback to the bending machine being quick and seamless.
High performance, highly accessible fibre laser cutting machines from Nukon
Already renowned for its high quality, intelligently priced European-built fibre laser cutting machines and press brakes, Nukon Lasers UK has launched a new, massively re-engineered range of laser machines to make high-performance metal cutting even more accessible. Branded the Nukon Cross Series, the new machines have been designed with a strong focus on productivity. They offer powerful 2D flat sheet metal cutting capability and can be specified with bed sizes of 3 m x 1.5 m, 4 m x 2 m, or 6 m x 2 m. Power options range from as little as 2 kW, right up to 30 kW for the most challenging of laser-cutting applications.
Showcasing latest innovations
“Without a shadow of doubt, MACH is the most important event on our UK exhibition calendar,” says Unison Ltd’s joint managing director, Alan Pickering. “Not only does it provide us with an incredible opportunity to showcase our latest innovations from the wider Unison family – machine tools, simulation tools and software to make manufacturing faster, better and more cost-effective – but it also provides the perfect venue to catch up with customers old and new.”
Unison Ltd: intelligent tube technology
Unison Ltd is the UK’s leading manufacturer of tube and pipe bending machines and continually innovates the tube and pipe bending marketplace. The company manufactured the world’s first all-electric tube bender in 1994, followed by the world’s first all-electric multi-stack tube bender, then the world’s largest all-electric tube bender for the shipbuilding industry. Available in single-stack, multi-stack and right/left varieties, Unison machines are delivered to more than 20 countries globally. Unison’s tube bending software is recognised as the most user-friendly control system for tube bending machines. The software is written and supported by Unison, ensuring complete control of its evolution, with no need for third party support.