Finland-based Elematic’s new automatic Plotter E9 guarantees both fast and accurate plotting of cuts and openings in the hollowcore slab production process thus saving contractors a lot of hassle on the work site besides saving costs.

The plotter marks cutting lines, rectangles and circles for openings and reservations as well as identification texts and codes on the cast slab surface. It also marks places for dividers and fittings on an empty bed surface. Both longitudinal and crosswise text printing is possible, according to Elematic, a leading supplier of precast concrete technology.

A simple touch-screen on the new system makes operation easy.

Accuracy saves people at the construction site a lot of time spent in struggling with poorly fitting duct installations, a company official points out.

Commenting on the operation of the system, he says: “A new level of plotting accuracy is reached through a direct transfer of the slab design details file from the design software (such as Tekla Structures BIM) to the Plotter’s FloorMES machine control system. The transfer takes place via a wireless remote link connection without any manual interventions, which removes the risk of human errors from this stage in the process.”

The continuous laser positioning along the casting bed further improves the plotting accuracy. The accuracy of the laser is +/-1 mm.

Automatic plotting also saves time at the factory. When there are several different spots to mark, the manual marking time may amount to as high as two minutes per slab. This, in turn, means that at the casting rate of 10,000 slabs per year, the total time spent for marking annually is 333 hours.

“I’ve calculated that investing in an automatic plotting machine pays itself back in less than 20 months. If automation prevents only one mistake in every 500 slabs, it means that you’ll save some €26,000 ($29,500) every year. When automation also cuts the number of work hours spent for the plotting process, your savings will amount to some €36,000,” says Jani Eilola, product director of Floor Technologies at Elematic.

Plotter E9 is operated via a simple 15.6-inch touch-screen designed to meet the everyday plotting tasks in precast concrete plants. The screen shows the slabs on beds, and on-bed quick re-planning allows the operator to check and edit the data on machine if needed, remove faulty slab sections, define a new starting point, and remove geometry.

The screen also shows work status such as start time, slab number, tasks and elapsed time, alerts and remaining battery power and ink levels. The touch-screen is easy to use and enables the user to zoom and drag and drop items similar to any other smart device.

The plotter is designed with safe operation in mind. It features light sensors on both buffers as well as ultrasonic sensors. The machine stops automatically at any hindrances on its way, and is equipped with light and sound alarms.

No cables are needed as the plotter is battery-operated. A fully-charged battery lasts 16 hours, or one to three days, depending on the beds and machine usage. An automated waterhole driller is available as an option.

The Plotter E9 offers a range of features for easy maintenance of the machine, including on-screen quick adjustment and calibration and clog-resistant print head. It is also ready for remote troubleshooting and support via a wifi link.

Elematic Oyj is a world-leading manufacturer of precast concrete plants and production lines. Headquartered in Finland, it has production units in Finland and India and subsidiaries and sales offices in the US, Germany, China, Russia, India, Hong Kong and the UAE, as well as agents in more than 20 countries.

In Elematic’s more than 50 years of operation, it has supplied technology to over 100 countries.

The company has an ISO 9001-certified quality system.