For orbital welding, the welding head rotates 360° around the part to be welded. During the welding process, the arc moves around a fixed tube or formed tube section on a circular path (orbit). Orbital welding is used in particular for metalworking and tube systems / pipework.
Tube welding is differentiated by two main characteristics:
In a closed chamber system, orbital welding is carried out using orbital welding heads in an inert gas chamber. This can be used for welding parts with a max. wall thickness of up to 3.0 mm to the base material with an I-joint, without any filler.
Open welding heads can be used to weld thin-walled or thick-walled tubes, optionally with filler wire. The heads can be clamped continuously, allowing for greater flexibility.
Orbital welding is used in the following industries and sectors, to name a few:
semiconductors, aerospace, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food and beverage, shipbuilding, boilers and heat exchangers, oil and gas, petrochemicals and renewable energies.
There are also many other industrial applications where only orbital welding meets the necessary quality requirements.
The special features of orbital welding are the extremely high quality of the welds, reproducibility and documentability. Orbital welding is therefore used wherever a high quality of the welds is required.
Thanks to modern technology, high-quality welds can be produced even in tight spaces. The welds are flat, reproducible and absolutely even and have a low roughness, and are therefore popular and required for sensitive applications.
The pulse technology used, combined with state-of-the-art inverter and controller technology, enables control of the weld pool in all positions.
For process monitoring to industry standard 4.0, a powerful process controller and appropriate monitoring devices are used to execute a reliably reproducible tube welding process, including comprehensive process documentation.
The controller has a simple and very clear structure to enable intuitive and clear programming. Operator training to DIN EN ISO 14732 (3 training days) qualifies operators to carry out complex and challenging welding processes.
EVO orbital welding controller with water cooling unit including a 200-A power source. This controller can also be used without a water cooling unit if gas-cooled welding tools are used.
To increase productivity, a Switchbox can be used to weld with two alternating welding tools with a single controller.
TIG orbital welding is a special type of TIG (tungsten inert gas) welding.
The main difference is the partial mechanisation of the process. Different types of welding tools, e.g. the orbital welding head, hold the tungsten electrode or TIG torch.
Modern orbital welding solutions are needed in many applications. The superior quality of these solutions and the weld quality make the use of these systems an absolute must in many industrial applications. Orbitec offers a variety of different orbital welding systems, in modular or compact versions, tailored to suit different industry sectors and requirements. Almost all welding heads for orbital welding are available from Orbitec with gas-cooling or water-cooling.
After some initial insights into the orbital welding process, we introduce you to our products in additional videos. This includes auxiliary tools such as turntables, which are shown in practical application.
