NMX‑BBL‑155 / Rev 00 / Ammunition · MIL-DTL-14824C / Noida · India 2026 · Product Page

NMX-BBL-155 · ENGINEERED TO ORDER — BUILT ON DELIVERED OPERATIONS

155 mm base-bleed finishing line. One robot. Two proofs. One record.

An integrated, robot-served line that finishes 155 mm base-bleed shell bodies through the two operations that decide acceptance: copper-band crimping on a 300 t servo press with 100% force-signature capture, and 600 bar hydrostatic proof on a six-station carousel — at a 60-second takt, 12,000 units a month on one shift, every shell leaving under one barcode with one electronic record. The operations are built practice from our delivered, exported robotised shell-processing installations; the line integrates them. Engineered and built to order at Noida.

Enquire — ammunition lines Capability sheet (PDF)

Photograph — delivered Neometrix reference installation: a 6-axis industrial robot serving a shell processing machine beside a blue loading conveyor carrying machined 155 mm shell bodies in a workshop

Fig · 01 Delivered reference — robot-served 155 mm shell processing installation (published record); the line integrates these operations

Line Takt

60s/unit · 60 units/hour

Crimping Press

300t servo · 100% signature

Hydro Proof

600bar · 750 bar design

Traceability

1barcode · 1 record/shell

Capacity

12,000units/month · 1 shift

ISO 9001 / 14001 Delivered & exported shell-processing heritage MIL-DTL-14824C · MIL-STD-1522 practice PL-d safety · fenced robotic cell Noida · India

Overview

A shell leaves the factory on two proofs. This line makes both, and writes them down.

On a base-bleed shell, two finishing operations carry the acceptance file: the copper driving band must be seated onto its body with exactly the right force, everywhere on its circumference — and the body must hold proof pressure without weeping, yielding or growing. Do either badly and the failure appears later, somewhere far more expensive. This line industrialises both, at rate, with evidence.

Photograph — delivered Neometrix rotary-carousel shell pressure-testing machine: blue frame, grey columns, rotary table with tooling rings and a single machined nose cone, at a customer works

Fig · 02 Delivered reference — rotary-carousel shell pressure-testing machine at a customer works (photograph)

The line joins two cells with a robot. Machined bodies arrive on a 10-unit infeed buffer; a 6-axis robot presents each body to the band-crimping cell — band placed, then seated by a 300 t servo-hydraulic radial press while the controller captures the full force-versus-position signature of every crimp against a taught acceptance envelope. Across a buffered transfer conveyor, the hydrostatic carousel takes over: six stations execute the 600 bar proof cycle station-by-station — fill, pressurise, hold, decay-check, gauge, drain — so a full proof happens inside a 60-second line takt.

Accepted units are stamped, barcode-labelled and delivered to the outfeed. Rejects do not travel: NOK units divert to segregated, electronically quarantined spurs at either process. And because buffers decouple the two cells, a short stoppage at one does not immediately starve the other — the arithmetic behind a sustained 60 units/hour with an 85% OEE design allowance, recoverable within the shift.

A driving band you crimped right and a body you proved at 600 bar — that is what lets a shell leave the factory with one barcode and no arguments.

Built Practice · Not Concept

The operations are delivered hardware

Robotised band pressing and robotised hydrostatic shell testing are equipment classes Neometrix has designed, delivered and exported — including a robot-served 155 mm shell processing installation in production, from our published installation record. The line integrates cells we have already built and exported; it does not invent them.

Signature · Every Crimp

100% force-signature acceptance

Every band seating is captured as a full force-vs-position curve and judged against a witnessed, frozen master envelope — MIL-DTL-14824C practice — with LVDT post-crimp gauging and live Cp/Cpk on peak force and seating position. Band seating stops being an operator skill and becomes a recorded process.

One Barcode · One Record

Both proofs in a single certificate

The line SCADA keeps one per-unit record spanning both processes — crimp signature, pressure-time curve, decay result, dimensional and volumetric checks — under one barcode identity, exportable as CSV/PDF unit certificates with OPC-UA/MES northbound for the plant system.

Architecture

Two cells, one robot, buffers doing the diplomacy.

The layout below is the engineered line as quoted — material flow, cell arrangement, robotics and the data spine, inside one safety-fenced footprint.

FIG · 03LINE LAYOUT · INFEED → CRIMP → HYDRO CAROUSEL → OUTFEED

Fig · 03 Indicative arrangement — final general arrangement is fixed at design approval

Arc · 01

The Crimping Cell

A 300 t servo-hydraulic radial band-seating press with a 12-segment hardened die set closes the copper driving band onto the body seat. A band pre-place station with poka-yoke prevents wrong or missing bands; every cycle records its force-vs-position signature against the taught envelope; LVDT gauging verifies the seated band; recipes are password-tiered with a full audit trail, locked after design approval. 60 crimps/hour.

Arc · 02

The Hydro Carousel

A six-station indexing carousel proves each body at 600 bar (750 bar design margin) from a servo intensifier, with redundant 0.1%-of-full-scale pressure measurement. Each station step performs one phase — so filling, pressurising, holding, decay-checking, gauging and draining all happen simultaneously on six different bodies, and a complete proof emerges every 60 seconds. Water treatment and a chiller keep the test medium in condition.

Arc · 03

Robotics & Flow

One 6-axis robot in the 36 kg-body payload class, floor-mounted between the cells with a servo gripper on body datums, serves press, carousel and conveyors. Powered infeed, transfer and outfeed conveyors each carry 10-unit buffers; the outfeed adds pass-stamping and barcode labelling, with segregated NOK spurs at both processes. Replenishment — band magazines, pallet exchange — happens through light-curtained windows without breaking takt.

Arc · 04

Safety & the Data Spine

The cell (~13.5 × 8.5 m indicative) is perimeter-fenced with interlocked doors and light curtains, safety architecture engineered to PL-d with a single zoned e-stop domain; one supervisory operator works outside the fence. The line SCADA holds the per-unit record across both processes, serves OPC-UA/MES northbound, and runs the OEE dashboard. Utilities: 415 V 3-ph, ~65 kW connected; air 6–7 bar, ~40 CFM (engineering estimates ±10%).

Holding a 155 mm, base-bleed or shell-finishing requirement? Send it across — configuration-by-configuration response within two working days · [email protected]

Send tender spec

Specifications

Reference specification, as engineered.

The parameters below reflect the engineered line offering. Calibre, takt, pressure class and automation level are re-scoped against your specification.

Full specification — expand

Product	155 mm base-bleed shell finishing line — integrated band-crimping cell + hydrostatic proof carousel, robot-served, with unified traceability · engineered to order
Throughput	Line takt 60 s/unit · 60 units/hour · 12,000 units/month at single shift (25 d × 8 h) · crimp cycle 45–55 s and carousel index 60 s both inside takt · 85% OEE design allowance, recoverable via buffer drain · two-shift operation doubles headroom
Crimping Cell	300 t servo-hydraulic radial band-seating press · 12-segment hardened die set · band pre-place station with poka-yoke · 100% force-vs-position signature capture with taught-envelope acceptance (MIL-DTL-14824C practice) · LVDT post-crimp gauging · SPC with live Cp/Cpk on peak force and seating position · tool-wear trending · recipe management, password-tiered, audit-trailed
Hydro Carousel	6-station indexing carousel · 600 bar proof, 750 bar design · servo intensifier · redundant pressure measurement, 0.1% of full scale · pressure-time record with decay gate · LVDT dimensional gauging · volumetric-balance metering · MIL-STD-1522 + DGQA practice · water treatment + chiller
Robotics	6-axis robot, 36 kg body payload class · servo gripper with body-datum fingers · floor-mounted between cells · serves press, carousel and all conveyors
Material Flow	Powered conveyors: infeed (10-unit buffer), inter-process transfer (10-unit), outfeed with pass-stamp and barcode-label station · segregated, electronically quarantined NOK spurs at both processes
Traceability	One barcode, one record per shell: crimp signature + hydro P-t/decay/dimensional/volumetric results in a single line-SCADA record · CSV/PDF unit certificates · OPC-UA server, MES/ERP hooks · line OEE dashboard
Safety	Perimeter fencing with interlocked doors · light curtains at replenishment windows · safety architecture engineered to PL-d · single e-stop domain with zoning · cell ~13.5 × 8.5 m (indicative, fixed at design approval)
Utilities	415 V ±10%, 3-ph, 50 Hz · ~65 kW connected (hydro ~35, crimp ~22, robot ~4, conveyors & ancillaries balance) · compressed air 6–7 bar, dry, ~40 CFM · engineering estimates ±10%, scaled from our as-built robotised platform (11,600 kg / 32 kW / 30 CFM class); final values in the design package
Operator Model	One supervisory operator per shift outside the fence · materials replenishment (band magazines, pallet exchange) takt-decoupled via buffers
Acceptance	Rate demonstration: sustained 60 units/hour for 2 hours with 100% signature and P-t capture · FAI master-envelope teach witnessed and frozen · site acceptance support included
Heritage	Underlying operations delivered and exported as robotised 155 mm shell-processing installations (published record) · band presses delivered to multiple ammunition manufacturers · as-built drawing standard carried into this line’s design package
Configurations	Inline automated line · standalone 300 t crimping press (operator-loaded or robot-automated) · standalone 600 bar hydro carousel · spare die sets, sealing-head sets, variant tooling · other calibres engineered to order
Status	Engineered to order — line design, build, installation, commissioning, training and acceptance undertaken against contract · export subject to Government of India authorisation

PDF · 1 page

155 mm Base-Bleed Finishing Line — Capability Sheet

Tender Response

Send your specification — configuration response in two working days

Variants

One finishing discipline, three ways to buy it.

Programmes phase differently. The same engineered cells are offered as an integrated line or as standalone machines that an existing shop can absorb one at a time.

Var · 01

The Inline Automated Line

The configuration on this page — crimping cell + hydro carousel, one robot, buffered conveyors, unified SCADA record — for programmes that want finished, certificated shells from a single fenced footprint at 60 units/hour.

Var · 02

Standalone Crimping Press

The 300 t signature-monitored band-seating press as an independent machine — operator-loaded with powered lift-assist, or with the robot automation option (robot, conveyors, automatic band feed, in-line ring gauging, fencing to PL-d) added now or later.

Var · 03

Standalone Hydro Carousel

The six-station 600 bar proof carousel as an independent acceptance machine with the same instrumentation and per-unit records — operator-loaded, or robot-automated for lights-out proof testing of buffered batches.

Var · 04

Other Calibres & Variants

The same press, carousel and robotics engineered for other shell calibres and body variants — die sets, sealing heads, grippers and recipes are the variant-specific items; the machines, safety architecture and data spine carry over.

Applications

Where it serves.

Wherever 155 mm capacity is being built, and acceptance evidence matters.

A · 01155 mm base-bleed & extended-range programmes — shell-body finishing at rate

A · 02Artillery ammunition plants — driving-band seating with 100% signature evidence

A · 03Proof-testing capacity expansion — carousel hydrostatic acceptance at takt

A · 04Private & public-sector ammunition manufacturers — greenfield and brownfield lines

A · 05Export ammunition programmes — subject to Government of India authorisation

A · 06Acceptance digitalisation — per-unit records, SPC and OEE for existing shops

FAQ

Common questions.

Plain-language answers from the engineering team.

Q · 01 How is this different from your 155 mm shell pressure-testing machines?

Scope. Our 155 mm shell hydraulic pressure-testing machines are acceptance test machines — they answer one question about one body at a time. This page is a finishing line: it performs two production operations — band crimping and hydrostatic proof — joins them with a robot and buffers, runs them at a 60-second takt, and writes both results into one per-shell record. A test machine proves a body; the line finishes shells, at rate, with the certificate attached.

Q · 02 Why does band crimping need 100% force-signature monitoring?

Because the driving band is the shell’s contract with the barrel — it seals propellant gas and imparts spin — and a bad seating is invisible from outside. Under-seated bands can shift under firing acceleration; over-pressed seats can deform the body. A signature-monitored servo press captures the entire force-vs-position curve of every crimp and compares it, point by point, to a master envelope taught at first-article inspection, witnessed and frozen. MIL-DTL-14824C practice turns “the press was set correctly” into per-shell evidence — and the SPC layer watches the fleet of curves for die wear before it becomes a defect.

Q · 03 How does a full 600 bar proof fit inside a 60-second takt?

By unstacking the phases. A hydrostatic proof needs filling, pressurisation, a hold at 600 bar, a decay check, gauging and draining — far more than 60 seconds end-to-end. The carousel gives each phase its own station: six bodies are always in work, each one station further along, and the table indexes every 60 seconds. Each individual shell still receives its full, unhurried proof cycle; the line simply overlaps six of them. Redundant 0.1%-FS transducers record the pressure-time curve and the decay gate per body, and the volumetric-balance check catches elastic-expansion anomalies the pressure trace alone can miss.

Q · 04 What does “one barcode, one record” give an acceptance authority?

A single, queryable identity for every shell. From the moment a body enters the line it carries a barcode; the crimping cell writes its force signature and gauging to that identity, and the carousel adds the pressure-time curve, decay result, dimensional and volumetric findings. The line SCADA exports the combined record as a CSV or PDF unit certificate, serves OPC-UA to the plant MES, and never mixes populations: rejects divert to electronically quarantined spurs where the record marks them NOK, so an accepted lot is an accepted lot by construction — not by sorting discipline.

Q · 05 Is this built practice or a concept?

The line as an integrated whole is engineered to order — we say that plainly. The operations inside it are built practice: Neometrix has designed, delivered and exported robotised shell-processing installations — including a robot-served 155 mm shell testing installation in production, shown in the photographs on this page from our published installation record — and has delivered band presses to multiple ammunition manufacturers. The utilities and mass figures in the specification are scaled from that as-built platform, and the same as-built drawing standard governs this line’s design package, fixed at design approval.

Q · 06 Can we buy the crimping press or the hydro carousel alone?

Yes — both are offered as standalone machines, and it is a common phasing: start with the operation that bottlenecks your programme, operator-loaded; add the robot automation option — robot, conveyors, band feed or batch buffering, fencing to PL-d — when volume justifies it; integrate into the full line when the second operation arrives. The controls architecture, per-unit records and acceptance philosophy are identical in every configuration, so nothing is thrown away between phases. Other calibres and body variants are engineered to order on the same machines with variant tooling. Export engagements are subject to Government of India authorisation.

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Send your shell-finishing
line requirement.

The Projects desk replies within two working days with a configuration-by-configuration response and a budgetary quotation. Write to [email protected] or use the form.

Enquire — ammunition lines Capability sheet (PDF) +91 7777 876 876

ISO 9001 / 14001 ENGINEERED TO ORDER — DELIVERED OPERATIONS MIL-DTL-14824C · MIL-STD-1522 · PL-d MADE IN NOIDA · INDIA