With the brand-new vacuum tube lifter JumboFlex, the specialists for vacuum technology and handling systems J. Schmalz GmbH in D-72293 Glatten round off their range of handling solutions. Although the company already offers a solution for light objects with the vacuum tube lifter JumboHandy, the JumboFlex is a completely new system which is characterised by various improvement and innovations. The vacuum tube lifter JumboFlex is designed for fast and ergonomic handling, maximum flexibility in many different or quickly changing applications, better productivity and efficiency thanks to the ease with which it can be used and moved, extensive freedom of movement in production, assembly and distribution, precise material handling without damage to the goods and, last but not least, for use in rooms whose ceilings were previously too low to permit the use of manual vacuum handling systems.

The new vacuum tube lifter JumboFlex is available in two versions for maximum loads of 20 kg and 35 kg, respectively. The unit can be mounted on crane systems, on wall or column-mounted slewing cranes or on existing overhead cranes, and can thus be used practically everywhere where it is needed. The ideal solution is the combination of the JumboFlex and an easy-running aluminium crane system from Schmalz or one of the slewing cranes (mounted on a wall or a column) which Schmalz, as a complete supplier, offers as part of the product range. The vacuum tube lifter is designed and equipped optimally for one-hand operation. Depending on the requirements, the vacuum can be generated with an electric pump or with a multi-stage ejector powered by compressed-air. The lifting tube has a diameter of 80 or 100 mm, depending on the maximum load, and the lifting speed is between 50 and 60 m/min. The overall height of the JumboFlex is about 2,500 mm and the lifting height is 1,500 mm or 1,800 mm, depending on the model. This means that the JumboFlex can also be used in rooms with a ceiling height of only about 3,000 mm, depending on whether it is suspended from an overhead crane or a wall- or column-mounted slewing crane.

The vacuum tube lifter JumboFlex can be equipped with various vacuum grippers to match the intended handling tasks, such as a single suction pad, a sack gripper, a double suction pad or special grippers for handling a wide range of products and goods, for example cardboard boxes, sacks, barrels, canisters, solid objects, rolls of plastic film, etc. The grippers can be changed in a matter of seconds without the use of tools, thanks to the quick-change adapter which is integrated as a standard feature in the vacuum tube lifter JumboFlex. Various accessories are also available for the individual configuration of the lifter: a protective tube, a dust filter, a motor-protection switch, a silencer box for the electric vacuum pump and many other. Lifting and lowering of the load, as well as releasing the load are controlled with a single operator control, whose optimised shape permits precise one-hand movement and positioning by both right-handed and left-handed users! A further useful feature is that the vacuum tube lifter JumboFlex and the gripped workpiece can be rotated endlessly, with detents every 90°. It is thus possible to grip a workpiece from the side. The workpiece is then automatically turned thorough 90° to the horizontal position as it is moved to its intended position.