Manufacturers are looking for that perfect mix of automation that will maximize the number and quality of units produced and the lowest cost that will give the highest profits. It is important for a company that is doing an analysis to decide what part of the operation is best suited for automation to look at all aspects of a production line. The least likely part of the production line may turn out to be the greatest reduction of cost when automation is applied. If your manufacturing operation does short-run, high-mix production for multiple customers who demand a short turn-around from their order to your delivery, you need to look at everything to optimize with automation. The minimization of setup time after completing one short-run of products to get ready for the next short-run can make or break your company’s bottom line.
For metal fabrications and manufacturers that create specialized metal parts the use of horizontal and vertical automation machines can give the business the short turn-around that customers demand. The vertical machining center has a tool that is perpendicular to the machine base. The part on which work is being done is presented to the tool by being mounted on a base that moves under the tool or over the tool, depending on which way the tool is mounted. The tool can only move in a horizontal way. However the part may be presented at different angles to the tool for work to be done. This is dependent on the axes that can be used to manipulate the part. The horizontal machining center has the tool mounted horizontal to the base of the machine. These movements are all coordinated by the computer program that is instructing the automated work center. Some of the models of these automation machines have the ability to change the working tool during the work station cycle, based on the instruction from the controlling program.
Automation machines can increase the competitiveness of a small business so that it will be able to economically produce metal parts to complete with much larger organizations. A small group of specialized setup personnel can make the changeover between jobs very quickly. There are machine shops that run 3 shifts with the machining centers. The day shift is when the setup personnel get the equipment ready for jobs that are about to begin. The second shift setup personnel oversee the operating production facilities, while during the third shift the production line runs unattended. The HMC and VMC production lines give the highest quality production work with very low man-time. This type of work scenario encourages the customers to demand small lots of specialized products with a very short lead time. The business that can deliver on these can have all the work that the schedule will hold. No defects is a given in such an environment. If there were any products made “out of spec” it would mean a downturn for the business. The real key is the efficiency of the setup personnel, not only how correct they are in setup, but also how fast they are in getting the job done. Another important characteristic of the automation machines scenario is the almost perfect rate of perfect parts produced. Typically there will be one or less parts out of 1,000 produced that will be defective.
The pressure is on the setup crew. With the production line running at its highest rate and customer demands for speed of delivery increasing, the only way to improve productivity on short-run jobs is to reduce setup times on equipment, put on another shift, or buy more equipment.. Neither added shifts or more equipment will reduce costs. The reduction of setup time is a practical way to get the next job started as quickly as possible, and get the customer what they demand. The vertical and horizontal automation machines can be coupled with a multiple pallet system. The machines can be maximized with such a system. The pallets are lined up and automatically fed through the machining work station. Multiple identical parts can be created with this configuration. Combining this ability with the multiple axes of the machine will give the production line the ability to fabricate very complex parts with extreme efficiency. If a machine center is configured so that the spindle is fixed and the table tilts then the tool mounting will be much more stable, producing accurate results, even when working on complicated work pieces.
Once the setup personnel have the highest skill levels in getting jobs ready for production it is easy to have this equipment running unattended, probably on a third shift. With a program setup in advance of each production job before it starts, personnel can review all the steps that are to be performed before the steps are actually executed. This allows for the elimination of problems before they can occur on the production line. This automation machines scenario will cut the overall production costs by reducing the required work force, increase efficiency in production, help the business to establish a strong relationship with customers by meeting their demands.
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