#CASESTUDY

10 Lean Manufacturing Ideas for Machine Shops

In addition to the right mix of traditional strategies, a lean manufacturing toolkit can make high-mix, low-volume machining faster, more predictable and less expensive.

Toolholders

Agile Tooling Prepares Shop for Machining Spaceflight Parts

Big Daishowa’s angle head and milling chucks have enabled Baker Manufacturing to keep up with the tight turnarounds and mystery metals of Blue Origin.

Medical

Five-Axis and Clever Controls Support Medical Manufacturing

Kern’s Micro Vario and Heidenhain’s TNC 640 control give M5 the precision and accuracy it needs to successfully micromachine medical parts.

Medical

High-Pressure Coolant System Reduces Cycle Time More Than 6 Hours

A suite of systems from LNS has enabled Velco Tool & Die to reduce cycle times and increase its throughput.

Automation

CAM Automation and Library Revitalize Precision Manufacturer

CAMWorks has powered TECMA’s transition to 3D digital CNC machining. The software’s optimizations have enabled the shop to tackle precision parts for space.

CAD/CAM

New CAD/CAM Features Extend Shop's Three-Axis Capabilities

Mastercam’s Dynamic Motion technology enables advanced tool paths that make Industrial Machine & Supply competitive with only a three-axis milling machine.

Milling Tools

End Mill and Collet Combo Cuts High-Speed Machining Costs 62%

Switching to Emuge-Franken helped precision production machine shop SB Dezigns save 62% in costs on a popular automotive part while lowering cycle times.

Measurement

Lasers Ensure Perpendicularity, Improve Bearing Bore Quality

Hamar Laser’s laser scanners have enabled Hi-Tech Compressor and Pump Products to achieve consistent tolerance readings where dial indicators struggled.

CAD/CAM

Simulation Saves Money When Machining Expensive Parts

Jobs machining expensive materials mean Keselowski Advanced Manufacturing needs to be extremely cautious. The operations manager says Vericut not only prevents mistakes, it shortens cycle times.

Holemaking

Four-Flute Carbide Drill Increases OWSI's Feedrate Fourfold

Ceratizit’s line of WTX-HFDS drills saved OWSI 3.5 minutes per part on a difficult job and completely eliminated a secondary operation, increasing profitability.

Automation

Robotic Cell Improves Quote, Wins Shop an Aerospace Job

By adding a FANUC-controlled automation cell, Kemco Aerospace Manufacturing improved the cost-competitiveness of its quote and won a major aerospace job.

Shop Management Software

Rapid Reports Improve Shop Utilization

The owners of David Packard Company wanted to look beyond facility expansion to increase the output of the shop. They turned to Datanomix to unlock hidden capacity in their current infrastructure.

Holemaking

Tool Presetting Identifies and Isolates Costly Problems

Speroni’s Futura CNC presetter enabled Cogitic to diagnose runout and wear problems with its tooling before running the tools on its machines, saving time and expensive material.

Turn/Mill

Mill-Turn Enables Complete Machining of High-Precision Parts

WFL’s Mill-turn machines have enabled Wittmann Battenfeld to combine milling, turning and boring operations for increased process flexibility and production efficiency.

Automation

Robotic Cell Increases Production Volume Across Wide Catalog

Kawasaki’s robots cut Ossenberg’s pipe processing times by over four minutes and boosted production volume to over 10,000 parts per day.

Turning Machines

Live Tool Speed Increaser Spurs Engraving Cost Savings

By using a Heimatec speed increaser provided by Platinum Tooling, Kurt Machining was able to achieve ninefold cost savings for a project engraving 6060 aluminum.

Aerospace

Tall AM Build Envelope Cuts Months of Aerospace Prototyping

By using SLM Solutions’ vertically extended SLM 800 3D printer, Safran was able to develop and produce a large component for landing gear on a small business jet in days instead of months.

Horizontal Machining Centers

Moving to Horizontal Machining Cuts Shop's Cycle Time by 50%

Adopting horizontal three-axis machining may require much consideration, but Alicat Scientific can attest to almost 50% cycle time reductions with a Kiwa horizontal machine.

Shop Management Software

Quoting Software Saves Productive Hours, Boosts Client Trust

Paperless Parts has enabled KAD Models and Prototypes to enhance its quoting accuracy and efficiency, simultaneously bolstering the shop’s cybersecurity measures.

Workholding

Standardized Workholding Saves Shop Hours of Setup Time

5th Axis’ workholding solutions have enabled Will-Mor Manufacturing to achieve vastly better repeatability and stability, cutting setup time and even whole setups.

CAD/CAM

CAM's Simulation Capability Boosts OEM's Spindle Uptime

CAMWorks and CAMWorks ShopFloor have boosted Anchor Danly’s spindle uptime by 15-20% through simulation and automatic G code updates.

Additive Manufacturing

Rotary Grinders Leave Cleaner Build Plates

While metal 3D printing saves on tools, build plate resurfacing is a bottleneck. The latest rotary grinders can provide an efficient, high-quality alternative to bandsaws or wire EDM.

Five-Axis

Tool Libraries and Simulations in CAM Software Accelerate Cycle Times

Schupan Aluminum was able to reduce its CNC machining cycle times and perform complex five-axis work through Mastercam’s toolpaths and advanced features.

Aerospace

Cross-hole Deburring Tool Eliminates Secondary Process

The Orbitool from J.W. Done helped Paramount Machine eliminate a secondary deburring process, saving 75 process hours across a 2000-part run and enabling the shop to meet its profit and delivery time goals.

Automation

Power Skiving Enables Smaller, Precise Robotics Machining

Power skiving tools like Sandvik Coromant’s CoroMill 178 can increase productivity, precision and flexibility when machining gears for applications such as industrial robotics.

Aerospace

Haimer Shrink Fit Toolholders Raise Boulevard's Feed Rates

Haimer’s Inductive Shrink Fit technology provides efficiency benefits over side-lock and collet holders, with Boulevard Machine & Gear seeing its feed rates more than double on certain materials.

EDM

New Machining Centers Improve Moldmaking Workflow

Westminster Tool has shifted the workflow in its moldmaking department to incorporate high-speed five-axis and, as a result, cut lead times and reduce the need for wire EDM.

Shop Management Software

Datanomix Fusion Enables Eptam to Visualize Facility, Optimize Resources

Faced with rising customer demand for high-precision parts Eptam Precision Plastics used Datanomix Fusion to streamline data collection, improve quote accuracy and discover training gaps.

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