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It
is about more than just cost saving.
“Implementing CAM software is about more than just cost saving,
it’s about meeting your customers’ needs, at the quality
they want, in the timescales they need, at a price they will pay.”
So says Andrew Taylor, founder and Managing Director of Sheffield
Superturn Limited and he should know. For through his strategy of
investing in skills, in the latest CNC machining centres and in
EdgeCAM® software from Pathtrace Limited, Andrew and his team
have continued to grow their British-based company in today’s
highly competitive and global business environment. In fact, for
over two years now, Sheffield Superturn has been using EdgeCAM software
to maximise production from its Doosan Z290 SMY twin-turret turning
centre, from its Mazak Integrex® integrated turning and machining
centre and from its five-axis Dah Lih vertical machining centres.
Sheffield
Superturn Limited.
Sheffield Superturn is an ISO 9002-registered company that manufactures
CNC precision-machined parts mainly for the oil and gas industries.
The company machines double block-and-bleed valve bodies, pipeline
sealing rings and gaskets and other complex parts from materials
such as Inconel® 625 and Inconel® 718 high strength
austenitic nickel-chromium-iron alloys. Output varies from specially
designed one-offs to batches of several hundred parts. Founded
in 1983, the company now employs over twenty staff and recorded
a turnover of over £2.5 million in the last financial
year. |
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Targeting
all-in-one machining.
Tim Heron is the Engineering Manager at Sheffield Superturn. He
says, “Our objective is to machine complex parts in as few
operations as possible, with a target of all-in-one machining. Using
a twin axis twin turret machine such as the Z290 SMY we can reduce
the loading frequency and loading times massively, with a corresponding
increase in capacity.” There are other advantages of this
type of machine, too. Tim again, “Fewer set-ups also mean
greater consistency, improved accuracy and a reduction of errors.”
Elimination
of collision risk.
However, the use of mill/turn machines brings a risk of expensive
collisions because of the confined nature of the machines and the
number of moveable items on the machine tool. Tim says, “The
cost of realignment after such a collision would be in the region
of £500 to £800, plus the cost of broken tools and the
cost of lost production. We know this for a fact.” He continues,
“So not only did we need to find a way to programme the new
machines effectively, we also needed to simulate the machining operation
to eliminate the risk of collisions.”
An impressive
EdgeCAM demonstration.
Tim points out, “Andrew, our MD, has a clear interest in the
efficiency of the machining process and as a former CNC programmer,
knew what he needed. He looked at solutions from Pathtrace and two
competitors and selected Pathtrace to demonstrate EdgeCAM’s
mill/turn capability.” He continues, “We were impressed.
They showed us that they could control these complex machines and
that they could simulate the process so there would be no collisions.”
Tim adds, “EdgeCAM provides everything we needed for multi-axis
milling, twin-axis twin-turret turning and toolpath simulation.”
Getting the programmes right, first time and every time.
How does the process work? Tim says, “Customers usually send
2D drawings which I re-enter into EdgeCAM Part ModelerTM, although
one customer sends us Solid Edge models that I read in and save
as Part Modeler files. I then create the programmes directly from
that model and run the simulation.” By using Part Modeler,
Tim is able to manipulate part designs and optimise them for manufacture
as well as for the construction and visualisation of work-holding
systems, such as turning chucks or milling jigs and fixtures. He
continues, “Programming takes up around 40-50% of my time,
with the rest spent on improving production, looking at new techniques
and so on.” He adds “Over the last two years. I have
created upwards of 300 programs. On the five axis Dah Lih they really
have been right first time, every time and on everything else, they’ve
come pretty close. All round, that’s an excellent performance.”
Proving
the programme before cutting metal.
Tim reports. “EdgeCAM has been of great benefit to us.
For example, previously, when working on say roughing out a
complex pocket, an operator couldn’t afford to spend all
day trying out various ways of removing the material only to
decide to go back to the drawing board to find a better and
quicker way. He would basically only have the time for one shot
at it.” He continues, “With EdgeCAM, we work off-line
without going anywhere near the machine. We can quickly test
out all the options and choose the best, visualising and proving
the programme before cutting metal, and with no machine downtime.” |
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Complete confidence
in EdgeCAM.
Tim again, “Thanks also to EdgeCAM, the Integrex really has
come into its own in terms of one-hit machining. It’s a twin
spindle, single turret machine with an indexable milling head and
robot loading. We can program the jobs with EdgeCAM with complete
confidence and we regularly run it three to four hours at night
completely unattended. Those additional hours really make a difference
to our figures.”
Working closely
together to get the best out of the machines.
As well as supplying the EdgeCAM software, Pathtrace also provided
the post-processors. Tim explains, “This was all about two
years ago, when Pathtrace had just introduced their mill/turn software
and these machines were new to them. They wrote the post processors
for the Doosan and Integrex in-house and then came to site to prove
them out, working closely with us to get the best out of these new
machines.” Tim does point out however, “Being a subcontract
company, we could only fully prove the posts in a production environment
when jobs came in that exercised specific functions.” He acknowledges,
“This took us longer than we anticipated and the support from
Pathtrace over this period was terrific, just as it has been subsequently.”
Modest investment
compared with the benefits.
After two years experience of EdgeCAM, Tim advises, “Don’t
be afraid of the initial outlay involved in moving to CAM. It may
seem a lot of money but it is modest compared with the benefits
and compared with the cost of the machine tool. Once you have it
you’ll wonder how you ever managed without.” He cautions,
“But don’t try to do everything at once. For example,
move on to mill-turns only when you have mastered turning. Implement
EdgeCAM one machine at a time and only move on to the next machine
when the previous one is right.”
Could not
do it any other way.
Summing up, Tim says, “We’ve definitely made the right
decision choosing EdgeCAM. We’ve taken a job that would have
needed seven set-up operations on three machines and reduced it
to three set-ups on just one machine.” He continues, “Partly
because of the increased accuracy we are getting, we have become
sole supplier for this particular component. We are also winning
an increasing amount of development work.” Tim adds, “We
have a positive ambition to operate the Integrex lights-out since
it has robot loading. We may consider this for the Doosan, too.”
Andrew Taylor has the final words, “Yes, definitely - EdgeCAM
has been well worth the investment.”
links
www.superturn.com
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