GANTRY SYSTEMS OFFER A HELPING HAND TOWARDS WORLD CLASS MANUFACTURING STATUS

The reduction and even elimination of the high cost of labour is, in Chiron’s experience, one of the main reasons for the implementation of automated workpiece load/unload systems.

“An increasing number of UK companies - both manufacturers and sub-contractors - are using automation as an invaluable ally in the war against costs,” says David Broomfield, technical manager at Chiron Werke UK.

“In fact, many Chiron users are finding that the cost savings and quality benefits generated by gantry systems are enabling them to successfully compete against the increasing threat of components and manufactured goods from lower-wage countries.”

Gantry loaders can, indeed, produce a number of other benefits, he adds.

“Because automated loading systems will operate at the same speed and same level of consistent performance at any time of the day or night, quality levels are maintained.

Gantry systems don’t get tired or bored,” he adds, “so every component is positioned accurately every time.

“And since gantry loaders can run through overlapped shifts, their uncompromised consistency lends itself to unattended running on a 24 x 7 basis. Thus, operating personnel are able to look after more than one machine, and deal with cell and tool management issues, for example - which in itself can generate even further reductions in shopfloor overheads.”

So, with all-round financial and quality benefits on offer, and the cost of a gantry system adding only between 25 to 50 per cent to the purchase price of a machine, why isn’t everyone adopting such automation?

“It’s unlikely that an automated workhandling system could be justified on a machine that runs only eight hours a day,” comments David Broomfield. “But volume-producing companies who simply can’t afford to stop production - and have their operators under-utilised - know that the use of automation has a major influence on competitiveness.”

David Broomfield explains that Chiron’s expertise at developing such productive applications, and the resulting consistent accurate machining, is eased by the fact that Chiron machines have static tables.

“In the same way that workpiece automation systems on lathes operate on the basis of placing a part into a fixed location (a chuck), the fixed tables on our VMCs enable parts to be positioned onto an accurate stationary fixture with permanently connected services and part sensing.

Depending on the workpiece, our gantry systems are equally effective when loading from the front or top of a machine, and on our ‘wheel machines’ the design of an ‘up and down’ door allows heavy-duty robots access.

“In the same way that our machine installations are configured exactly to suit each application, any accompanying gantry system also has to meet strict performance criteria. For example, as well as having to achieve throughput, the gantry has be flexible enough to accommodate varying components/families of parts.”

As well as new-concept machining projects involving only Chiron machines, David Broomfield and his team at Southam have also added a Chiron machine(s) to existing automated production cells.

“At the end of the day,” he concludes, “the whole reason for adopting automation is to achieve high machine utilisation - this is the key to successful, cost-competitive production.

“Chiron machines are renowned for their elimination of dead time (via their fast spindle, tool change and traverse rates, for instance), to achieve lean manufacture.