Page 42 - MetalForming April 2009

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METALFORMING / APRIL 2009
www.metalformingmagazine.com
George Keremedjiev has been writing this column for more than 20 years. He regularly consults with metalforming companies worldwide and provides metal- formers with training on the appli- cation and implementation of sen- sors for die protection. For more information on his seminars and consultancies, contact:
Tecknow Education Services, Inc. P.O. Box 6448
Bozeman, MT 59771
phone: 406/587-4751
fax: 406/587-9620 www.mfgadvice.com E-mail: gk@mfgadvice.com
During these miserable economic times, the volumes of stamped parts in several sectors have been drasti- cally reduced. How can you justify a large progressive die and press combi- nation when buyers cannot promise the same volumes as in years past? Is there an alternative to a progressive die or a series of small dies in convention- al small presses operated by a small army of operators?
I am announcing a radical approach to the design of stamped metal parts, tooling and presses. One of my clients has refined and successfully implement- ed the concept of “Right Size Tooling and Presses” in its metalforming operations. A seminar on May 15 in Spokane, WA, will showcase this new approach to metalforming, followed by a tour of the plant that has mastered the technology.
Right sizing is basically the applica- tion of lean principles to the actual tooling and machinery. Right sizing in metalforming can be described as the reduction of, for example, a complex progressive die into its actual hard- working components. Imagine a 14- station progressive die. Now, eliminate the upper and lower die plates and con- tinue to picture the 14 activities as sep- arate and independent. Instead of a large die set, picture a set of 14 or fewer small dies. The dies are opened and closed with inexpensive pneumatic or hydraulic actuators, not conventional small presses, and hand-fed by sitting operators. Now picture the entire process operated with one person!
The process uses electronic sensors to eliminate bad-part production. The ori- entation of the small dies is at an angle—the person placing the blank into the first die, and then sequentially feeding the part through the various
small dies, does so with the help of gravity. The part slides into the die and electronic sensors verify its proper posi- tion. A green light lets the operator know that all is okay. The actuators cycle the small die and the part is eject- ed, using gravity, into its receiving plat- form. The operator picks up the previ- ously formed part and walks it to the next die and the process repeats until the part is fully formed. The initial blanks for this process can be made from coil stock fed into a conventional gap press with a small die. However, only the required number of blanks is made for the number of parts in the run. The entire process goes against the conventional grain of batch process- ing. Your imagination has to firmly wrap itself around the concept of single- part processing, and then you will be liberated to rethink everything.
At the end of the processes, you may incorporate welding stations, riveting, nut insertion and other secondary value-added steps, with no need for an enormous die and press combination and several operators. All of the sta- tions are operated by one person.
The final process: dimensioning the part with an automated fixture, acti- vated with a single pushbutton that captures and displays the actual dimen- sions to the operator and stores them locally or on the company’s server. To take it to the final step, imagine the lit- tle dies under the control of a central- ized computer that can reconfigure them to make similar parts in different styles.
Go to www.mfgadvice.com to learn more about the above-mentioned sem- inar and plant tour. This is new, radical, exciting and possibly a company life- saving process in this era of low volumes and minimal tooling funding. MF
This CD-ROM presents dozens of George’s columns as well as papers and exclusive new presentations covering all aspects of die protection and part-quality inspection, starting and maintaining sensor programs, the role of controls in in-die sensing, and the benefits of a sound sensor program. Order it online at www.metalformingmagazine.com.
METALFORMING ELECTRONICS GEORGE KEREMEDJIEV
Eliminating Expensive Dies and Presses