Page 32 - MetalForming July/August 2009

Tooling Technology Right-Sized
Tooling for a
Office-furniture manufacturer Kimball Office models plant-layout modifications after the Japanese-developed Chaku-Chaku process— single-piece manufacturing in which a worker takes a part from one workstation to the next and sets up and operates each machine from beginning to end.
BY GEORGE KEREMEDJIEV
Undaunted imagination tends to sur- face best during trying times. In the metalforming community, where many companies once thrived within an atmosphere of large-volume orders, companies must reinvent their processes to not only survive but also to grow in the current economic down- turn. Several metalforming companies with whom I have worked are trying dif- ferent approaches to this challenge.
One of the finest examples of a met- alformer that has successfully revolu- tionized its shop-floor operations into
George Keremedjiev is president of Tec- know Education Services, Inc., Bozeman, MT; 406/587-4751, www.mfgadvice.com. George also writes the monthly Metal- forming Electronics column for Metal- Forming magazine.
Down-Sized Economy
To utilize the Chaku-Chaku process, machines are configured in a U-shaped produc- tion cell located close to the point of use, to minimize part travel and operator dis- tance. The production line is extremely flexible to accommodate changes in produc- tion volumes, by simply adding or removing operators from the production cell.
a radically new way of metalforming and assembly is the Kimball Office plant in Post Falls, ID. Kimball Office man- agement has agreed to share with Metal- Forming its approach to using tooling equipped with electronic sensors with the hope that, in some measure, it will help metalformers of all sizes to rethink their attitudes, perceptions, and expec- tations of tooling, presses and assembly operations.
Application of Sensor-Based Mistake Proofing
Kimball Office, a business unit of Kimball International, designs and manufactures office furniture. Its facil-
ity in Post Falls has operated a sensor- based mistake-proofing program for stamping dies and fabrication tooling for several years, and the sensor pro- gram has grown from a one-person operation into a four-person team. Team responsibilities recently have mor- phed into a total rethinking of the fun- damentals of metalforming and assem- bly. The plant uses electronic sensors to prevent die crashes, mistake-proof fab- rication and assembly operations, and measure part quality.
Some time ago, Kimball set out to develop the ideal lean-manufacturing production line—one that produces what the customer orders only when the
30 METALFORMING / JULY/AUGUST 2009
www.metalformingmagazine.com