Page 50 - MetalForming July 2013

In Search of the New Age of Quality
cell, on its floor since 2008, lights-out (without operator supervision) 70 per- cent of the time, we were told. Part vol- umes through the cell average 100 to 800 per setup, and the plant averages 10 setups/day.
Also in production: an Amada SDE 3030 servo-mechanical stamping press
(rated to 300 tons with 300-mm stroke), and an LC2412 F1 NT 4-kW CO2 laser- cutting machine, one of three laser-cut- ting machines on the plant floor.
The Modern-Day Monozukuri
Machines aside, it’s the skills and attitude of his workforce on which Mr.
Among the 13 new products on display at the Amada Innovation Fair 2013 Global was this new Model FLC3015AJ three- axis linear-drive 2-kW fiber-laser cutting machine, equipped with Amada’s next- generation material-storage tower, the ASFH. The ASFH, we were told, boasts a 50-percent decrease in cycle time com- pared to the previous model, and shaves 10 sec. off of pallet-change time.
Kurihara maintains his focus. “We want our employees, when they leave work at the end of each day, to work on devel- oping their character, through a variety of enriching cultural experiences. They then must bring that personal growth and experience back to our company and use it to make us a stronger sup- plier to our customers.”
What better way to modernize the concept of the Japanese craftsman’s ethic of monozukuri—having the state of mind and spirit to produce excellent products and the ability to constantly improve the production system and its processes. MF
48 MetalForming/July 2013
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