Page 23 - MetalForming August 2015

The strength of
the automotive mar-
ket and other indus-
tries investing in robotics
has Weaver busy fabricating
parts for Fanuc America. Shown are laser-cut aluminum blanks that Weaver forms and powder-coats.
“Of course there were many reasons to look for a new loca- tion,” says Jim, “including the inefficiencies that creep in when having to move materials amongst five or six buildings to complete orders. And, as we look 12 to 18 months out and project our growth, we know that we need to become more efficient and add capacity.”
“When we decided to invest in the laser-cutting machine,” adds Marian, “including the storage tower was a no-brainer. We simply cannot allow the cutting process to be a bottleneck. So our search for a new facility (which ended late in 2014) included accommodating the tower’s requirements.”
Laser Cutting a Growth Catalyst
Since the Lauers acquired Weaver Fab & Finishing in 1997, they’ve doubled sales on average every 5 yr. A key enabler of that growth has been adding laser cutting to the equipment list—the firm acquired a 2-kW CO2 laser-cut- ting machine in 2006. Jim recalls that the machine took over the work of three turret presses. It features an auto load- unload shuttle table that was a “game changer for us,” says Marian. “We ran that machine lights-out for 8-plus years.”
But now, as 16-gauge mild steel has become the compa- ny’s sweet spot, combined with a notable increase in the amount of aluminum work it’s bringing in, replacing that aging CO2 machine with the fiber makes sense.
“We’d been forced to run aluminum on a CNC punch press,” says Jim, reflecting on the inability of the CO2 laser machine to process reflective materials such as aluminum. “The fiber cuts aluminum and other reflective materials extremely efficiently, and will cut mild steel four to five times faster than the CO2 machine. Now we can leverage the unique capabilities of the fiber laser to quote work on red metals.”
The new laser-cutting machine boasts a three-axis linear- motor drive system and an eight-station automatic nozzle changer. Maximum cutting area: 120.9 by 61 in.
A Push from Key Customers
The Weaver Fab & Finishing list of 30 to 35 customers stars five or six primary and long-term clients—“the 80-20 rule,”
says Jim. Most notable are a few players in the pack- aging industry, including Automated Pack- aging Systems (machine frames, cabi- nets, brackets, etc.). Weaver also fabricates various sheetmetal parts for robotics company Fanuc
America.
“These key customers have been a driving
force behind our growth (15-percent revenue growth in 2014 and a likely 20-percent jump in 2015),” says Jim. “They’ve pushed us to become a better company in terms of quality and efficiency. And, they’ve moved us into aluminum fabrication in a big way. For exam- ple, some Fanuc parts are fabricated from 1⁄4-in. Type 6061 Al. We’re also fabricating a lot of stainless steel for the appliance
industry.”
The added variety in sheet materials and thicknesses
adds even greater importance to the automated sheet tower, an Amada ASUL model.
“It changes how we buy our materials,” says Jim, “allow- ing us to completely restructure the front end of our company
Accompanying the new fiber-laser cutting machine at Weaver is this Amada servo-hydraulic press brake. Its thickness-detection system automatically adjusts the entry depth of the forming tool based on sheet thickness.
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