Page 43 - MetalForming November 2016

2015, says Muth, “with a significantly lower head count. And, we now are able to ship larger orders oftentimes ahead of schedule, which we could never have done before without greatly increasing our labor costs. All of that is due to our new production process, and has led to the addition of several new customers.”
Leer’s new and improved sheetmet- al-fabrication process begins with sheetmetal blanks of primarily 26- and 24-gauge material—galvanealled, gal- vanized, prepainted galvanized or embossed galvanized steel. Blank size ranges from 39 by 60 to 60 by 120 in. The plant processes some 4.25 million lb. of sheetmetal per year, most of which gets routed through the Salvagnini, and with most programs generating 90-percent or better sheet utilization. Noting how flimsy 26-gauge material can be, Muth credits Salvagnini engi- neers with helping to adapt the line to fit Leer’s application and ensure suc- cessful material handling through the FMS.
“Before, our turret press limited blank size to 50-in. width,” says Muth. “The ability to now run 60-in. blanks gives us more flexibility with nesting, and helps optimize material utilization.”
That move from 50- to 60-in. mate- rial didn’t come easily, however. Muth notes that much time and effort was spent by both himself and Leer's prod- uct designers in redesigning the firm’s ice-merchandiser cabinets to match its new manufacturing capabilities— a true design-for-manufacturability accomplishment.
“Our cabinet aesthetics now are great- ly improved, and we obtain enhanced dimensional accuracy and repeatability from the panel bender when compared to the press brakes,” says Muth. “That makes fitup in the assembly depart- ment simpler and quicker.”
Unique Punch and Bending Setups
The punch on the S4 works differ- ently than on a conventional turret, explains Muth. All of the punch tools are live, and the machine can fire any
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