Page 30 - MetalForming-Nov-2018-issue

Fabrication: Japan 2018
attention. Throughout the plant, Amada punching, laser-cutting, punch/ laser combo, and press-brake equip- ment shape a sheet-material mix of 70-percent aluminum, 20-percent stainless steel and 10 percent mild steel. Also spied: an Amada FLW4000 4-kW fiber laser-welding machine, and an Amada MARS automatic material-stor- age system, which runs the length of the company’s shop floor.
As we toured, the shop was busy fabricating thin material, 0.02 in. thick, for semiconductor applications, with punch presses with automatic tool changers poised for service. Also, the company’s stable of press brakes formed chassis parts, using new bend- ing tools developed by Kenichiro Maki- no himself. The press-brake operator referred to one as the Miracle Backspin Tool. Another, an offset-bending tool,
was demonstrated on another brake. Makino designed the tools due to pre- cise bending requirements that could not be achieved by what he had seen on the market.
Rapid-Fire Design and Production
Next, it was on to the Fujinomiya Innovation Center (FIC), opened by Amada in 1987. Responsible for con- structing the firm’s forming and fabri- cating equipment, the center occupies 185 acres and employs nearly 1000 peo- ple. Products produced at FIC include turret punch presses, press brakes, bending robots, stamping presses, laser-cutting machines, punch-laser combos and laser-welding machines.
Unique production philosophies and systems enable FIC to deliver dozens of each product type each month—given the surge in manufac- turing worldwide, demand certainly is there. For example, utilizing cross-func- tional teams as well as close collabo- ration with experienced fabricating customers and suppliers, Amada front- loads development work to virtually design products, then quickly develops and tests prototypes.
All necessary equipment, parts and tools are arranged in booth configu- ration so that operators do not have to leave the booth area except for breaks. RFID technology, used for part storage and delivery, tie into a digital manufacturing system to ensure the supply of proper parts as needed, and to ensure proper part inventories. Assembly progress also is tracked dig- itally, from order to shipment.
Automation Drives Productivity at Makino Milling Machine
Also on the tour: A visit to the pro- duction facilities of Makino Milling Machine Co., in Kanagawa. The com- pany, which manufactures machining centers, NC EDMs, milling machines and more, began turning to Amada for fabricating equipment four years ago, to help produce the more than 2000 parts that go into each machine. On the shop floor are Amada fiber-laser
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