THE SECRET OF THE CORPSE IN THE FOUNDRY

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Today I will reveal something shocking:

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SAVING MONEY COSTS
YOUR CAPITAL!

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Yes, that’s right…

It just like your grandmother’s proverb!

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A few days ago I saw another “improvised” solution. That is what I name non efficient systems built by someone who wants to be my competitor, trying to copy my systems or simply builds cutting and deburring machines.

These improvised systems are not productive, more precisely, they are slow and give you more problems than advantages.  While using them NOTHING gets solved, and you think that your process can not increase additional value to  your production.

At work I meet clients who tell me: “ If I produce internally with my system (improved I added) it costs 20% more than an external artisan!

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SO THERE IS A PROBLEM!

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How did it come to this?

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How much does your wrong
investment cost?

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THE REALITY IS MUCH WORSE…
And Believe Me You Are Not Alone!

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Everyone I have met over the years has bought at least one wrong deburring machine and kept it under a sheet somewhere in the foundry.

Every one of them thinks he has  capital under the sheet, while I call it a corpse.

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THE SECRET OF THE CORPSE
IN THE FOUNDRY

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As long as you keep a corpse hidden the more you want to hid it.  However, it starts to smell and complicates your life, just like an improvised machine, which gives you only problems such as:

• too many lengthy cycle times
• scarce usage flexibility
• too high payroll costs
• too much occupied floor space
• high maintenance costs
• non-constant and calculable usage costs

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TOO MANY LENGHT CYCLE TIMES

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Cycle time: the first and biggest challenge when you build a system

Everyone is  able to drive a lap at the Monza circuit, but for the pole position  you need a perfect car. I am not exaggerating with this comparison and if you want to be first in your field, you need a perfect machine. 

In order to reach the cycle time with my system we have studied many solutions:

• specific units to use with the robot
• miniaturized tools
• specific robot software

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SCARCE USAGE FLEXIBILITY

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It is very important to have a versatile system which is adaptable to future needs. In fact, precisely for the foreseeable future, you really have to know your needs and the ones you might have.

All the improvised machines are really limited: they are designed for  specific work, but when it changes a little (because of mold aging or for changes required by the client) your machine becomes unusable.

MY GURANTEE IS that the system I put at your disposal will have the versatility which allows you to produce many different kinds of pieces.

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TOO HIGH PAYROLL COSTS

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The payroll cost too greatly affects the piece cost. Reducing it is not only a challenge but a must, in order to stay on the market. Therefore, the deburring system can not keep your employees busy.

How many times have I seen a deburring robot and immediately afterwards, the operator repairing the damages, or the robot programmer living attached to the machine.

To avoid this matter we have developed tool-compensation systems with special grippers and sophisticated control software.

Maybe these are all solutions you do not see at first sight but they really make the difference.

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TOO MUCH OCCUPIED FLOOR SPACE

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How much space do you need for your machine?

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Do you know that every square centimetre costs you money?

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If, in order to reach the desired cycle time, instead of one robot you put 2, not only do you spend money on 2 robots but you also spend on the space you cannot use.

Over the years we have reduced the dimensions of the system and expanded its work process:

• less occupied space
  
• more operations
  
• processing even larger pieces

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With the advantage of having:

• a vertical machine
• miniaturized components

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HIGH MAINTENANCE COSTS

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How much do you spend on maintenance?

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An improvised machine always has maintenance problems because there is no project, no basic idea

It is a collage of many philosophical ideas:

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The result?

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When it breaks down, there will be costs of reparation
and no one can estimate the amount!

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In my planning office I have stuck a big note on my monitor and on the one of my engineers, on which I wrote:

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 “NO MAINTENANCE”

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This is our goal and the maintenance costs have been reduced to a minimum. Basically, we do the oil change on the robot and nothing else.

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NON-CONSTANT AND CALCULABLE USAGE COST

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A system has to have fixed costs per hour and nowadays you cannot afford to have 10 € one day for consumable costs and maybe tomorrow even costs of 100 € or 1.000 €…

What you need is a software system that requires the operator to replace the consumables when they are needed, thereby avoiding waste and increasing production efficiency.

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How much do you spend each day
on using your machine?

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How much did the improvised machine cost
which has convinced you that
you have saved money?

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“Make this frog into a
handsome prince!”

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This is not really the sentence I hear from entrepreneurs who use an improvised machine in their production process, but the sense is the same.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a wand and we are not in a fairy tale, but we are both confident that you threw away your money, bending over backwards to use an improvised non flexible machine 

Once people have really become aware of the mistake of using an improvised machine, they often ask me:

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What can be reutilized on this machine?

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So, I take a deep breath and answer:

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“Often, your machine looks very similar to mine…
but deep down  it’s really different….” 

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To satisfy your need for a short cycle time and reliability, the system has to be built with many details that make the difference.

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If you have a Fiat 500, can you ask your
mechanic to transform it in a Ferrari?

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Of course you can ask, but I don’t want be with you when the mechanic replies.

What your “NON IMPROVISED” system needs is:

• a robot
• a base
• some work units
• a loading system
• electric equipment

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ROBOT

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Probably, your system also has these things but not all robots are equal and not all models are suitable.

One robot is NOT the same as the other

For a successful project, the first thing is to choose the correct robot and this means many things:

• The right workspace
• Correct load capacity

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All this is needed to get the perfect model that guarantees linear trajectories. The robot has to be equipped with a gripper.  Although this might seem a matter of course, it is NOT at all.

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BASE

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Many times the Base is underrated and forgotten, but it is vital for the machine because it has to guarantee  NO vibrations

If the robot moves, it generates vibrations. This forces you to reduce its speed, and drastically raises its cycle time.

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WORK UNIT

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For reliability, productivity and low maintenance costs, the work units are the focus on which to concentrate.

It is no accident that all our units are designed and developed by my complete staff, thereby improving the performance of my clients’ systems from year to year.

The result for their production is:

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Life and an easier production cycle.

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An increase in your margins

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LOADING SYSTEM

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How to load the pieces is another point which makes a difference, but we will talk about this in the next article.

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ELETRIC EQUIPMENT

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In our control board there is always a PLC, security modules, inverter and drivers – everything you need and nothing more.

But, all that we put in is really needed. You cannot do without it.

One of my safety advisers says that it often happens that he opens the control boards of my competitors’ machines (and not…) and sees inside a time bomb ticking. If everything is controlled by the integrated plc of the robot and every day you take the risk of important damages, then you have a problem.

You can always make an improvised machine alone “at home” or you can go to our competitors, but you risk  any and every single point you have read in this article.

I know how to build cheaper machines, well knowing where and how to save money… but I am not inclined to give you a machine, which you are not happy with and later you will have to spend a lot more money after all you have paid. 

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I want to build a machine which
will make you a profit.

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My machine gives you much, much more. If you spend today buying a machine, you will save for the rest of your life.

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Bottom line: if you settle on a low cost machine

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DON’T CALL ME!

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We do not waste time with pointless chatter.

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But if you are a person who cares about your company and concentrates on improving your production, you need an efficient machine with which you can earn daily without losing time and money.

You will discover:

• how save money and time
• 6 ways to improve your production
• how to build a machine with which you make a profit