The decision to install two vertical machining centres and a turning centre, all three CNC machines supplied by XYZ Machine Tools Ltd, was taken, says  Peter Beckingham,  divisional operations manager, “because we did not want to become yet another sub-contracting business compromising its manufacturing methods by relying on outdated equipment”.

Started in 1998 by TMS’ Chairman, Paul Moore, the company focuses on preventative and planned maintenance rather than ‘fire fighting’, with the emphasis on avoiding unscheduled downtime that could cost its customers dear. It is this experience of the logistics and discipline needed to deliver a contract maintenance service to order and within budget that is now attracting additional business to the Manufacturing Division, often from contract maintenance customers impressed by ISO 9001-accredited TMS’ performance in the field. The company as a whole employs around 120 full-time staff, many of whom work on-site in large ‘blue chip’ organisations such as Toyota, Nissan and BAA that regard outsourcing as an integral part of their business operations.

“So long as I can justify the purchase of a machine, Paul is willing to fund the investment because of the benefits that result,” says Peter Beckingham. “For example, we installed an XYZ 1010 VMC equipped with a pallet changer, which is not the norm for a vertical machining centre, because it cut our load/unload time to about thirty seconds on a specific high volume contract and gave us a vital competitive edge. We then installed a larger XYZ 1510 VMC but this time, with small batch quantities in mind, it was supplied without a pallet changer. Instead we designed a fixture capable of holding all the 120 or so variants of a particular component that remains in place on the machine bed. Each variant, which is machined in its pre-hardened and, after heat treatment, in its hardened state, is datumed using a Renishaw probe, with change-over times between batches measured in minutes rather than the two to three hours it would take each time to change and clock in a dedicated fixture.”

The largest component variant machined to date on the 15 hp/8000 rev/min XYZ 1510 VMC’s 1700 mm by 450 mm table is 1.4 metres long, and, according to Peter Beckingham, has not presented any difficulties. “When I began looking at vertical machining centres I did initially shortlist four or five possible suppliers because I wasn’t sure that XYZ had machines capable of machining tough materials such as exotics. However, they did various machining trials and the hardened steel parts machined on the smaller VMC were fine. This influenced our decision to invest in the larger 1510 VMC and now an XYZ 250 TC turning centre. All three machines are equipped with the Siemens 810D conversational control, which makes shopfloor programming even simpler.”

Installed in June 2007, the 30 hp/3500 rev/min turning centre is currently machining five variants of a 316 stainless steel component for a customer in the pharmaceutical industry. On the basis of batch sizes of 200-off TMS has opted for the optional bar pull system rather than a full three-metre bar feed. This, coupled with a 12-station tool turret, enables the XYZ 250 TC to run unattended between bar changeovers, while it takes just a few minutes to change the spindle liner and collet to accommodate bar sizes up 77mm diameter.

Although investment is a high priority at TMS, every machine tool purchase involves an assessment of expenditure against potential benefits. “You have to think outside the box in order to compete,” says Peter Beckingham, “although that doesn’t necessarily mean ticking the box for every available option. However, with more and more customers demanding Six Sigma consistency, investing in the latest machine tool technology is definitely the way to meet their expectations.”