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5-axis machining doubles productivity
27 Aug 2008
Aerospace subcontractor, Atlantic Precision Engineering, is unusual in that it offers both metallic and non-metallic machined components. Over the past year it has invested £750,000 in expanding its floor area by 40 percent, Jobshop production control software and a Matsuura 5-axis machining centre.
Atlantic’s managing director, Stephen Ray, intends to upgrade not only the company’s capacity but also its capability and efficiency. Areas under the spotlight include automation, and a reduction in the number of operations required to produce a component – hence the focus on 5-axis machining.
purpose-built 5-axis machining centre on site, and also the first twin-pallet-change machine. This maximises spindle up-time by allowing off-line set-up of the next component.
A batch of components the company used to produce on a 3-axis machining centre is now machined 50 per cent faster in one hit on the latest 5-axis machine, taking into account the faster metal removal and elimination of inter-machine handling.
“Overall, I would say that the MAM72-63V has halved production time across the range components that we have transferred to it, and drastically reduced work in progress, helping us to meet our customers’ cost-down expectations,” says Mr Ray.
The Yateley, Hampshire firm, 80 per cent of whose business is in the aerospace sector, plans to double annual turnover to £5 million by 2010. OEMs such as Airbus and Bombardier are current customers, as are BAE Systems and a number of other leading tier 1 and tier 2 suppliers.
Every area of the business is being reviewed to achieve the growth target, as well as to respond to cost-down pressures from the customer base. Japanese-inspired 5S and lean production philosophies are being adopted to position the subcontractor as a world-class supplier of zero-defect components.
A Hexagon Status G3 co-ordinate measuring machine has recently been installed to strengthen the quality control function, where already the shop floor staff has been given responsibility for self-certifying first article inspection of components they produce.
Potentials for further investment at Yateley are the installation of another MAM72-63V 5-axis machining centre to form a two-machine flexible manufacturing cell linked by an automated pallet storage system from Fastems.
Mr Ray said that such a configuration would provide a lot of extra production capacity at minimal extra cost apart from the capital expenditure, as skilled engineers would set work during the day for unmanned, lights-out production overnight and during the weekend.
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