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Articles tagged with "press brakes"
Results: 57
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Fabrication in transition: One-time metal supply house becomes a waterjet shop that now offers laser cutting, bending, and assemblyArcadia, Albany, N.Y., transitions from a metal supplier to a waterjet cutting shop to a laser cutting shop to a metal bender. Future plans call for the shop to evolve into a full-scale contract manufacturer.
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Heavy bending: For bending large, thick material, folding machine technology may be a safe betWhen bending material thicker than 10-gauge, at least two operators are needed to handle the plate, and manipulating it for various bends can be a strenuous work, not to mention a serious safety hazard for the operators. That's heavy stuff, and for these large-workpiece applications, a folding machine can step up to the plate.
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Bending up and down, no flipping required: Folding advancements allow a single beam to fold in both positive, negative directionsFolding advancements allow a single beam to fold in both positive, negative directions.
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Punching on demand: Heating system manufacturer punches what’s needed — and nothing moreUntil about a year ago, the staff at King Electrical Mfg. Co. manufactured parts by the thousands without much consideration of the actual demand for those parts. This doesn't happen anymore.
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Live or die making tools: Tool and die shop scraps its business model to remain successfulA tool- and die-maker for 50 years, Leo Niemela started out successfully enough in the tool and die business. But as the industry started to decline, he and his family had to decide which direction to take: stay with tool and die or reposition the company.
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Spending time with capital equipment: The 2007 Capital Spending Survey indicates that manufacturing expenditures will grow this yearMetal fabricators and formers are expected to spend more than $2.3 billion on capital equipment in 2007. The 2007 FMAC Capital Spending Survey provides more details.
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Skilled workers make new press brake technology even more valuable |
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Nothing standard about this fab shop: The old approach isn't of interest to the new kid on the block, Seconn Fabrication--The FABRICATOR's 2008 Industry Award winnerRob Marelli left a family-owned metal fabricating company four years ago with the intention of doing things his way. Joined by a loyal group of managers and employees, he's found success at Seconn Fabrication. In the short time the company has been open, it has earned revenues of $9 million. And the company has done this by doing things other metal fabricating competitors aren't.
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Cycling through a business transition: Lori and Traci Tapani break out of the mold in fabrication managementLori and Traci Tapani, co-presidents of Wyoming Machine, aren't your typical metal fabrication managers. Together, they've managed to diversify their family business into a thriving, stable enterprise.
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Growing season: Fabricating for agriculture: FSI Fabrication helps drive efficiency at dairies and ranchesFSI Fabrication makes products that help farmers quickly and accurately transport feed, grain, and other material.
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Japanese metal fabrication: Manufacturing on a bedrock of data: Japanese metal fabricators automate and collaborate to compete and thriveOverseas, metal fabricators have many of the same issues as those stateside, including lack of skilled labor and outsourcing to low-labor-cost countries. In Japan, fabricators tackle those issues by taking automation to new levels.
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On the cusp of recovery: FABTECH prepares attendees for upturnIn 2009, show attendees cut through the fluff and focused on what matters: preparing for the recovery.
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Knockout punch: Hand-in-glove fit between application and process has Sanmina-SCI punching out profitsThe system Sanmina-SCI uses to produce rails for Sun Microsystems' large servers is a key factor in Sanmina-SCI's competitiveness when it comes to processing a large, heavy-gauge, complet part, delivered in large volume on an as-needed basis for computer server systems and other similar applications.
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Driven to integrate: Automotive component stamper branches out, adapts to industry changesChanges come often in the steel industry--a business that sticks around long enough might eventually bear little resemblance to the version established at its inception. This is the case for Parkview Metal Products, Lake Zurich, Ill. The company opened in 1950 as a tool and die shop in Chicago, later moving and shifting its focus to automotive, electronic, and grill components. The company believes its culture is changing for the better and plans to continue developing its 5S initiatives, increasing its on-time delivery, and reducing its scrap rate.
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La seguridad continua presionando a las prensas: Asegurando la seguridad sin sacrificar velocidad ni productividadArray
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It's all about tool selection -- or is it? |
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Automation helps ovenmaker cook up profits: Wood Stone Corp., Bellingham, Wash., learns valuable lessons as a resultWhat kind of a difference did an automated fabricating system make for Wood Stone Corp., Bellingham, Wash.? Before the system, the company actually had more people in the shop, and they were working 10 hour days for about 4-6 months to make fewer products than are produced today.
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Is it time to put a robot in front of a press brake?: Answering these 5 questions can help you determine if automatedNorth American fabricators have not been as active in adoptingautomated bending cells as their counterparts in other parts of theworld. But that may be changing. These five questions can help afabricator decide how to justify the case for a robotic press brake.
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What the …? This can't be done!: Forming order—the secrets revealedCarefully planning the forming order can make even the most daunting project less complicated and problematic.
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Reviewing bottom bending and nested partsLooking to nest parts tightly, but can't win the battle against the material's natural grain? Take heart—bottom bending could be your key to success.
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Learning lessons from the past |
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Things every press brake operator should knowGiving operators the know-how they need to produce parts efficiently and cost-effectively can be as easy as 1-2-3-4.
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Urethane tooling for radius bending on press brakes: How the tools fit the applicationsWhat are urethanes? How do they work for radius bending? What is the proper pad type for my application? These are important questions to answer before using urethane tooling for your next job.
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How air forming worksAir forming began its rise in popularity during the mid- to late 1970s, becoming the most prevalent method of forming on a press brake.
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Using proper press brake setup proceduresThink about it: If your setup is off, the rest of your press brake operation will soon follow. Take the time to do your setup right, and you won't be doing it a second time.
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How to reduce press brake setup times: Tooling tricks of the tradeOver the past several years the sheet metal fabrication industry has witnessed a number of technological advancements in both machines and tooling. Machines are now capable of punching, cutting, and bending faster and more accurately than previously imaginable.
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Oversized V dies: the effects on bottom bendingUsing oversized V dies in bottom bending can damage press brakes and tooling, but used properly, these dies can help compensate for springback.
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Software brings new intelligence to press brakesThe types of press brake projects that remain in the U.S. tend to be those requiring smaller lot sizes, shorter turnarounds, and more complex shapes than those going offshore. Enter the need for smart press brakes—those with the capability to store and apply process intelligence. Today's shrinking lead times and smaller lot sizes demand more frequent setups, which cut into production hours. Graphical machine controls and offline programming can help maximize operational time by eliminating the time for trial-and-error setup and improving first-part accuracy.
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How to prevent press brake ram upset: Bend within limits to avoid troubleEvery press brake is subject to normal deflection under load. This deflection is corrected by shimming. If you deflect behond design limits, you will put a permanent bend in the ram and this is known as ram upset. You cannot adjust to compensate for ram upset. Remachining of the ram is the only solution. To avoid causing ram upset be careful about bending loads above your tons per inch limit and only air bend if possible.
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Taking the danger out of bottom bending: V-die selection for press brakesIt is all too easy to ruin a tool or upset a ram if bottom bending is done incorrectly, which is why many manufacturers do not recommend bottom bending when using their equipment or tooling. Understanding V-die selection and the effects of your decisions should be first and foremost in any bending operation, including bottom bending.
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Fabricator puts the brake on bend inconsistency: Laser-based control system compensates for material variations, springbackWell-known for agriculture, Nebraska also has a strong manufacturing base. OEMs include Kawasaki, Husqvarna, Eaton, Thermo King, Claas, and Case New Holland. Standard Iron & Wire, a Minnesota-based fabricator, opened a manufacturing facility in Grand Island, Neb., to take advantage of this fertile manufacturing environment. Chief among its concerns was finding a press brake that would produce accurate, consistent parts. It purchased two LVD press brakes with the company's adaptive bending technology.
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Leaning on press brake tooling: 4 ways to apply lean concepts to bending toolsPress brake tooling can play a significant role in minimizing setup, reducing WIP, increasing throughput, and minimizing waste -- the goals of lean manufacturing. Some new developments are staged bending, push-button loading, sectionalized tooling, and precision-ground tools.
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Manufacturing evolution in the job shop: Contract manufacturer figures out how to accomplish more with lessGardner Manufacturing, Horicon, Wis., needed automation and flexibility to keep up with more challenging customer demands. The contract manufacturer found its answer with two laser cutting devices with automated material handling and three new press brakes capable of precision bending.
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Safety still pressing for press brakes: Securing safety without sacrificing speed, productivityThe leading trend in press brakes safety is to ensure safety without sacrificing speed or hampering operators' ability to work efficiently, say press brakes manufacturers. This starts with tooling, including segmented or sectionalized tooling that is lighter and easier to handle; safety features that prevent unsecured tooling from falling, and fewer tool changes. It is further achieved with light curtains, camera and vision-based sensors, and mechanical side and rear guards, as well as automation and robots.
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Bending the new breeds of high-strength steel: New challenges, new tools, new rulesSeveral new breeds of high strength steels have arrived that bring with them a host of new opportunities. However, these new breeds also bring with them special challenges not common to bending mild steel, and with them, the need for new tools and new rules for proper bending.
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The tao of forming order: Working with the current to bend peacefully with press brakesIs the starting position of the flat part facing the wrong way or upside down to your natural flow? Are you working from left to right when your natural motion is right to left? If you are, you're fighting the current rather than letting the current do the work. Set up the press brake in such a manner that you work with your natural flow; by not interrupting your "chi."
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Toro trims waste with press brake tooling upgrade: Turf maintenance equipment manufacturer reduces setup times 40 percentOutdoor equipment manufacturer Toro Co. regularly sends out bids for parts, forcing its own manufacturing plants to compete with outside vendors. Toro's manufacturing plants face the same competitive pressures as any other manufacturer, so its plant in Shakopee, Minn., analyzed its forming operations and decided to replace its press brakes and upgrade its tooling.
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Manufactura esbelta con herramientas para Dobladoras de cortina.: 4 maneras de aplicar los conceptos de la manufactura esbelta con herramientas para dobladoraLas herramientas para dobladoras de cortina pueden jugar un papel significativo en la reduccin del tiempo de preparacin, en el aumento de la produccin y en la minimizacin del desperdicio -las metas de la manufactura esbelta. Algunos nuevos desarrollos en herramientas para dobladoras de cortina, tales como doblez por etapas, cambio rpido, herramientas seccionadas y herramientas de precisin perfectamente asentadas pueden conducir a operaciones de doblez an ms eficientes.
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Doblando los nuevos tipos de acero de alta resistencia: Nuevos retos, nuevas herramientas, nuevas reglasHan surgido varios tipos nuevos de acero de alta resistencia que traen consigo una gran cantidad de nuevas oportunidades. Sin embargo, estos nuevos tipos tambin traen consigo retos especiales que no son comunes en el doblez de acero suave, y con stos, surge la necesidad de nuevas herramientas y nuevas reglas para un doblado adecuado.Foto cortesa de Wila USA.
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Cambie el orden de formado: Trabajando con el flujo natural para hacer mejores doblecesVarios pasos de mantenimiento preventivo pueden ayudar a darle la vida ms larga posible a una prensa hidrulica. Los operadores de prensa que se mantienen al tanto de su prensa y establecen prcticas de mantenimiento buenas y consistentes desde el principio, obtendrn el mayor beneficio.
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2 strategies for optimizing bending operations: Do setups offline and rely on press brake controls to adjust bending parametersFabricators typically encounter bottlenecks during setup and production in their press brake bending operations—obstacles that lead to downtime and fewer operators actually processing material. Representatives from Amada, LVD Strippit, Bystronic Inc. addressed these issues in a recent presentation. The two largest problems? Performing non-value-added steps and having to compensate for material variations. Fortunately, some new technologies and two key strategies can help fabricators optimize their press brake operations in these areas.
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La seguridad continua presionando a las prensas: Asegurando la seguridad sin sacrificar velocidad ni productividadArray
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The evolution of precision bending: Bending moves further from art, closer to scienceThree decades ago bottoming with penetration, or coining, was the only way to achieve high accuracies on press brakes, and this meant fabricators endured high tooling costs. Over the years precision air bending with CNC hydraulic press brakes using precision-ground tooling evolved to become the dominant forming method in the precision market. However, it took some significant machinery advances to get there.
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Setting the stage for press brake productivity: Staged bending allows operators to bend more and set up lessTooling manufacturers have introduced tooling designed to overcome the longstanding problems associated with staged bending.
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Reasons for a press brake upgrade: Adopting new technology takes a change in shop mindsetModern press brakes add intelligence to the machine control and bring programming offline.
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Bending outside the box: Good part design considers fabrication from the get-goFor the best, most cost-effective parts, designers should consider fabrication from the get-go. This article shows examples of what those parts look like.
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Green machines: All-electric and hydraulic-electric press brakes do more while consuming lessElectric and hybrid electric-hydraulic press brakes give fabricators an energy-saving bending alternative.
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Bending with kid gloves: Urethane press brake tooling leaves no scratch behindPolyurethane film, inserts, pads, and bottom dies can help prevent marring and, in some cases, allow the die to take on a variety of materials and gauges, including perforated metal and diamond tread plate.
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Maquinas verdes: Las prensas de cortina totalmente electricas y las hidraulicaselectricas |
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Thinking outside the press brake: Folding and panel bending adapt to myriad setups, volumesAutomating bending with a press brake tied to a robot isn't the only option. Panel benders and folding technologies have evolved to handle more parts and various lot sizes.
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A giant among machines: Structural steel fabricator installs 40-ft.-long press brakeGreiner specializes in structural steel and heavy plate fabrication. It does work for power plants and the mining industry. In the 33 years the company has been in business, it has done structural steel jobs in an industry where the work always seems to be getting larger and heavier. It recently installed a 40-ft.-long press brake that weighs more than 800,000 lbs.
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Reclaiming the disappearing press brake knowledge in your shop: Bells and whistles won't make good partsExpensive options on a press brake won'tguarantee knowledge transfer from a veteranpress brake operator to a shop floor rookie.For knowledge transfer to occur, a shop needsexperienced workers that can communicate anda younger work force eager to learn becausethey see a future in metal fabricating.
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Bending perforated weathering steel: Not a pedestrian challenge: Sure Iron Works fabricates a unique pedestrian bridgeSure Iron works takes on a fabricating challenge: bump-bending perforated weathering steel plate sections with edges that aren't designed to be perfectly square.
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Pensando más allá de la prensa de cortina: El Plegado y el doblado de paneles se adaptan a infinidad de configuraciones, volúmenes |
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Can your manufacturing software do this?: Questions you should be asking about your softwareManufacturing software has come a long way in just the last five years. Independent software developers point out some of the advancements in manufacturing software in the hopes that some fabricators realize they may be missing out on some real production-optimization tools.
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Laser cutting with less labor and less hassle: Machine automation and software help IMS keep the laser running and customers coming backCan a four-man job shop keep up with the demands of its manufacturing customers? IMS, Shakopee, Minn., will make you think about that and give you reason to question other practices going on in your job shop.
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Selecting equipment for maximum productivity: Is bigger always better?H. Meeuwsen B.V., a fabricator in Yerseke, Netherlands, found that purchasing a laser that could handle parts up to 12 m long greatly enhanced its capabilities. It augmented this purchase with a tandem press brake. One side of the brake has an 8-m capacity; the other has a 4-m capacity. This gives the company the ability to bend 12-m parts, if necessary, or to run the two brakes simultaneously for smaller items. Subsequent growth in customer demand led the company to consider purchasing a second laser. A careful analysis revealed that the company could do just fine with a smaller laser, so it purchased a laser with a 3-m capacity.
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