Identifying and meeting the needs of a production machine shop

Machine shops that produce parts in high volumes face challenges that may not be encountered in low volume operations. Source: Modern Machine Shop

I have spent the last two decades visiting machine shops and writing about them for Gardner Business Media, currently as Editor-in-Chief of the Production processing Brand. When I visit stores, I try to be the eyes and ears of store owners and managers who often don’t have the opportunity to leave their stores to visit other establishments. I often wonder what they would look at or ask about if they were there with me. And I’ve asked stores that question. Here are some answers I’ve gotten… potential needs they have that could be met with the technology on display at IMTS.

Workpiece clamping. This is by far the best answer. Does the shop use traditional workholding, fixtures, chucks and more that can take a lot of time to change out? Or does it use equipment that offers quick changeover capabilities to speed up setup for new jobs? Batch sizes – even in high volume production shops – are getting smaller and smaller, so quick-change workholding can minimize downtime for what can be very expensive capital equipment, especially in our precision turned parts industry.

Work in progress (WIP). How much partially completed WIP sits next to machines, waiting for those machines to become available for secondary operations? WIP is a form of waste. Shops that use multitasking machining equipment have much less WIP throughout their shop because they have machines that can often complete parts in a single operation. This can be as simple as CNC lathes with live tooling.

Part handling/collection after processing. In a high-volume manufacturing environment with equipment typically fed by bar, finished parts can be produced in a short period of time. How are these parts collected so that they are not damaged (or lost in the case of very small components), and does the means of collecting parts represent a bottleneck in a desired unattended machining process?

Shop management software. How does shop tracking work as goods flow through the facility, from raw material to finished part ready for delivery to the customer? How quickly can the shop determine where a given job is in relation to its completion? Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software is increasingly being used in shops to provide instant visibility in this regard, as well as improved planning and other benefits. The days of spreadsheets are quickly coming to an end.

Tool management. Is there a central tool inventory to manage and distribute tools to machine operators and setters? Or, perhaps better yet, does the shop use a sales system to track tool usage and trigger tool purchases when inventory is depleted? There’s nothing worse than thinking you have a tool on hand for a new job, only to find out you don’t. And then having to pay for express shipping to get the tool to your shop as quickly as possible.

Machine monitoring. Does the shop rely on gut instinct when making decisions about adjusting manufacturing processes, or does it use data obtained from machine tools, for example, to make more informed decisions? Simply knowing and tracking when a machine’s spindle is cutting and when it is not cutting in a given shift can be very helpful.

Parts cleaning. Requirements for the cleanliness of machined parts are becoming increasingly stringent. What process(es) does the shop use to meet these requirements? Many cleaning options are available, including those that eliminate the need for harmful chemical solvents and replace them with a predominantly aqueous method. Automated cleaning processes can also be very helpful in high-volume production environments.

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