If you've looked at our past posts or investigated our real world machine shop software products, you know that our feeling is that today's shop floors are TOO complicated ... plain and simple. Of course there certainly are instances and requirements for the complex ... but our feeling is that the 90%-95% of shops operating in the "real world" could be slimmer, trimmer, less complex ... all leading to more efficiency.
In this post ... our thoughts on an EFFICIENT shop floor.
The most efficient shops I have visited and worked were the shops where everyone pitched in to do every task. There was no set "programmer" for the CNC's ... maybe a lead person ... but every operator wrote their own programs and every operator performed their own set-ups. The lead person was the guy you went to when you had a problem you couldn't solve. But, for the most part, you were responsible for your machine. From getting it programmed to setting it up to run to making sure it ran efficiently.
In my opinion those shops were efficient. No bottlenecks waiting for the "programmer" or the "set up guy". I also feel those employees felt empowered and in control of their jobs and their futures. They also felt their employers trusted and respected them and this was the key to putting that "people power" in motion.
But ... How to accomplish this is today's environment?
Most importantly is to provide the floor with the tools they need to be successful. From our perspective ... at least one PC and probably more is a definite requirement. Load that PC with "real world" software that can assist in programming and with shop floor calculations that personnel need every day. Trig functions ... speeds and feeds ... formulas ... calculations like SFM to RPM and others. Much time is often wasted seeking answers in these related areas and frustration can build when trying to track them down.
Software such as our Kipware® conversational to assist with the creation of the "everyday" CNC programming. Software that is easy to understand and implement and can quickly and easily create efficient CNC programs for those everyday simple drilling, milling, turning and threading type applications.
G code conversion software that can automate those everyday edits and tweaks that are often required due to actual cutting conditions. From the simple but time consuming tasks such as ... reducing all feedrates by 5% ... increasing all RPM by 10% ... subtracting 2.00" from all X dimensions too the complex task of auto-converting a G code program written for one machine and control to operate on a different machine and control. Without having to re-post and funnel the job back through programming means faster print to chip time.
PC based training and reference software where users can find answers to programming questions. Even if someone just wants some clarification about how a specific G code works. PC based training and reference software like our KipwareEDU® is a perfect addition to any shop floor PC.
These types of tools can help increase efficiency by further empowering the shop floor personnel without a major outlay in terms of costs. Putting answers and solutions at the fingertips of your shop floor personnel certainly means more efficiency and more opportunity to succeed in all areas.
How about your shop floor?
Have you taken a good look lately?
Have you tried empowering ... re-training ... cross training ... to make an efficient workforce?
Have you really gauged the skills of your workforce and placed them in the positions to succeed both on a personal level and for your company?
Come on manufacturing ... We can do this !!!
Kenney
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Is the shop floor TOO Complicated?
Article after article I read today talks about how manufacturers are having such a hard time finding people to fill their shop floor openings. And time after time it hits me ... the shop floor today has become way to unnecessarily complex ... and as a result, the requirements needed for shop floor personnel has become unnecessarily complex as well.
It was brought home to me the other day when I was having a Webex meeting with the personnel of a major machine tool builder regarding our G code conversion software. After my presentation ... the applications manager's first comment was "What about our blah blah machine? " ( machine name deleted to protect the innocent ... but suffice to say it was one of the multi-function, turning machine with a milling machine attached fancy contraptions that cost about a gazillion dollars ). Come on really? Is this the REAL WORLD?
How many of these machines do you sell in a year? And to who? ... Boeing, Lockheed? Probably ... but the reality on the ground is that there are thousands of metalworking shops ... that drive real worlds manufacturing ... that are still using your standard 2 axis lathe, lathes with live tool, 3 and 4 axis VMC's and HMC's ... that are producing most of the metal parts that touch and run our lives every day.This is the REAL WORLD !!!
Granted ... these high cost machines are what make you the most profit ... but they are not the driving force behind manufacturing in the real world. %$&^%**&^^
But I digress ... back to the main point about today's shop floor ... in the real world. But this point is related.
Today's shop floor ... the 90%-95% of real world shops ... could be streamlined and made more real world ... would be even more competitive ... and made more accessible to workers with varied skills. Machine tool dealers present these machines as the "new wave" and shops think that this is how I stay competitive ... this is what I really need. This brings a whole host of issues .... buying machines I really don't need ... spending more $$$ than I need to .... now I need someone to run them who will demand big $$$ and require lots of skills ... and on and on.
Over the next couple of weeks, months, whatever ... as therapy for my aggravation and for my desire to wake up manufacturing ... I would like to post some thoughts to further prove my points.
I'm going to start by re-referring any readers back to my last February post regarding CAD/CAM overkill ... http://kentechinc.blogspot.com/2012_02_01_archive.html which starts the ball rolling. But over the next weeks we will hit on quite a few topics ... some you might agree on and some you might not.
If you have any comments, anything to include ... please let us know by email ... follow us and comment through Twitter @Kipware ... and of course stay tuned to this blog ... maybe even spread the word by re-tweeting.Help us ... let's get a movement started ... "Manufacturing in the Real World" ... raise your voice ... or your glass if that's where you are at.
I feel a little better at least for now ... but I'll be back !!
Kenney
It was brought home to me the other day when I was having a Webex meeting with the personnel of a major machine tool builder regarding our G code conversion software. After my presentation ... the applications manager's first comment was "What about our blah blah machine? " ( machine name deleted to protect the innocent ... but suffice to say it was one of the multi-function, turning machine with a milling machine attached fancy contraptions that cost about a gazillion dollars ). Come on really? Is this the REAL WORLD?
How many of these machines do you sell in a year? And to who? ... Boeing, Lockheed? Probably ... but the reality on the ground is that there are thousands of metalworking shops ... that drive real worlds manufacturing ... that are still using your standard 2 axis lathe, lathes with live tool, 3 and 4 axis VMC's and HMC's ... that are producing most of the metal parts that touch and run our lives every day.This is the REAL WORLD !!!
Granted ... these high cost machines are what make you the most profit ... but they are not the driving force behind manufacturing in the real world. %$&^%**&^^
But I digress ... back to the main point about today's shop floor ... in the real world. But this point is related.
Today's shop floor ... the 90%-95% of real world shops ... could be streamlined and made more real world ... would be even more competitive ... and made more accessible to workers with varied skills. Machine tool dealers present these machines as the "new wave" and shops think that this is how I stay competitive ... this is what I really need. This brings a whole host of issues .... buying machines I really don't need ... spending more $$$ than I need to .... now I need someone to run them who will demand big $$$ and require lots of skills ... and on and on.
Over the next couple of weeks, months, whatever ... as therapy for my aggravation and for my desire to wake up manufacturing ... I would like to post some thoughts to further prove my points.
I'm going to start by re-referring any readers back to my last February post regarding CAD/CAM overkill ... http://kentechinc.blogspot.com/2012_02_01_archive.html which starts the ball rolling. But over the next weeks we will hit on quite a few topics ... some you might agree on and some you might not.
If you have any comments, anything to include ... please let us know by email ... follow us and comment through Twitter @Kipware ... and of course stay tuned to this blog ... maybe even spread the word by re-tweeting.Help us ... let's get a movement started ... "Manufacturing in the Real World" ... raise your voice ... or your glass if that's where you are at.
I feel a little better at least for now ... but I'll be back !!
Kenney
Monday, February 13, 2012
CAD/CAM Overkill ... What?
No one can deny that CAD/CAM is a powerful tool. Without it ... many of the products and designs we have today would not have been possible. BUT ... in some instances, that power and complexity can actually be a detriment to productivity and efficiency.
When we refer to CAD/CAM Overkill ... what is it exactly that we mean?
Think about this example ... a part is about to hit the shop floor's VMC. The machining consists of a simple profile cut ... a round pocket with a bolt hole circle at the bottom. The kind of programming done in 95% of shops every day. What happens next?
In the CAD/CAM World ...
The first thing that is required is a drawing ... or perhaps the the customer has supplied a sold model. First ... a solid model .... REALLY? Do we need a solid model for a part like this? Or a CAD drawing ... again, do we really need to spend the time creating a pretty CAD drawing. If you are living in the CAD/CAM world ... yes. Nothing happens without a drawing. In either instance ... an experienced CAD/CAM "guy" is required.
In the CAD/CAM world ... next comes the selection of tooling ... the creation of the program ... the posting of the program for the desired machine and control ... deliver the G code to the machine for set-up.
After test cutting ... some changes are required which means maybe some re-drawing ... re-posting ... all done by the CAD/CAM "guy" only. Don't even go to "We'll have to run this on the "other" machine."
All of the above is being performed by the high priced, experienced CAD/CAM "guy". In your typical small manufacturing environment, this simple programming job is tied to maybe one or two people who have the experience to operate that company's specific CAD/CAM system. If they decide to seek better fortunes elsewhere ... the job search begins for someone with experience in that company's specific CAD/CAM system ... or hire someone who requires training to adapt their knowledge to that company's specific CAD/CAM system.
In the REAL WORLD ...
Using a programming system like Kipware® conversational from Kentech Inc. ... the first thing that happens is the boss gives the print to a machinist ... maybe someone who is not a great CNC programmer ... but a good chipmaker. He pulls up the conversational menus, completes the plain and simple on-screen questions, and creates an efficient G code program quickly and easily.
Every shop should have or does have an experienced chipmaker on the shop floor ... oftentimes not so capable of creating a G code program from scratch ... maybe capable of editing G code. A tool like Kipware® conversational is just what they need to go from an editor to a programmer.
Since the software uses generic G code ... it is most likely compatible with any machine on the shop floor. If some specific requirements are needed ... an add-on tool like Kentech's KipwareXC® application ... can convert the standard G code output to another format. KipwareXC® only requires the G code program ... better than any post-processor system. So the job comes back next month but needs to run on the "other" machine. Anyone can take the proven G code ... run it through KipwareXC® and have it auto-converted to the "other" machines format. Better yet ... KipwareXC® can accommodate any G code ... any machine format ... no CAD or CAM file needed. That means that program you wrote 2 years ago and for which no CAD/CAM file can be found can be converted as well.
Now we are not saying that shops do not need a CAD/CAM system. What we are saying is that the CAD/CAM system is not the most efficient tool for EVERY job.For the programming that is done in 95% of real world shops every day ... CAD/CAM can slow down the programming process ... and oftentimes eliminates good chip makers from that programming process ... creating bottlenecks and holding your shop floor hostage. A tool like Kipware® conversational gives the shop floor the power and flexibility to have multiple chipmakers creating the everyday programs ... and leaves the CAD/CAM guy for the more complex, 3D, mold work ... if that ever comes down the road.
CAD/CAM OVERKILL .... just think about it the next time you have to create a G code program.
When we refer to CAD/CAM Overkill ... what is it exactly that we mean?
Think about this example ... a part is about to hit the shop floor's VMC. The machining consists of a simple profile cut ... a round pocket with a bolt hole circle at the bottom. The kind of programming done in 95% of shops every day. What happens next?
In the CAD/CAM World ...
The first thing that is required is a drawing ... or perhaps the the customer has supplied a sold model. First ... a solid model .... REALLY? Do we need a solid model for a part like this? Or a CAD drawing ... again, do we really need to spend the time creating a pretty CAD drawing. If you are living in the CAD/CAM world ... yes. Nothing happens without a drawing. In either instance ... an experienced CAD/CAM "guy" is required.
In the CAD/CAM world ... next comes the selection of tooling ... the creation of the program ... the posting of the program for the desired machine and control ... deliver the G code to the machine for set-up.
After test cutting ... some changes are required which means maybe some re-drawing ... re-posting ... all done by the CAD/CAM "guy" only. Don't even go to "We'll have to run this on the "other" machine."
All of the above is being performed by the high priced, experienced CAD/CAM "guy". In your typical small manufacturing environment, this simple programming job is tied to maybe one or two people who have the experience to operate that company's specific CAD/CAM system. If they decide to seek better fortunes elsewhere ... the job search begins for someone with experience in that company's specific CAD/CAM system ... or hire someone who requires training to adapt their knowledge to that company's specific CAD/CAM system.
In the REAL WORLD ...
Using a programming system like Kipware® conversational from Kentech Inc. ... the first thing that happens is the boss gives the print to a machinist ... maybe someone who is not a great CNC programmer ... but a good chipmaker. He pulls up the conversational menus, completes the plain and simple on-screen questions, and creates an efficient G code program quickly and easily.
Every shop should have or does have an experienced chipmaker on the shop floor ... oftentimes not so capable of creating a G code program from scratch ... maybe capable of editing G code. A tool like Kipware® conversational is just what they need to go from an editor to a programmer.
Since the software uses generic G code ... it is most likely compatible with any machine on the shop floor. If some specific requirements are needed ... an add-on tool like Kentech's KipwareXC® application ... can convert the standard G code output to another format. KipwareXC® only requires the G code program ... better than any post-processor system. So the job comes back next month but needs to run on the "other" machine. Anyone can take the proven G code ... run it through KipwareXC® and have it auto-converted to the "other" machines format. Better yet ... KipwareXC® can accommodate any G code ... any machine format ... no CAD or CAM file needed. That means that program you wrote 2 years ago and for which no CAD/CAM file can be found can be converted as well.
Now we are not saying that shops do not need a CAD/CAM system. What we are saying is that the CAD/CAM system is not the most efficient tool for EVERY job.For the programming that is done in 95% of real world shops every day ... CAD/CAM can slow down the programming process ... and oftentimes eliminates good chip makers from that programming process ... creating bottlenecks and holding your shop floor hostage. A tool like Kipware® conversational gives the shop floor the power and flexibility to have multiple chipmakers creating the everyday programs ... and leaves the CAD/CAM guy for the more complex, 3D, mold work ... if that ever comes down the road.
CAD/CAM OVERKILL .... just think about it the next time you have to create a G code program.
Could your CAD/CAM system actually be costing you money?
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