Modern Machine Shop is focused on all aspects of metalworking technology - Providing the new product technologies; process solutions; supplier listings; business management; networking; and event information that companies need to be competitive.
Issue link: https://mms.epubxp.com/i/931904
time. However, the shop also looks to shrink the overall amount of green time for a job by spur- ring its machinists to try different cutting tools and/or make tweaks to part programs to reduce cycle times and, in turn, increase the effective billing rate for that machine and profit for those jobs because the machine is being utilized more effectively. This also enables jobs in queue to be completed sooner and/or spurs the shop's sales department to pursue additional work. The 4,000-Hour Challenge Reducing overall green time is an ongoing effort at J&R; Machine. It was especially important in 2017, because the company's backlog forced it to run 24/7 with two 12-hour shifts. In an effort to get away from that, the shop challenged its employees to reduce green time by 4,000 hours that year (which effectively equates to the cost to purchase one new machine). As of last December, it had shaved 3,628 hours with changes such as reduced setup time, as well as part program adjustments and new tooling to increase feed rates and reduce cycle times. "With our company's previous culture, employees spurred to help save 4,000 hours of green time might have led them to believe they were essentially working themselves out of a job," Mr. Tumanic notes. "Now, employees know that saving 4,000 hours so we can complete more jobs in the same time frame means they'll be paid a higher quarterly bonus." Visit gbm.media/hdm to learn how J&R; Machine benefits from machining with high-density work- holding devices on its CNC milling machines. What Fun Would Stopping Be? Today, J&R; Machine's productivity index typi- cally ranges from 1.2 to 1.4. Mr. Tumanic says this speaks to the value of having data that accu- rately depicts the rate of production on the shop f loor in order to make sound, overall business decisions for the company. Plus, the shop will continue to add and replace machines. Mr. Tumanic says not all the DMG MORI machines have the Celos control, which functions much like a smartphone or tablet and has a variety of helpful apps, but he'd like all machines to have that control. Another advan- tage is that manuals for ancillary machine equip- ment, such as the bar feeder and parts conveyor, can be easily accessed via this control, so machinists can order replacement parts on their own when necessary. J&R; Machine is also considering adding machine-loading robots between pairs of turning centers. In theory, this might make it possible for one machinist to tend four machines, resulting in four machine hours per one payroll hour. The operators are on board, because this, too, would result in higher quarterly bonuses. "We're a private company that's profitable," Mr. Tumanic notes. "We could easily shut down our improvement efforts based on tracking our productivity index and ride it out. However, it has become fun tracking the index and identifying ways to improve those ratios and grow the busi- ness at the same time. We see the real numbers and where even small process improvements can be impactful." J&R; Machine is also considering adding machine- loading robots between pairs of turning centers. This might make it possible for one machinist to tend four machines, resulting in four machine hours per one payroll hour. ADVANTAGES OF HIGH-DENSITY WORKHOLDING J&R; Machine | 715-526-5970 | jrmachine.com DMG MORI | 847-593-5400 | us.dmgmori.com MMS FEBRUARY 2018 84 mmsonline.com MACHINE MONITORING