Regular preventive maintenance (PM) on forging equipment offers additional benefits. Ensuring the machinery operates without unforeseen failures or malfunctions reduces maintenance needs and lowers repair costs. Furthermore, it decreases the likelihood of producing defective or substandard products. Safety is also improved by minimizing potential hazards and reducing the risk of injuries.

Although many forgers follow routine maintenance guidelines, most continue production until the equipment breaks down. Given the longevity of certain forging machines in operation since the 1950s and 60s, technicians may lack the knowledge required to troubleshoot problems or recognize worn or failing components, which increases the risk of a major breakdown. Studies have shown that the cost of unplanned maintenance can be three times higher than planned maintenance.

“The purpose of a systematic preventative maintenance program is to identify and address potential issues before they escalate. PM is designed to optimize machine reliability and performance while saving costs over time by avoiding serious breakdowns,” says Bill Goodwin, Vice President of Sales and Engineering Ajax/CECO/Erie Press (ACE), the largest forging equipment supplier in North America.

Traditionally, PM is performed by facility personnel who conduct routine inspections, maintenance, and repairs on assets to ensure that they are functioning properly. However, a growing number of forgers are discovering the value of partnering with equipment OEMs for customizable PM programs that incorporate the industry’s best proactive maintenance practices.

“In essence, the OEM becomes an extension of the forger’s maintenance team through best practice PM, proactive training, and even spare parts programs. The goal is to customize the program to fit within the budget and provide as much, or as little, support as needed,” says Goodwin. ACE, with 145 years of experience in equipment manufacturing and more than 300 years of combined forging knowledge, is the longest-running, most experienced forging company in the world. The OEM provides a comprehensive array of forging equipment including upsetters, presses, programmable hammers, forging rolls, and automation solutions for various forging materials such as carbon steels, aluminum, titanium, and super alloys.

The Importance of Forging Equipment PM

Today, ACE is offering the most comprehensive preventative maintenance program in the forming and forging industry. The customized program not only includes training activities and scheduled replacement of consumables, but also develops repeatable maintenance tasks and follows PM best practices for forging and forming equipment.

In this program, the OEM first conducts a preliminary review of any existing PM program documentation of what is currently performed. This includes the life cycle of frequently replaced parts.

Next, the OEM conducts a “health check” to determine the equipment’s current condition, running clearance, electrical system, and pump performance. Based on the results of the health check, the OEM recommends corrective actions to restore the equipment to its original specifications.

ACE is in a unique position to utilize the full documentation of equipment in its broad portfolio of brands, along with extensive maintenance and repair experience accumulated over many decades. With its core brands founded in the 1800s, the company offers a full line of products, including standard mechanical forging presses, upset forging machines, forging rolls, hydraulic forging, forming, compression molding, cold extrusion, compaction, and roll ring preform presses along with stretch forming and straightening machines, solid die forgers, trim presses, programmable die forgers, and custom-engineered hydraulic presses.

In the next step, a customized preventive maintenance program is created. This can vary, but typically involves following best practices for lubrication; daily visual inspections for signs of wear, leaks, or damage; listening for abnormal vibrations/noises when equipment is running that can indicate underlying issues; monitoring the presence of dirt or other foreign particles that can deteriorate the machinery’s efficiency; regular calibration to avoid misalignment or imbalanced equipment; and documenting all checks, observations, and maintenance tasks performed.

Goodwin stresses that the extent of the PM program is based on factors such as the type of equipment, production, onsite support, and desired PM intervals. “It can be scaled up or down to take into account the maintenance team’s experience, availability, and turnover,” he says.

Although PM is typically performed on-site, some actions can be completed remotely. ACE utilizes advanced collaboration tools and real-time video communications to connect with technicians so each can see, discuss, annotate, and resolve many situations at hand.

Spare Parts Programs to Minimize Downtime

Ensuring smooth operations goes beyond just the maintenance of forging equipment. It also entails having essential spare parts available at a moment’s notice to minimize production downtime.

Consequently, the PM program can also include a separate spare parts stocking program that anticipates expected maintenance requirements. By utilizing measurable production rates, ACE can proactively schedule service and replacement of critical parts through an online portal. Potential critical failures can be identified and addressed before occurring.

To ensure the highest production uptime of forging equipment and prevent lengthy unexpected downtime, the stocking program typically not only includes consumables but also essential parts that can traditionally have very long lead times.

“Common consumables include friction plates and driving plates for presses and upsetters, or piston heads, rods, rings, and packings for hammers. However, it is even more important to stock main gears, eccentric shafts, and rams to avoid long lead times for replacement,” says Goodwin.

According to Goodwin, with the parts stocking program the forger only pays a percentage of the cost up front and the balance when they take possession of the part – up to 2 years later. With minimal up-front investment, the custom stocking program can eliminate many months of downtime waiting on long lead time parts. Express shipping costs are also eliminated since parts are readily available.

Even though the high impact nature of forging will eventually take its toll, with proper PM the equipment can be kept productive for many decades, and potentially for the better part of a century.

“Ensuring proper PM is not merely a task, but an investment in the longevity of your forging equipment, the quality of your products, and the productivity and safety of your workforce. By implementing a proactive PM program, manufacturers can position themselves to reap the maximum benefits from their equipment for decades to come,” concludes Goodwin.

The post Forging Greater Productivity with Next Gen PM appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

Specifically, combining lasers and advanced robotics within enclosed workcells enables operators to efficiently and repeatedly clean components of different sizes, shapes, and materials on a level previously unattainable through manual methods.

“Automated laser cleaning systems are designed to cost-effectively clean high volumes of even the largest format parts and equipment and can be tailored to suit the size and complexity of the parts, while eliminating concerns over operator safety,” says Wayne Tupuola, CEO, Orlando, Florida-based Laser Photonics (NASDAQ: LASE), a leading global industrial developer of laser systems for cleaning and other material processing applications.

Industrial manufacturers frequently need to remove corrosion, grease, residue, and old coatings, or roughen the surface of metals prior to coating components and equipment. At times, contaminants or toxic substances need to be eliminated before further processing.

The challenge is that conventional methods like sandblasting, dry ice blasting, and chemical stripping are messy, time and labor intensive including preparation and cleanup, and require costly consumables. These methods can also pose risks to applicators and the environment so are scrutinized by regulators like OSHA and EPA.

As a much more efficient alternative, a laser cleaning robotic workcell usually consists of at least one laser-wielding robot, controllers, and safety equipment in a custom, see-through enclosure. These collaborative robots, or cobots, excel at tasks like the laser cleaning of parts which involve repetition, freeing up employees to work on other activities.

The CleanTech Robotic Cell from Laser Photonics, for example, utilizes a robotic arm that holds a “laser gun” with cleaning, roughening, and finishing capabilities. The robotic arm is programmable via a tablet/controller where the operator would input the coordinates for material processing. The cleaning laser can be replaced with a welding or cutting laser. If required, the workcell can be split into two sections – the robot cleans on one side, while an operator installs a part to be cleaned on the other side.

“The operator can lay out several components for cleaning over the flatbed, set the cleaning coordinates, and leave the robot processing,” explains Tupuola.

He points to advancements in laser technology that complement and expedite the efficient cleaning of such shapes.

“Dual axis laser technology enables the cleaning of target areas more effectively and quickly if they are complex and uneven,” adds Tupuola. “Plus, our proprietary technologies allow the laser to move in various directions and clean hard-to-reach areas.”

Manufacturers of larger format components can find useful laser systems like Laser Photonics’ CleanTech Titan FX, which offers up to a 6’ x 12’ work envelope for automated laser cleaning, rust removal, and surface conditioning. This industrial, turnkey laser cleaning giant can operate as a standalone unit or be easily integrated into a production line environment.

“Large format automated laser cleaning systems can expedite the processing of [applications like] automotive tire rims, molds, oil and gas flanges, or even sheets for the hull of a ship or other vessel,” says Tupuola. He notes that the size and configuration of the enclosures can be customized to accommodate the size and nature of the parts that require cleaning, with the lasers operating at a range of power levels.

Another significant benefit to such automation is improved operator and environment safety.

“For extra safety, our custom-tailored automated laser systems are enclosed in a Class I safety workcell. We can also integrate dust and residue collection, as well as a fume extractor that captures vapors during the cleaning of toxic substances,” says Tupuola.

This type of advanced laser cleaning equipment is designed to accommodate rigorous safety regulations. As an example, Laser Photonics’ CleanTech systems can help businesses achieve compliance with OSHA regulations and make environmentally responsible decisions in accordance with EPA’s waste management guidelines.

Abrasive sandblasting involves forcefully projecting a stream of abrasive particles onto a surface, usually with compressed air or steam. The silica sand used in abrasive blasting typically fractures into fine particles and becomes airborne, which can cause serious or fatal respiratory disease. Particles from the coatings, plating, anodizing, corrosion, and even lead paint being removed can also be inhaled. To avoid breathing in particulates, operators must wear full HEPA suits when sandblasting.

With chemical stripping, harsh chemicals are used to strip metal-based objects of paint, rust, and other contaminants to bare metal – potentially exposing operators to corrosive acids and noxious chemical fumes. In addition, disposing of toxic chemicals is costly and closely regulated. Laser cleaning seeks to solve or minimize these issues.

Unlike conventional methods, the laser cleaning systems require no consumables other than electric power, minimal labor, and minimal maintenance. The longevity and low-maintenance design of these industrial-grade robotic laser cleaning systems further adds to their value, increasing ROI, and making replacement unnecessary for decades.

Programming the laser ablation procedure with a cobot workcell can be accomplished with a touchscreen. Generally, programming includes setting coordinates for the sample, ablation pattern, power output, and cleaning speed, according to Tupuola.

“Installation and programming are needed, but once it’s set up, robotic cell cleaning is fast, precise, thorough, and controlled. So, it’s a very convenient, optimized process if the parts being cleaned are the same,” says Tupuola.

Tupuola adds that Laser Photonics is now working on integrating 3D scanners into the robotic workcell. This would automate the focusing of the laser and eliminate some of the programming now done by an operator.

While precision laser-based systems have been effectively used to remove rust, residues, contaminants, and paint, this approach commonly involves manual labor. Automated robotic laser cleaning systems provide manufacturers safer, easier, more eco-friendly options.

To meet demand more efficiently, a growing number of manufacturers across a wide range of industries will increasingly turn to these laser systems to cost-effectively clean higher volumes of components with the control and speed required for decades to come.

About the Author

Del Williams is a technical writer based in Torrance, California.

The post Advanced Laser Cleaning Robotic Workcells Turbocharge Industrial Processes appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

Rotary shaft seals are a perfect example. These crucial components seal the rotating parts of machinery, prevent lubricant leakage, and ensure impurities do not infiltrate the inner workings of engines, gearboxes, and pumps. Mechanical seals, specifically, are utilized for high pressure applications demanding robust sealing capabilities. Consequently, the seal assembly components must be ground to exceptionally precise levels of flatness and parallelism to operate as effective leak-proof seals.

Unfortunately, the grinding process can be lengthy, labor intensive, and costly with conventional methods. So, when production requirements increase, manufacturers frequently turn to more advanced, automated rotary surface grinders that can achieve the precise specifications in much less time, with less operator intervention and skill.

Exceptional Seal Fit and Performance

For rotary shaft seals, various factors affect seal selection, such as shaft speed, pressure, temperature, lubricant type, and environmental conditions.

Traditional designs typically involve three main elements: a metal case that provides rigidity and structural support; a rubber sealing lip that creates a tight seal around the rotating shaft; and a spring that ensures constant pressure is maintained by the sealing lip against the shaft.

However, these seals may not perform as expected at very high pressure or RPMs, where traditional seals can begin to struggle to maintain contact with the shaft (track) due to radial runout. In these cases, the spring is often unable to maintain a tight seal with the shaft.

“The seals may be rotating at 40,000 RPM and if there is an imbalance because a part was not ground to size or parallel, then it is going to throw off the whole system. The seal can become compromised, and eventually it will begin to leak,” says Jared Desrosiers, Manufacturing Process and Technology Manager, MAGSEAL, LLC, a supplier of specialty magnetic seals for critical systems that is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year.

In this type of scenario, magnetic seals create a strong attraction that eliminates the need for a spring in face seal designs.

“Magnetic seals are engineered to perform in high speed, high vibration, high altitude conditions and are excellent replacements for seals that are subjected to high torque, runout, and axial movement,” says Desrosiers.

The OEM’s magnetic seals, called MAGSEALs, provide 100% positive face to face sealing and are designed to operate in air, gases, water, steam, refrigerants, lubricants, fuels, and hydraulic fluids. The MAGSEALs are typically custom designed in a variety of sizes from a quarter inch to over 6 inches.

According to Desrosiers, MAGSEALs are comprised of a magnet (stator) and a seal case (rotor). When fully assembled, the attraction force of the magnet pulls the seal case assembly into itself to create a tight seal.

The magnet is made from Cast Alnico V, a combination of aluminum, nickel, cobalt, and iron, to create the seal. The seal case is made from a ferromagnetic material, 416 or 410 stainless steel, 17-4PH for maximum corrosion protection, or 42 Alloy steel for low thermal expansion. A carbon graphite ring is installed in the seal case to complete the assembly. The carbon ring purposely protrudes out of the seal case to a specified nose height which is meant to interface with the magnet.

Each of these components – the magnet, seal case, and graphite ring – requires precise grinding to specific dimensions, parallelism, and surface finish.

Although the seal case does not have to be as precise, the carbon rings that are pressed into it are ground, lapped, and polished to achieve the specified nose height. The carbon seal ring surface flatness should be within two helium light bands, 0.0000232 in. [0.000589 mm] prior to use, according to John Westgate, MAGSEAL Manufacturing Engineering Technician.

For the magnet, MAGSEAL starts with a rough casting and grinds all the sides and surfaces. Secondary lapping steps are required to achieve the necessary surface finish. Currently, the OEM estimates it grinds 1,500 to 2,000 magnets each week.

In the past, the OEM utilized conventional reciprocating grinders on the magnets. Although reciprocating table grinders can be precise, the material removal rate is slow since the workpiece travels back and forth under the grinding wheel, so many grind passes are required.

However, as production requirements increased, the OEM decided to replace a slow, aging reciprocating rotary surface grinder that often needed to be repaired with advanced rotary surface grinders from Winona, MN-based DCM Tech.

“We were able to achieve the precision and surface finish that we were looking for with the conventional method, but it took significantly longer to grind the same number of parts,” says Desrosiers. “With the [DCM] rotary surface grinder, we knew we could achieve significant time and efficiency gains.”

Today, rotary surface grinders are designed with much more advanced sensors and controls that automatically maintain very tight tolerances, removing material down to within one ten-thousandth of an inch of the final thickness. Digital technology allows for an interface with easy-to-use touchscreen controls.

To expedite the grinding and finishing process for the magnet line, the OEM recently upgraded from a conventional rotary surface grinder to a more automated, IG 282 SD grinder from DCM Tech with a 24” variable speed table and 20HP variable speed spindle.

“We have found that nothing achieves the necessary flatness, height, and parallelism as fast as the DCM Tech rotary surface grinders. The required parallelism is particularly important to prevent vibration at high speeds of rotation,” says Desrosiers.

The new model includes advanced features that automate the initial contact between the abrasive wheel and the part. With this updated option, advanced sensor technology detects vibration and can automatically fine-tune not only the pressure of the spindle motor but how quickly it moves the wheel down onto the part. When the machine senses the abrasive wheel has contacted the part, it automatically begins the grind cycle.

Automatic part detection eliminates the need for the operator to do time consuming, error-prone ‘manual touch offs,’ where they would manually feed the grinding machine until it just touches the surface of the part before backing off and restarting it.

“The DCM Tech grinder simplifies the skillset needed and makes training a new operator a lot easier,” says MAGSEAL Manufacturing Engineering Technician Westgate.

One of the reasons advanced rotary surface grinders are much faster than conventional reciprocating grinders is because the units can get much closer to the required dimensions before any finishing steps. In some cases, secondary steps can even be eliminated.

According to Desrosiers, the increased automation and ease of use has helped to dramatically improve magnet production.

“We increased manufacturing capacity with reduced setup, loading/unloading, and cycle time. We decreased the cycle time by more than 300%” says Desrosiers, adding that by reducing or eliminating the need for subsequent finishing processes, the company was able to achieve ROI in about three months.

MAGSEAL also appreciated the rotary surface grinder’s enhanced safety and cleanliness features.

Automated grinders contribute to a cleaner shop environment because the grinding is accomplished inside an enclosed shroud that contains the debris and prevents it from entering the work area. The shroud, which is a sliding door with a built-in window for viewing the process, encloses the grinding area. This has the added benefit of reducing the noise produced by the machine.

In addition to a shroud, grinders like the DCM IG series provide an integral air mist collection system that draws particulate matter from the air and moves it away from the operator to enhance the cleanliness and safety of the work environment.

“For us, safety is paramount. The advanced rotary surface grinder is a fully enclosed machine with door interlocks. This configuration is significantly safer and cleaner than a conventional service grinder,” says Desrosiers.

He notes that MAGSEAL has already ordered another advanced rotary surface grinder to replace an aging reciprocal grinder used for the initial “rough” grind of the magnets.

When manufacturers need high-performance components that reliably operate in the most rigorous conditions, precise grinding is often necessary to meet the exact dimensions, flat, parallel surfaces, and finishes. In these cases, utilizing advanced, automated grinders that precisely and efficiently hone the component parts will help ensure that the required quality, reliability, and production goals are met.

About the Author

Del Williams is a technical writer based in Torrance, California.

The post Precision Grinder Speeds Production of High-Performance Magnetic Seals appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

Given the massive industrial outlay, proactively controlling corrosion is imperative and can have an equally impressive ROI.

“By using available corrosion control practices, it is estimated that savings of between 15 and 35% of the cost of corrosion could be realized, i.e., between US$375 and $875 billion annually on a global basis…The fact that corrosion control provides a cost benefit is a lesson learned over and over again by industry, often too late and following catastrophic events,” continues the NACE International IMPACT study.

However, traditional methods of removing corrosion can be messy, laborious, time consuming, and can even pose serious health hazards.

Today, one of the easiest to use and most effective alternatives in the war against corrosion is the increasingly important category of industrial-grade, clean technology lasers.

With this approach, precision laser-based systems are used to remove corrosion, contaminants, paint, and residues with a high-energy laser beam that leaves the substrate unaffected. Preparation and cleanup time are minimal, and the low-maintenance equipment can last decades. The technology minimizes operator exposure to potential environmental health hazards. In addition, no consumables are necessary.

Corrosion and the Limits of Conventional Control

Any industry with metal infrastructure, processing equipment, or products exposed to water, fluids, moisture, or atmospheric humidity continually fights corrosion, which causes the deterioration and loss of a material and its critical properties due to chemical, electrochemical reactions of the exposed surface with the surrounding environment. Corrosion affects the microstructure, mechanical properties, and physical appearance of the materials.

The direct cost of corrosion includes a loss of materials, equipment, and production, plus the cost of repair, maintenance, and replacement. Additional losses can result from accidents, injuries, and even loss of life as well as payments to repair environmental damage.

Within the continual struggle against industrial corrosion, one important niche area of corrosion control involves the pretreating of metal surfaces to remove corrosion and contaminants before coating or welding.

Although metal surface pretreatment is a small portion of industrial corrosion control, it is crucial to ensure the safety, performance, and longevity of products and structures.

Insufficient coating pretreatment can lead to inadequate protection from the environment, leading to potential coating failure, moisture entry, and accelerated corrosion as well as increased maintenance, early replacement, and warranty issues. Similarly, insufficient weld pretreatment to remove corrosion and contaminants can lead to weakened or failed welds and necessary rework as well as substantial safety, liability, and litigation risk.

A More Effective Weapon to Eliminate Corrosion

In many industries, it is necessary to remove corrosion, residue, oil, grease, or paint before coating a product or infrastructure to improve coating adhesion.

Toward this end, laser-based systems have significant advantages over traditional methods, starting with ease of use.

“With laser-based systems, an operator simply points and clicks a high-energy laser beam at the surface. The substrate is not affected by the laser, and the systems do not create any mess or byproducts. The approach is eco-friendly, energy-efficient, and completes the job in approximately half the time of traditional methods when preparation and cleanup are considered. Also, no consumables are required,” says Wayne Tupuola, CEO, Orlando, Florida-based Laser Photonics, a leading provider of patented industrial grade CleanTech® lasers for cleaning and surface conditioning. The company’s systems function either as mobile standalone units or can be integrated into production lines.

In the case of Laser Photonics, the laser systems are available in portable and stationary models ranging from 50 to 3,000-watts (a 4,000-watt version is in development) with chamber sizes from 3’ x 3’ in size to 6’ x 12’. The systems can also be installed in manufacturing lines in cabinets or operated by a robotic arm.

In industry, the laser pre-treatment of metal surfaces can be used to streamline various manufacturing processes. For instance, it has been used to remove rust from hundreds of automotive transmissions per day. It has also been utilized to eliminate corrosion from conveying system components.

The CleanTech lasers are also used to refurbish industrial infrastructure, such as when removing a previous coating along with any corrosion to facilitate the new coating’s adhesion to the surface.

Another common laser application involves pre-weld treatment to remove corrosion, mill scale, residue, and any impurities on the surface of the base material that would compromise the weld’s effectiveness. It is essential to avoid any such contamination on a weld’s surface, which could otherwise lead to a weakening of the weld’s mechanical properties, requiring rework.

Laser treatment is also used for post-weld cleaning to increase the life expectancy and corrosion resistance of a welded joint. Post-weld cleaning is important for stainless steel as well. Welding can cause a “heat tint,” a discolored, thickened top layer on the stainless steel around the weld bead within the heat affected zone that compromises corrosion resistance. Removing the heat tinted top layer is necessary to restore stainless steel’s full corrosion resistance and aesthetic value.

A further benefit of the laser systems is that some of the most advanced units are designed to last for decades. For example, CleanTech laser systems can last for 50,000 to 100,000 hours. In addition, virtually no maintenance is needed after purchase and no consumables are required.

Given the devastating cost of corrosion to industry and the inherent limitations of typical control methods, lasers are becoming a best practice technique to combat it in facilities and in the field. Laser treatment effectively removes corrosion for many industrial applications, minimizes cleanup time and operator exposure to potential environmental health hazards, lasts for decades, and requires no consumables.

For more information on laser cleaning solutions for surface preparation, contact Laser Photonics at (407) 804-1000 or visit www.laserphotonics.com.

About the Author

Del Williams is a technical writer based in Torrance, California.

The post In War Against Industrial Corrosion, Clean Lasers Prove Very Effective appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

Seamless rolled rings have a greater lifespan than other products due to their strength and durability, and are less prone to cracking or warping, making the option ideal for critical components requiring high tensile strength. Seamless rolled rings resist wear, fatigue, and stress, enabling better performance. Depending on the metal and alloy, the rings are also resistant to thermal and chemical damage, which further extends longevity while reducing the need for maintenance, repair, and replacement.

Obtaining large seamless rolled rings in a timely manner remains a significant challenge, however. Currently, it may take many months to receive the forged components after placing an order. This delay can have a severe impact on the production and maintenance schedules of industrial firms that depend on replacement parts.

Rings are typically provided with a rough surface finish, which necessitates the use of CNC machining to achieve the required level of smoothness. This poses a challenge for machine shops with a high workload, as allocating machine time for finishing inevitably leads to a decrease in production speed and an increase in costs, ultimately impacting the end-use cost or profitability.

Fortunately, manufacturers can rely on industry-leading forging specialists capable of producing large, custom, seamless rolled rings, and contoured seamless rolled rings with the required surface finish in under two months. One example, All Metals & Forge Group, an ISO 9001:2015 and AS9100D manufacturer of custom and standard open die forged parts and seamless rolled rings can cost-effectively deliver these components with the required finish within 8-10 weeks.

The range of forged products includes rings, discs, hubs, blocks, shafts (including step shafts or with flanges), sleeves, gear blanks, cylinders, flats, hexes, rounds, plates, and custom shapes. Carbon steel, alloy steel, stainless steel, nickel, titanium, and aluminum are among the materials used for forging. These forgings meet rigorous industry specifications such as ASTM, AMS, AISI, ASME, Boeing, SAE, GE, DIN, ASME B 16.5, ASME B16.47, and API 6A.

Numerous industries can reap the advantages of an accelerated process for obtaining flawless rolled rings. This includes sectors like aerospace, aircraft, automotive, chemical, construction, defense, energy, engine and turbine, food processing, hydro, metalworking, mining, oil and gas, petroleum, power generation, pulp and paper, and shipbuilding.

The Benefits of Open Die Forging

One of the chief advantages of open die forging is the customization it offers in the seamless rolled ring manufacturing process.

According to Lewis Weiss, President of All Metals & Forge Group, open die forging is ideal for providing large, custom parts. “We can produce seamless rolled rings or contoured rolled rings up to 200 inches in outside diameter, and custom forgings up to 40 feet long or 80,000 lbs.,” says Weiss. All Metals & Forge Group has been manufacturing and selling open die forgings and seamless rolled rings for more than 50 years.

While open die forging is typically associated with larger, simpler-shaped parts like bars or blanks, the process enables the creation of “custom-designed” metal components.

According to Weiss, open-die forging facilitates the production of seamless rolled rings to exact specifications with optimized mechanical properties and structural integrity. He notes that the rings can be produced in a variety of alloys, sizes, and shapes specific to the requirements.

The forging of the rings is also cost-effective since the process reduces material waste and manufacturing costs. Since the rings are constructed from a single metal piece using a specialized ring rolling machine, there is no need for welding or assembly, saving time and labor. The seamless rolled rings are also more structurally sound because they create a circular grain flow in the material, following the shape of the ring, which increases strength and integrity, creating a refined grain structure. This can enhance the material’s fatigue resistance and overall performance, resulting in a stronger, more durable final product compared to other methods of ring making, such as cutting from plate.

Near Net Shape Parts with Finer Surface Finish

Typically, when seamless rolled rings are forged, they are often left in an unprocessed state with a rough surface measured at approximately 500 RMS. As a result, significant CNC machining time is required to achieve a smoother surface for the finished machined part. This poses a challenge for machine shops as the allocation of machine time for finishing these rough parts directly affects production efficiency and delivery time to the client.

To optimize efficiency and reduce costs, All Metals & Forge Group frequently provides near-net-shaped forged parts with more refined surface finishes.

“Typically, we provide a 250 RMS surface finish. We can even provide 125 RMS. We can also drill holes and do contour forgings as needed,” says Weiss.

“Some forge shops only offer a raw unmachined part. We produce a rough machine part, saving machine shop time and equipment wear and tear since we have already taken off the first rough cuts off the ring or forged parts,” he adds.

In addition, the company conducts ultrasonic testing at zero expense to the customer to guarantee the absence of internal cracks, pits, or voids. This instills the utmost confidence in the quality of the parts, according to Tim Grady, Management Consultant for All Metals & Forge Group.

“In many cases, All Metals & Forge Group can offer ultrasonically tested parts that are more affordable than raw forged rings,” says Grady.

Streamlining Delivery

In today’s market, the procurement of forged seamless rolled rings usually takes a considerable amount of time, from 20 weeks to as much as a year, as there are long lead times in receiving the necessary steel from mills.

“When replacement parts are required, a delay of a year or more is not acceptable,” says Grady. “Even 20+ weeks is a serious issue.”

To expedite the process for customers, All Metals & Forge Group has established strategic partnerships within the industry, enabling the company to deliver many custom forgings in a timeframe of eight to 10 weeks. Furthermore, to minimize any potential production downtime for machine shops, the company strives to provide accurate quotes within 48 hours.

Positioning for the Future

The need to acquire seamless rolled rings will only increase in industries that require high-quality custom-forged components that can safely withstand extreme forces with minimal repair or replacement. In these cases, working with an expert forger who can expedite the process will convey a significant advantage.

For more information:

Contact All Metals & Forge, LLC at 75 Lane Road, NJ 07004; (973) 276-5000; Canada 416-363-2244, toll-free (800) 600-9290; fax (973) 276-5050 or visit http://www.steelforge.com.

The post Forging Ahead: Speedy Delivery of High Quality, Seamless and Contoured Rolled Rings appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

In the manufacturing process, it is often necessary to grind metals and alloys to certain specifications (i.e.- thickness, parallelism, surface condition). However, the process of bringing a stock sheet or plate to precise dimensions has traditionally been time consuming and labor-intensive. Although today’s automated advanced rotary surface grinders have resolved these issues to speed production dramatically, loading and unloading the workpiece typically still requires an operator.

To fill in this missing piece of the automation process, rotary surface grinders are now available in “robot-ready” versions for easy connection and integration with third party robotic arms. By adding robotics for the loading and unloading of workpieces, machine shops and OEMs with higher production demands can now substantially increase cycle times while improving precision on unattended machines.

“There are many scenarios in which a company can benefit from using robotics in the grinding process. A robotic arm can increase productivity and enable higher volume manufacturing as well as remove the operator from repetitive loading and unloading so they can move to more complex tasks. It can also minimize the handling of sharp, dangerous, or delicate parts,” says Erik Lawson, Engineering Manager at Winona, MN-based DCM Tech, a designer and builder of industrial rotary surface grinders.

To facilitate the automation of the loading and unloading of its rotary surface grinders, DCM Tech redesigned the IG 82 Series to include discrete digital I/O inputs and outputs for easy connection to virtually any third-party robotic arm. Industrial robotic arms emulate the movements of a human arm using multiple rotary joints that act as axis points. The end of the robotic arm is fitted with a fingerlike gripper, designed to safely manipulate and handle parts. These devices include a controller, actuators, sensors, software, and vision systems, if needed.

Once programmed by the integrator, the robotic arm will load and unload the part, as well as clear away any debris before repeating the process.

“The addition of robotics to our automated rotary surface grinders is a significant step that moves our industry toward providing solutions that are more fully automated,” says Lawson.

With vertical spindle, rotary table surface grinders, the table rotates with the workpiece held firmly in place underneath a vertical spindle. The grinding is not performed by the peripheral edge of the wheel, but by the entire diameter of the abrasive surface, which facilitates grinding performance and consistency. The surface grinders are designed with advanced sensors and controls that automatically maintain very tight tolerances, removing material down to within one ten-thousandth of an inch of the final thickness.

According to Lawson, the IG 82 series grinders already provide advanced features that minimize or eliminate operator intervention after set-up.

One example is the part detection system, which automates the initial contact between the abrasive wheel and the part. In the past, this typically had to be finessed by the operator. With this updated option, advanced sensor technology detects vibration and can automatically fine-tune not only the pressure of the spindle motor but also how quickly it moves the wheel down onto the part. When the machine senses the abrasive wheel has contacted the part, it automatically begins the grind cycle.

Automatic part detection eliminates the need for the operator to do time consuming, error-prone ‘manual touch-offs,’ where they would manually feed the grinding machine until it just touches the surface of the part before backing off and restarting it.

To increase production, “the grinders offer three grinding modes: conventional, incremental, and grind to height, which starts aggressively and then becomes increasingly more precise when nearing the desired outcome, says Lawson. “For greater automation, a continuous grind setting is also available, in which the machine automatically cycles through all three grind settings.”

For high-volume production, it is also necessary to periodically dress the grinding wheel. It is vital to remove grains, clogs, and excess bonding material so the wheel can return to its original surface finish and sharpness. Dressing is also used to help restore the wheel’s shape, which changes with wear. The IG 82 series comes with a programmable auto-dress capability with selectable dress frequency. “This eliminates the need for time-consuming manual dressing and improves production uptime,” says Lawson.

The advanced rotary surface grinders are already much faster than conventional reciprocating grinders because the units can get much closer to the required dimensions before any finishing steps. This capability can reduce or even eliminate some lapping and polishing steps.

With a conventional surface grinder, if stock with standard thickness needed to be ground down, an operator would stop short of the required removal and leave an unpolished surface. Using another machine was often required to remove the remaining material, but this could involve excessive time and labor.

According to Lawson, a rotary surface grinder will usually finish the work of a reciprocating grinder in a fraction of the time. For the manufacture of carbide blocks, one OEM was able to document a 14X improvement in cycle time by replacing a reciprocating grinder with a DCM rotary surface grinder.

In addition, programmable Human Machine Interface (HMI) controls allow operators to enter virtually any requirement into a touch screen at setup. This capability enhances processing flexibility, so it is easy to adjust any grinding factor to prevent an issue from reoccurring.

For routine processes, the use of a variety of grind “recipes” with sets of parameters for specific parts can further speed production, enhance quality, and aid in quick changeover. Different grind recipes can be set for different customers, material types, or even part numbers so complex programming or data does not need to be entered at the start of each job. A new recipe can be created for job variations, such as a different finish or number of parts.

According to Lawson, the automation already provided by an advanced rotary grinder combined with a robotic arm will allow the operator to set up the machine and then attend to other tasks. The machine does not need to be constantly monitored because it has built-in load monitoring. “Load monitoring allows the user to set limits, so the machine does not overtax the part being ground or overload the spindle. If something a little unusual happens, it can continue without interruption or shutting down,” says Lawson.

As manufacturers and machine shops seek to become more productive and competitive, using robotic arms along with automated grinding systems will increasingly become a best practice technique for high-volume facilities.

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In the industry, smaller machine shops face challenges not only in the wide range of applications and materials they encounter but also in selecting the tooling that will best accommodate it.

“I’ve seen many machine shops essentially over-spec the tools they need for a new project, and it is costing them a lot of money,” said Lermit Diaz, founder and CEO of SCTools, a Michigan-based national distributor to machine shops. “It can work the other way too, where the machine shop ends up not getting the best tool for the job, costing them time and material to make it work.”

Unlike an OEM, which may dedicate a machine to a single material or to one operation, smaller CNC machine shops survive by being able to machine a variety of materials for customers across diverse sectors such as aerospace, medical, semiconductors, electronics, automotive and general parts.

“A machine shop may be cutting stainless steel one day, forged steel the next, and then have an order for aluminum parts,” said Diaz. “Flexibility is important, but it is very difficult for a smaller shop to stay current with the latest information on all materials and all styles of machining. They don’t have the margins the large OEMs have to hire a mechanical engineer or purchase separate tooling for every material machined.”

The Need for Education

The idea to develop free online resources to assist small and medium-sized CNC machine shops came from the questions that Diaz would get from customers. “Every time I visited customers, they asked a lot of questions. They might not know how to do a specific job, or they wanted to know how to do it better. That sparked the idea to provide free online machining resources for the industry.”

Diaz wanted to fill an education gap that he saw when looking at the traditional relationship between a shop and their distributor.

“So many shops go to a distributor website and order several different tools, cutters, or inserts and still don’t achieve the desired [machining] result. They may also run the tool on the machine incorrectly. That means they are spending money hand-over-fist because they are purchasing tools they don’t need, and instead of getting five to ten parts per cutter, they might get one.”

Sharing Machining Knowledge

To empower smaller CNC machine shops to make the right decisions on their machining orders, Diaz created TechTips, a free online resource where questions can be answered before they bid on projects and purchase new equipment. The website page was created solely for educational purposes to assist small and medium-sized CNC machine shops, with no obligations to purchase from the distributor that hosts the content, SCTools. For those that simply want to call in and get questions answered, the support staff at SCTools has extensive knowledge and often hands-on machining background that includes operating equipment and programming.

The online resource is a significant database of technical knowledge. Since launching the TechTips database, it has grown to over 1,500 electronic pages of resources for the machining industry with plans to expand it to 2,000 pages by the end of the year. The database continues to increase its glossary to facilitate topic searches. Content areas include turning, milling, drilling, tapping, metals, calculation & programming, and grinding. To give an example of just how detailed this resource is, a section on how to machine the most common materials in the market is over 700 pages.

For those interested in new developments in the industry, a weekly e-newsletter called TechTalk from SCTools also provides content on a wide range of topics including machining, grinding, cutting tools, metals, and coatings.

Reexamining the Role of Parts Distributors

When founding SCTools, Diaz wanted to challenge the traditional role of a distributor.

“Traditionally distributors will serve you if you have a part number,” said Diaz. “Instead, the focus should be on the customer’s application to identify just the tools they need. There are many distributors that CNC machine shops can go to if they just want to order a part and have the order filled. Instead, we are trying to be more of a resource for the smaller machine shops, a partner to go to for advice and help.”

According to Jason Huo, Manager at Cold Forging, Dyna-Mig, a division of F&P Mfg., Inc: “In choosing tooling options for the development of a new model, we have definitely benefited from relying on expert guidance rather than resorting to lengthy, more costly trials.”

Online resources that make a wide span of technical machining knowledge available to small and medium-sized machine shops are enabling them to make better decisions as they take on new projects. In the process, the traditional relationship between machine shop and distributor is evolving to be more of a partnership.

The post New Online Resources Help CNC Machine Shops Make Better Tooling Choices appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

“Is the alarm system a useful tool, or a nuisance and a distraction?” asks Ard. “When there are too many alarms, too many notifications, operators begin to tune them out.”

Unfortunately, poorly performing alarm systems remain contributing factors in major accidents. Poorly designed and maintained alarm management systems can overwhelm operators with chattering and nuisance alarms under normal conditions, and debilitating alarm floods when abnormal states emerge. When this occurs, it can be difficult for operators to ascertain and act on the most critical alarms, contributing to abnormal situations, lost production, and even serious accidents.

“If you read reports about industrial accidents that were blamed on alarm systems, quite often it is described as the operator had [many] alarms coming in every minute and the one [critical] alarm that really required attention was buried under all the others,” says Ard.

Part of the challenge has been establishing standardized good alarm management practices throughout the industry. However, with organizations like the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the International Society of Automation (ISA) releasing updated guidelines in recent years, along with leading process automation companies incorporating more of a standards-based approach to application development, the focus is increasingly on differentiating alarms that require immediate attention from less urgent notifications, alerts, and messaging.

ANSI/ISA 18.2 Standards – Definition of Alarm

The ANSI/ISA 18.2 Standard addresses the entire life cycle of alarm management from design and configuration through performance monitoring, auditing, and enforcing for the life of the control application.

According to the standard, alarms should be reserved for those events that require an operator response. In other words, if the event does not require that an operator act, it should not trigger an alarm. Alarms should not be used to inform the production staff of normal events.

“When ISA 18.2 came out, one of the key features that had the biggest impact was their definition of ‘what is an alarm?’” explains Ard. “Basically, what the ISA committee determined was that an alarm should only be used if it requires an operator’s response. And that is probably the number one thing that most processing plants violate. They use alarms for all kinds of notifications, alerts, and reminders.”

In fact, many engineers essentially design their control system around response to alarms, instead of letting the control system function as it should.

“My question is, why is the control system relying on the operator to [function]? The control system should be handling that,” says Ard. “Rather than create an alarm and rely on the operator to make an adjustment, if it is possible for the control system to make that adjustment, we automate that procedure. That eliminates the generation of the alarm, and the operator doesn’t have to do anything.”

Prioritizing Alarms

According to Ard, NovaTech’s D/3 Distributed Control System (DCS) is designed to meet or exceed the requirements outlined in the ISA-18.2, albeit with slightly different terminology.

In NovaTech’s D/3 System, alarms are limited to loop tags, or External Point Name (EPN) events. EPN alarms set on-screen indicators to flash and sound an audible indicator. A “silence” key is available to silence the audible indication without acknowledging the alarm.

The S18.2 standard also outlines “alarm priority” based on the severity of the alarm. The D/3 System supports two alarm priorities, critical and non-critical. However, NovaTech goes a step further by assigning a priority number from 0 to 99 to further sort alarms in the alarm summary display.

The S18.2 standard also allows for the prioritization of alarms based on classification, which is a grouping of alarms associated with specific equipment, locations, or alarm purpose. The D/3 System assigns “categories” to each EPN, which meets the intent of alarm classification. The wording of the S18.2 standard suggests that individual alarms can be assigned more than one classification, if appropriate.

Dynamic Alarming

On the D/3 System, the alarm priority and alarm category (classification) can also be dynamically changed to meet specific process conditions. Dynamic alarming is defined as the automated altering of alarm setpoints, priorities, and suppression based on the current process state.

Without dynamic alarming, for example, an alarm flood can occur during normal equipment shut down. However, most of those alarms are irrelevant to the operator in that situation and obscure more important alarms from the rest of the process.

Ard gives the example of a low-pressure indication alarm in a batch reactor. If there is no current reaction running the reactor, a low-pressure alarm may not mean much. However, if there is activity in the reactor, then a low-pressure alarm is very significant. With dynamic alarm management, the low-pressure alarm can be disabled if nothing is happening in the reactor.

NovaTech approaches dynamic alarming based on the current “state” of the equipment.

When brewing beer, for example, the first steps occur in a mash mixer, where various types of milled grains are soaked in warm water. The empty vessel begins in an “empty and ready” state. As the water, enzymes, and other ingredients are loaded, the state changes to “foundation water.” Once the water reaches a precise temperature, various milled grains are added and sparged with some additional water, in the “grain and sparge” state.

“As we transition from each ‘state’ to the next, we can enable and disable alarms, change alarm limits, and even assign new alarm categories and prioritization based on the current process conditions,” says Ard.

Non-Alarm Messages

For all other notifications such as alerts, prompts, and notices that do not meet the definition of an alarm, NovaTech utilizes its proprietary Sequential and Batch Language (SABL) program to post messages to the operator console, HMI, and/or the alarm history file.

There are five types of messages generated by the D/3 System: system messages generated by various tasks that identify the health and status of various components and their subsystems; operator logger messages to record process changes made by operators, including changes to setpoints, outputs, tuning parameters and alarm acknowledgement; process alarm messages when an EPN exceeds a predefined alarm limit; SABL programs can print batch and debug information into the Alarm History Files and Batch History Files; and SABL programs can query operators at their consoles to request information or confirmation.

“Some people refer to messages sent by a SABL program as an ‘alarm,’ but they do not meet the definition of the ISA 18.2 standard for alarms, we do not assign priorities to them, and they are not acknowledgeable,” says Ard.

Keeping the Process Under Control

Of course, alarm management is just one aspect of a larger overall process control philosophy that begins with robust, predictable control under all process conditions. Properly conceived and executed, alarm management contributes to operator effectiveness and performance, and is essential to efficient operations.

“If you keep the process under control [with a properly designed DCS], you really don’t generate that many alarms,” says Ard. “The goal is to focus on actual operator actionable alarms, per the definition outlined in the ISA 18.2 Standard, and leave the rest to the control system to handle on its own.”

The post An Alarming Trend in Process Control Systems appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

That is just what today’s advanced surface grinders aim to do, by minimizing the amount of material that must be removed to achieve very precise tolerances, and incorporating shrouds, air misting, and cooling filtration systems that contain the mess almost entirely.

“Many people know they are in a shop with a conventional surface grinder as soon as they walk in the door because there is a unique smell due to the breakdown of the abrasive, combined with burning of the material. It is also not uncommon to see a cloud of dust over the grinding area,” says Erik Lawson, Engineering Manager at Winona, Minnesota-based DCM Tech, a designer and builder of industrial rotary surface grinders.

In precision metalworking shops, grinding the surface of parts is often required to achieve certain specifications for size, tolerance, flatness, or surface condition. Regardless of the reason, traditional surface grinders are notoriously messy – producing dust, debris, and swarf, which is a combination of the material removed and the consumed abrasive.

However, in precision machine shops today there is increasingly less tolerance for excessive grinding mess. Machine shops prefer tidy operations and so are increasingly searching for more modern, automated surface grinders that are easier to operate, provide much more precise grinding, and do so while containing the debris.

Times Have Changed

A decade or two ago, a messy, dusty shop floor may have been acceptable, but not today. Precision machine shops have evolved and now both customers and operators have much higher expectations for tidiness, according to Lawson.

“For customers, a messy shop floor can indicate a lack of attention to detail and raise questions about the ability to be precise. Shop operators do not want to work in a cloud of dust and swarf all day, go home dirty, and have their family smell it on their clothes,” says Lawson. He notes that in the past, machine shops may have swept their floors once a week or, at best, once a day.

Today, many machine shops take pride in presenting an extremely clean work environment. Since the grinding process is inherently messy, however, the first key to achieving a clean shop while meeting all quality criteria is grinding to spec without overgrinding.

“Automated, precision grinders minimize mess because the machine only removes the minimal amount of material and so prevents overgrinding, which generates excess dust and debris for no real purpose,” says Lawson. “On top of that, some material is quite valuable, so overgrinding can be costly.”

Machine shops primarily utilize surface grinders with a reciprocating table and a horizontal spindle that turns the grinding wheel. Reciprocating table grinders are precise but have a slow material removal rate and require multiple passes. Traditional rotary surface grinders are a faster option but can be problematic in the hands of less experienced operators. With limited control of spindle speeds as well as manual controls, the equipment requires sophisticated operators that can factor in complex calculations, and considerable expertise and experience are required.

Although both types of conventional surface grinders can be found in many shops, they typically have an open configuration, which allows dust and debris to escape the machine and become airborne.

In contrast, modern vertical spindle, rotary table surface grinders have a table that rotates with the workpiece held firmly in place underneath a vertical spindle. The grinding is not performed by the peripheral edge of the wheel, but by the entire diameter of the abrasive surface, which facilitates grinding performance and consistency.

“The less material that is removed while meeting all specs, the less debris that goes into the air or gets into the coolant,” says Lawson.

Today, surface grinders like DCM Tech’s IG 282 SD are also designed with much more advanced sensors and controls that automatically maintain very tight tolerances, removing material down to within one ten-thousandth of an inch of the final thickness. This can prevent overgrinding and enable operators to be much more intentional about how much material they would like to remove from each part.

When it is essential to contain debris to avoid a mess, selecting such an advanced rotary unit with an integrated shroud is also important. “The shroud, which is a sliding door with a built-in window for viewing the process, encloses the grinding area,” says Lawson. He adds that a fully enclosed shroud also reduces the noise produced by the machine.

In addition to a shroud, grinders like the IG series provide an integral air mist collection system that draws particulate from the air and moves it away from the operator to enhance the cleanliness and safety of the work environment.

Because of the importance of clean coolant when grinding, IG grinders provide through-spindle and external coolant flow, as well as a self-contained recirculating filtration system with a 3 micron roll style paper pre-filter and 5 micron in-line canister filter.

The most advanced units even offer programmed features that allow the machine to automatically rinse parts when grinding is complete, which is what a good operator would do.

“The rinse clears the debris from the tooling mating surfaces, so there is no problem loading the next part. This is very advantageous, particularly in automated settings where there is no operator on the machine,” says Lawson.

Although “messy” and “grinders” have been synonymous for decades, modern design improvements provide machine shops with much cleaner, high-performance options. Today, modern rotary surface grinders can be configured with sophisticated, automated features that make the messiest grinding operations a thing of the past.

The post Contain the Mess for Cleaner, More Precise Grinding Operations appeared first on IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest.

“A seasoned team may know all the ‘ins and outs’ of every forging machine in a facility, but when workers leave, or retire, the preventive maintenance can suffer and equipment like hydraulic presses eventually will begin to break down,” says Jay Raygor, Service Supervisor at Ajax-CECO-Erie Press. “When that happens, the cost of hourly downtime can be several thousand dollars per hour.”

Raygor adds that although some customers follow routine maintenance guidelines, most keep producing products until the equipment breaks down. “The danger with this approach is that the lead time for some major component parts can be 20 to 26 weeks,” he says.

As a solution, industry-leading OEMs like Ajax-CECO-Erie Press (ACE) are now providing forgers with a proactive “health check,” followed by an ongoing preventive maintenance (PM) program designed to sustain peak performance of equipment that may be many decades old.

ACE is the largest forging equipment supplier in North America. With its core brands founded in the 1800s, the company offers a full line of products, including standard mechanical forging presses, upset forging machines, forging rolls, hydraulic forging, forming, compression molding, cold extrusion, compaction, roll ring preform presses along with stretch forming and straightening machines, solid die forgers, trim presses, programmable die forgers, and custom-engineered hydraulic presses.

Time for a Health Check

As human beings age, the need for more frequent health checks is required to catch minor issues before they become serious. The same is true with forging equipment such as hydraulic presses, particularly if used for many decades.

“Some older forging machines have been in service since the 1950s and 60s, so there are legacy parts that may be obsolete. On these older machines, operators may not know how to troubleshoot an issue or even identify a worn or failing part. This increases the risk of a major breakdown,” says Raygor.

The challenge only intensifies when there is a variety of forging equipment types and brands on the same production floor. For this reason, ACE offers forgers a comprehensive program of routine health checks on many major brands including Ajax, Chambersburg, ERIE Press, and L&F (formerly Sheridan-Gray).

To perform a health check, ACE utilizes the full documentation of the equipment in its broad portfolio of brands, along with extensive maintenance and repair experience accumulated over many decades. The company’s technicians examine the equipment condition, running clearance, electrical system, pump performance, etc.

Based on the results of the health check, the OEM then suggests corrective actions to restore the equipment back to OEM specifications, along with a customized, ongoing, preventive maintenance program for hydraulic presses, along with consumables like filters, and oil sample analysis.

The extent of the PM program is based on factors such as the type of equipment, production, onsite support, and desired PM intervals. It can be scaled up or down to take into account the maintenance team’s experience, availability, and turnover. “We want to be able to fill in where the customer’s needs are,” says Raygor.

The program can serve as a teaching aid to help the forger build its maintenance team. This can not only increase the team’s self-reliance, but also minimize any downtime.

“The maintenance team can shadow and assist us, and we explain what we are doing, why we are doing it, and how to proceed. Over time, they will increasingly be able to maintain the equipment themselves,” says Raygor.

He points to an example of one forger that dramatically improved its own in-house PM capability with such a learning process.

“A customer that had one of our presses did not have much of a maintenance program due to significant turnover. So, we visited annually for years, and each time walked employees through the process. Recently, when we visited, we couldn’t believe how good their PM had become,” says Raygor.

Although PM is typically performed onsite, some actions can be performed remotely. ACE can utilize advanced collaboration tools and real-time video communications to connect with technicians where both can see, discuss, annotate, and resolve many situations at hand.

To ensure the highest production uptime of forging equipment, and prevent lengthy unexpected downtime, ACE offers a separate stocking program as an option.

“Consumable items common to every forging machine, like friction plates and driving plates for presses and upsetters, or piston heads, rods, rings, and packings for hammers, are often stocked. However, it is even more important to stock key items such as main gears, eccentric shafts, and rams to avoid long lead times for replacement,” says Raygor.

He notes that in the stocking program, the customer pays a percentage of the cost and then the balance when they take possession of the part – even if 2-3 years later. A custom stocking program with minimal up-front investment can eliminate months of downtime due to long lead time parts.

To ensure the performance, consistency, and reliability of forging equipment, routine inspection, and preventive maintenance have always been essential. When forgers find this increasingly taxing as their most experienced technicians retire, opting for periodic health checks and preventive maintenance with industry experts can be crucial to long-term productivity and quality.

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