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Norquest achieves multiple benefits from multitasking |
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 Enhanced flexibility, improved quality, and a reduction in setup time
are only some of the benefits that Norquest Industries Inc., Edmonton,
AB has realized from the recent installation of a Mazak Integrex 400ST
Mark-IV multitasking machine.
“The parts that we are doing now lend themselves more to the Integrex type of multitasking machine. For example, we do a part that typically has to be turned on both ends. On a conventional CNC turning center, you would have to turn end one and then reverse it and turn end two. Whereas the Integrex machine has a lot of capability for doing the right- and left-hand sides of a part in one setup,” says Steve Toms, director of manufacturing; CNC with Norquest.
Continues Toms, “With the Integrex, the machine will actually swap the parts with the chucks. The chucks are synchronized so you can actually turn the left-end of the part in one chuck and the right-end of the part in the other chuck at the same time.
“In addition, with these parts, we may be machining a T-slot at a 20° angle and the Integrex can actually mill those angles. The parts would then be drilled and tapped. The Integrex is a very versatile machine.”
Norquest, which began operations in 1996, manufactures downhole drilling equipment for the oil and gas sector. The firm has 50 employees at its 30,000 sq. ft. facility. However, Norquest plans to expand the facility by another 20,000 sq. ft. to 30,000 sq. ft. in 2008. The company works with a variety of materials including mild and stainless steels, Inconel, aluminum and more.
Typically, the firm’s part runs range from one-offs up to 80 pieces. “We do a wide variety of products including one- and two-offs and small batch production, as well prototype and custom work,” according to Toms.
In general, Norquest works to tight tolerances and is more than capable of working to plus or minus .0005 in. At present, the company’s sales are split 70%-30% between domestic versus export sales respectively.
Norquest provides a variety of services including CNC machining, CNC turning, welding, and more. “We are also becoming much more involved in the engineering and design of products,” says Rose Kulhawy, business manager with Norquest.
In addition to the Mazak Integrex machine, Norquest also has a Mazak Cybertech Turn 4500MT turning center with live tooling and deep boring capacity. As well, the firm has a number of other machining centers and turning centers.
The multitasking Integrex 400ST, which was supplied by Machine Toolworks, Edmonton, AB (machinetoolworks.com), delivers maximum versatility and throughput for complex parts. The machine combines a high-powered turning center and a full-function machining center to produce parts in a single setup. As a result, the Integrex eliminates multiple setups, fixtures, tools, handling, and waiting time. In addition, the ability to do done-in-one machining with the Integrex provides significant reductions in lead time and efficient lot sizes.
The Integrex machines come standard with continuous five-axis CNC Mazak Matrix control which enables the customer to be competitive on round parts with secondary operations, fully prismatic parts from solid or castings, or sculptured parts such as aerospace components or molds.
The Mazak control provides the user with sub micron control which allows for 0.0001° positioning of the C- and B-axis. B-axis positioning for 0.0001° positions the upper turret tools in 0.0001° increments from 30° above spindle centerline to the left, 225° to 15° above spindle centerline to the right.
The Integrex 400ST features a 12 in./10 in. chuck size; maximum swing of 33.5 in./16.5 in. (over lower turret without bar holder); a 40 hp, 3,300 rpm main spindle; and a 12,000 rpm, 25 hp rotary tool spindle. Norquest’s machine offers a 40 tool storage capacity.
In particular, Toms is impressed with the advanced multi tasking capabilities offered by the Integrex machine. “The Integrex is a good machine if you are doing a part that requires multiple operations. It has all of the milling capabilities and drilling capabilities that you need all in one machine. You can cover a variety of machining operations on one machine.
“Even though the initial setup on the machine might be longer, once the job is setup it will come off the machine complete in one setup. As a result, you can eliminate possibly one or two operations. Also, from a quality point of view, if you are moving from doing several operations and setups on different machines to one setup on one machine, once you prove out the first part you (have less chance of quality-related problems) due to extra handling. There are fewer processes and the quality per part is definitely improved on the Integrex,” notes Toms.
Prior to installing the Integrex, Norquest was experiencing bottlenecks in its operations because of the need to do multiple setups which caused extended wait times at various machining stations, says Kulhawy.
“For example, you might have a part that is turned and then sent to the mill for machining where it sits in a queue (of parts) waiting to get on the milling machine.
“The Integrex has enabled us to eliminate all of the queue time from a scheduling standpoint at the different workstations. The same number of operations are still being done but they are being done in a quicker manner. As a result, we don’t have to have a part sit and wait to get into the next machine. With the Integrex, we essentially put in a piece of raw material and get out a finished part,” she says.
Adds Kulhawy, “The Integrex has allowed us to reduce setups, reduce queue time at each work center, reduce the amount of physical movement of parts around the shop, and also reduce the potential for scrap.”
Eliminating the queue time for parts during different stages of the production process was a critical goal that Norquest had in mind when it installed the Mazak Integrex machine, says Doug Hayward, president of Norquest.
“The principal advantage that we looked for from the Integrex was the reduction in wait time or queueing of parts in the shop which impacts our cash flow. (By eliminating the wait time), you don’t have to accrue the inputs and costs so much further in advance of the final production,” he says.
The extended wait times also impacted the overall administrative cost per part, adds Hayward. “Every one of those machining steps requires that the part be shephered or managed through various work stations and it is very costly. Moving the part through only one machine is advantageous.”
Also, continues Hayward, eliminating the wait time between machining stations assists the firm in meeting its just-in-time delivery targets for customers.
According to Hayward, the impact of the reduction in setups provided by the Integrex machine has been significant. “I would says that approximately 15% to 20% of the errors you have are a result of setup errors. If you are only doing one setup on one machine, you have a (better chance) of catching any errors right there.”
Hayward cites the example of a part that Norquest is currently machining that requires seven different setups to complete. Hayward anticipates that using the Integrex to produce the same part will reduce the number of setups to one.
When Norquest began searching for a multitasking machine, several competing machines were considered before the firm selected the Mazak Integrex. There were several reasons behind the company’s decision to install the Mazak machine, says Toms, singling out the company’s previous experience with its existing Mazak Cybertech turning center.
“I do the programming here and I was looking to standardize the operations of the machines. The Integrex employs Mazak’s Matrix control while the Cybertech uses the Mazak Fusion control which is similar. We looked at other machines but we felt that the capability of the Integrex was within the capacity we needed for the type of work that we do.
“Also, there was the issue of cross-training on the Mazak machines. Mazak is quite a popular machine in the Edmonton area and there are quite a few operators in the area who are already trained on the Mazatrol control. The issues of cross-training and standardizing on equipment in the shop (were critical reasons),” says Toms.
Operators who were familiar with the Mazatrol control was an important consideration, adds Kulhawy. “A big issue right now for us is finding qualified, skilled tradespeople. (Installing machines with a similar control) gives us the ability to interchange personnel on the equipment,” she says.
According to Hayward, the company is confident that the Mazak Integrex machine will open up new opportunities for business for Norquest. “The Integrex machine opens up business for us in a couple of ways. Now when I am asked to quote on jobs that have multiple setups, my competitors aren’t competing with the old Norquest, but with a company that has stayed up to date with the current technology. The Integrex will open up doors for us now that were previously closed due to our technical capability.
“As well, the Integrex allows us to take on parts that were previously beyond us on a cost basis. The flexibility offered by the Integrex with its fourth- and fifth-axis capabilities allows us to take on this work now,” he says.
machinetoolworks.com
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