Ticking the boxes for swift response production

Ashbourne-based designer and manufacturer of vacuum and pressure formed plastic packaging solutions, Thermoform, has recently invested in a new large-capacity Doosan 3-axis Fanuc-controlled vertical machining centre supplied by Mills CNC.

The machine, a DNM 6700, was installed in the company’s in-house toolroom facility in July 2017 and, just a couple of days later was being put through its paces machining complex, high-precision prototype and production-ready aluminium mould tool parts.

These mould tools, when completed, are used by Thermoform to manufacture, at its adjacent 24/7 production facility, bespoke and often high-volume thin gauge plastic trays, clamshells, blisters and hinged containers for a diverse range of customers operating in the confectionary and bakery, meat, fruit and vegetable, pharmaceutical, toiletries, electronics and DIY sectors.

Thermoform manufactures 70 million plastic parts annually and demand for its products, fuelled by new contracts, has grown exponentially in recent years. This upsurge in demand was putting pressure on the company’s toolroom – in particular its in-house CNC machining capacity.

Following a review of its machining resources it was determined that additional CNC machining capability was required as soon as possible.

Matthew Perks, Thermoform’s managing director explains: “From April to December we experience significant demand for our products; driven in the main by our confectionary customers as they gear up for Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Easter.

“The seasonal nature of our business, combined with significant year-on-year growth in sales, means that we need new mould tools to be designed, developed, tested and approved in double-quick time to meet our own in-house production schedules and our customer delivery requirements.

“One of our company’s unique selling points is achieving fast turnaround times and we realised that if we did not invest in additional CNC machining capability in our toolroom this could be compromised.”

In Spring 2017, the company began an extensive search into the market investigating not just different machine tools and their availability but also the strengths and capabilities of individual machine tool suppliers.

The new machine tool required by Thermoform needed to tick a number of boxes. These included: capacity; power and cutting capability; availability; service and support.

“We are no strangers to CNC machine tools or CNC machining and, since 2001, have invested in three high-speed vertical machining centres,” states Mr Perks. “However, although these machines continue to perform well when machining smaller mould tool parts, they were found wanting when machining larger mould tool components such as aluminium base plates.”

Prior to investing in the DNM 6700, these aluminium plates had to be machined in a number of set-ups on the company’s existing machines.

Because the size of the parts exceeded the machines’ table and travel capacities, they were having to be stopped to enable parts to be moved and to allow the required re-fixturing/re-clamping operations to be performed, creating bottlenecks in the toolroom.

Having to reposition parts also affected part quality and accuracy – and often resulted in the creation of unwanted tooling step marks when machining continuous mould tool features such as strategically-positioned cooling and heating channels that ran across the width and height of the plates.

The new DNM 6700 machine is a large-capacity machine quipped with a generous-sized work table of 1,500mm by 670mm and axis travels of 1,300mm in X, 670mm in Y and 625mm in Z.

Mr Perks says: “The DNM 6700 enables us to machine large as well as multiple smaller parts in one set-up. As a consequence, cycle times have improved and bottlenecks have eased.”

Powerful, high-torque spindle capability was also a key consideration for Thermoform in its machine tool search – as was the machine’s ability to perform high-accuracy and repeatable rigid tapping operations.

“High precision machining capability was a particular requirement,” Mr Perks continues. “We machine mould tool components from solid aluminium and from a productivity perspective a machine that could achieve and deliver accurate high-volumetric removal rates was a must for us.”

The DNM 6700 is equipped with powerful high-torque 118Nm direct-drive spindle technology, 18.7kW/12,000rpm. This performance makes it ideal for high accuracy roughing and finishing operations, and for fast and reliable rigid tapping.

To meet the demand from its production facility for high-quality mould tools Thermoform needed the required machine to be installed in its toolroom as quickly as possible. The Doosan DNM 6700 was available immediately from stock from Mills’ Technology Campus facility in Leamington, and was delivered, installed and commissioned in express time.

“Installation was smooth and trouble-free. After only a couple of days we were up and running and cutting metal,” Mr Perks says.

Another key selling point for Thermoform was Mills CNC’s aftersales service and support: “We were impressed by Mills’ approach and our experience in dealing with the machine tool sale, delivery, installation, and training has been positive.”

The new Doosan vertical machining centre is already paying dividends. A recent example of the power and performance of the machine has seen a significant reduction in cycle time when machining a specific mould tool component down from 8 hours to just 48 minutes.

MILLS CNC www.millscnc.co.uk

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MIlls CNC

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