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Okay, I’ll say it, the answer is management. Companies committed to lean manufacturing can not ‘just set it and forget it.’ Process mapping must be continuous, locating and squeezing inefficiency out of every step, while improving yield and overall quality. Effective process management is challenged everyday by new technologies, innovative workflows and improved material handling.
Just to be clear, I am not sitting on the side lines dispensing management advice; here at TCI we recently took a good hard look at our customer’s expectations and the equipment and processes necessary to exceed those expectations. The result of our assessment illustrated the importance many of our customer’s place on TCI as a lean manufacturing materials supplier. Affirmation of this recognized benefit motivated investment spending on our part to increase production throughput while further reducing delivery times.
We achieved what we set out to accomplish from a customer service and capabilities standpoint, but we also realized much more. Based on new technologies, speeds, feeds, and improved net processing volume, TCI has redefined what is possible when producing machine-ready material. Because we can process many primary and even secondary material operations more efficiently than our customers can in their shop, we are viewed more and more as a value-added materials distributor.
When process mapping, if you can eliminate steps like material sourcing, heat treating, cutting, squaring, flattening, deburring, cleaning and otherwise making near-net-size material ready for finish CNC machining, you might end up with a more lean process, with fewer potential bottlenecks.
So, get those post-it notes out and start mapping!
Thanks for reading –
Ben
Many of the close tolerance Machine-Ready Blanks we produce at TCI Precision Metals are flat and designed to stay that way. Demand for flat material that resists movement during machining is high for two reasons, one, part movement can turn parts into scrap, and two, creating flat material, on your shop floor, that resists movement is harder than many people might think.
Aluminum, stainless steel (plate and sheet) and other alloys can be deceiving; the materials might look flat, but when you start machining it internal stresses are unleashed, and the part starts to move. The result can be minimal to ridiculous with finished parts bowing or looking like potato chips. The problem is typically compounded as the surface dimensions of the material increases and the thickness of the material decreases.
At TCI Precision Metals we are called on by customers to produce flat, close tolerance material every day. Prepping material that starts out flat and has a greater likelihood of staying flat is harder than it might seem. The process is as much art and craftsmanship as it is science. The fact is, you can not see the residual stress introduced into the material during the manufacturing process, you can only see the results of it as parts start to move. Sometimes locating and releasing hidden stress becomes a frustrating game of hide-n-seek.
For more than 60-years, we have been chasing and releasing stress from plate and sheet material to provide customers with precision Machine-Ready Blanks that resist movement. We are able to provide excellent results based on years of investment in our people, processes, and optimized equipment capable of volume efficiency.
It is important to share not only your tolerance specifications when ordering Machine-Ready Blanks, but also discuss other aspects of your job with our staff that could affect expectations, such as heat treating, and pre- and post-machining processes that might impact part movement. A Machine-Ready Blank is not just a Blank, each one is the beginning of a high-quality part.
In addition to our ability to deliver flat material, that has a tendency to stay that way, our Machine-Ready Blanks, in general, can help you increase throughput by up to 25%. With a single purchase order, you can receive custom precision blanks ready to load directly into your CNC machining centers; eliminating the need for in-house sawing, grinding, flattening, squaring operations and outside processing. Each blank arrives deburred, clean and to your specifications – guaranteed as close as +/- .0005” dimensionally and as close as .0002” flatness, squareness, and parallelism. This allows you to get right to the high-value process of finish machining.
TCI Precision Metals have come up with a Rapid Response Program to fight COVID-19. As per this program, the company will provide net size machine-ready materials designed to reduce the production time of products, including ventilators, durable medical equipment and other essentials. Hence the company will remains open and in full operation to fight COVID-19.
TCI Precision Metals executes an all-hands-on-deck initiative to produce a high volume of precision machine-ready blanks that can reduce production time on ventilators, medical testing equipment and other essentials during the pandemic. They’re shipping 1,000 blanks a day and continue to expedite production.
TCI Precision Metals will be showing its precision Machine-Ready Blanks capabilities to sporting
and shooting industry manufacturers at the Shot Show 2020, Las Vegas, NE, January 2--21,
Palazzo Ballroom, 5th Floor Venetian Hotel Meeting Rooms, booth 51437.
TCI Precision Metals announces Matt Erickson as director of sales for the company effective immediately. Matt brings with him extensive experience in industrial operations, sales, program management, and a customer-first management style.
“We feel Matt is a perfect fit for TCI Precision Metals and are looking to him to provide expanded hands-on customer interaction, both in the field and through our internal sales and customer service team,” said Ben Belzer, president and COO.
In accordance with Governor Newsom’s executive order, N-33-20, TCI Precision Metals remains open and in full operation to help mitigate the crisis surrounding COVID-19. The company will continue to support the needs of national health and safety, and critical infrastructure by providing near net size machine-ready materials designed to reduce the production time of products, including ventilators, durable medical equipment and other essentials.
TCI Precision Metals announced, today, it has completed installation of its new high precision plate saw, the Schelling fm8. The saw is the latest in a series of investments the Company has made over the last 12-months in precision, high-volume equipment intended to reduce turnaround time to customers, increase efficiency, and continually improve quality.
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TCI Precision Metals announced Matt Erickson as Director of Sales for the Company effective immediately. Matt brings with him extensive experience in industrial operations, sales, program management, and a customer-first management style.
“We feel Matt is a perfect fit for TCI Precision Metals and are looking to him to provide expanded hands-on customer interaction, both in the field and through our internal sales and customer service team,” said Ben Belzer, President and COO.
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We continue to support the needs of national health and safety, and critical infrastructure by providing near net size machine-ready materials designed to reduce the production time of essential products. In the spirit of our Rapid Response Program, which gives priority to all parts associated with essential products, we recommend and encourage customers to consider Standard Machine-Ready Blanks for jobs where they meet the requirements. Standard Machine-Ready Blanks are available for same day or next day shipping through TCI and our authorized distributors.
Standard Machine-Ready Blanks offer the same flatness as our custom blanks, but dimensionally they are premachined in hundreds of sizes and alloy combinations. Each precision standard blank arrives square, flat and parallel within +/- .002” of specified dimensions all around, making them machine-ready. Standard Machine-Ready Blanks eliminate the need for squaring up the material prior to finish machining.
When tolerances need to be even tighter, net- or near-net-size custom Machine-Ready Blanks provide all the benefits of standard blanks, but are produced to customer specified dimensions as close as - +/-.0005” dimensionally and as close as .0002” in flatness, squareness, and parallelism. Custom Machine-Ready blanks are available directly from TCI and can also be special ordered through our authorized distributors.
Most Machine-Ready Blanks requests are for flat material, less than ½” in thickness. In these cases, flatness is especially important as it eliminates the tendency for part movement during the machining process, especially with large surface area parts.
Demand for flat material that resists movement during machining is high for two reasons, one, part movement can turn parts into scrap, and two, creating flat material, on your shop floor, that resists movement is harder than many people might think. The top and bottom surfaces of machine-ready blanks are processed simultaneously, which maintains flatness and reduces hidden stress introduced into the material during milling.
For more information contact sales@tciprecision.com or Request a Quote