FOCUS ON LASER CUTTING
Matthew Campbell confirmed that his optimum machine footprint is eight machine tools and four laser machines . “ We currently have eight machine tools , including one VTC- 800 / 20SR and some QUICK TURN lathes . We still have six laser cutting systems , but two of them will be going as we move over to the high-power fibre machines ,” he outlined .
DC Developments also has eight machine tools , including one VTC-800 / 20SR and some QUICK TURN lathes ( pictured left ).
A focus on fibre
The move to fibre is down to productivity , as Campbell explained : “ It ’ s all about speed really ; they are so much faster and that brings our cost per part down . Allied to that is the electricity cost , which is much lower . If you were running a CO₂ machine at 3m / minute and you upgraded to a fibre machine running at 30m / minute ( and it consumes far less power ), then the saving is there for all to see straight away .”
The upgrade to fibre laser processing has also led to further expansion .
“ We took the decision to construct another building which meant that we could move fabrication and fit in the new laser
Fibre laser cutting . machines . We ’ ve gone for a twin table with all three of the new OPTIPLEX 3015 NEO 10kW , the OPTIPLEX 3015 FIBER III 10kW and the OPTIPLEX 3015 NEO 12kW machines . This means a larger footprint , but they are much more efficient as we can load and unload the second pallet while the laser is working ,” Campbell continued .
“ We are not scared to change the layout of the factory . There is short-term pain , but it ’ s long-term gain . With the fibre lasers and the new layout , we have a far more efficient machine shop ,” he added .
With efficiency comes productivity . “ The laser market has become ultra-competitive in the last year . If we didn ’ t have the OPTIPLEX lasers , we wouldn ’ t be getting any work as we couldn ’ t compete . We have basically been able to win more jobs because we ’ re faster ,” confirmed Matthew Campbell .
Cutting and machining
The relationship between lasers and CNC machines also gives DC Developments a competitive advantage in the market .
“ We laser-cut out a blank , and it goes straight to the CNCs and gets machined . We have an ultra-quick turnaround because we don ’ t have to rely on other subcontractors and can keep everything in-house ,” highlighted Campbell .
“ We have stocks of sheet that we can cut out and then we ’ re machining straight away . The lasers and the CNCs work well together .
Most people don ’ t realise it , but they do ,” he continued .
He added that the real value in the Mazak relationship lies in the advice received .
“ It was Mazak who persuaded us to go for the HCN-5000 horizontal machining centre . The machine has probably made the biggest difference to us in changing our mindset due to the tooling and workholding as it works in such a different way . It encourages us to think ‘ outside the box .’ We keep having light bulb moments of ‘ Oh , we can do that now ’,” expanded Campbell .
“ We are not just laser cutting . We have a way of adding a lot of value to a product . For example , many of our parts are lasercut first and then moved onto our machine tools for secondary operations . That way , the customer gets a one-stop shop for complex components ,” he continued .
He confirmed that the Mazak FJV 60 / 120 high-rigidity , double column machining centre has made a major impact on the company ’ s work and opened up new markets .
“ We can get 3m x 1.5m workpieces in the FJV , where competitors can only go up to 1m wide . It ’ s a big machine that has allowed us to get the whole job done rather than having to send the component off elsewhere ,” he said .
Like the OPTIPLEX lasers and the Mazak CNCs , Campbell also confirmed that the FJV works closely in tandem with the company ’ s waterjet machine .
“ The waterjet works brilliantly with the FJV because we are able to rough-cut the part on the waterjet , which means that it is on the big machine for less time ,” he explained .
Ian White , General Sales Manager , Laser
Products for UK , Eire & National Distributors , Yamazaki Mazak , commented : “ DC Developments ’ all-round capabilities are not so common in the subcontracting world . It is fantastic to see it investing in the latest highpower Mazak laser technology and combining this enhanced capability with its extensive range of Mazak machine tools . So many parts start their manufacturing journey on a laser and then move to machine tools to add precision features .”
So , what ’ s next for DC Developments ? Matthew Campbell sheds some light ....
“ The plan is to further expand the machine shop and maybe look at multi-tasking machines , such as the INTEGREX range . It ’ s a real learning curve but I know we have the right partner in Mazak to help us make the move when we are ready ,” he concluded . n
About Yamazaki Mazak
Yamazaki Mazak Corporation ( Mazak ) was founded in 1919 in Nagoya , Japan . It now has over 8300 employees worldwide . The company started production of laser-processing machines in the 1980s .
With 15 Technology Centres around Europe and its European Laser Headquarters in Milan ( Italy ), its focus is on offering solutions to the major challenges that face machine-tool users . Mazak ’ s European Technology Centre ( ETC ) in the UK is based at Worcester .
https :// lasercutting . uk . com
www . mazakeu . co . uk
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