FACE TO FACE
The Timesavers ’ booth at EuroBLECH 2022 in Hanover , Germany .
A heavy slag removal sample .
Over recent years , Timesavers has continued to expand its product portfolio . The working widths of its deburring and finishing machines range from 300mm up to 2100mm ( or 2600mm for precision grinding ). The combination of applications can be used for any type of metal ( such as aluminium , stainless steel , steel , copper and parts with protrusions / protective films ).
Global market trends
So , how does Timesavers view the global business climate for sheet-metal professionals ?
“ The market is slowing down right now , but I think this is temporary . I strongly believe , in the coming months , that people will use their remaining budgets to invest in machinery again ( typically towards the end of the year ). I believe that the market will still grow and there will be a large increase of laser sales , and therefore edge-rounding machines . The European market slowed down over the summer but we still have a huge backlog to fulfil . Having said that , we feel that the market will increase in the fourth quarter . On a worldwide scale , we are also focusing on Far Eastern and North American markets to diversify our market opportunities . This gives us a much more stable growth path in the industry ,” Paul Hartendorp told ISMR .
Both men pinpointed the fact that labour is expensive and hard to get so machines need to be easy to set up and operate ( by fewer people ) more independently . Customers are also , confirmed both men , requesting robots around their machines .
At FABTECH 2022 in the USA , Timesavers paired its 32 series flat-part finishing machine and a cobot , which handled material pick-up and placement of parts onto the conveyor feeding the machine . Because the cobot is designed to work in close proximity to humans , typical machine guarding with fences was not required for this type of application . Robot and vision technology were demonstrated in action at the exhibition .
Trade in China has now picked up for Timesavers and it sees further opportunities in Asian markets .
“ The other trend that we see is increased connectivity or IoT . A lot of customers are asking us to provide data from the machine so that they can do whatever they wish with it . That calls for an open architecture to provide this kind of data to customers . They also want higher productivity and faster speeds ,” confirmed Frans Huvers .
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Like Paul Hartendorp , many others have worked for Timesavers for over 25 years .
Service and support
“ We are also increasing our efforts with partners ( dust extractor systems , ground conveyors etc .) as well as our efforts on service . The idea is to provide a bigger portfolio of products , not just the machine but also maintenance , training and education services for operators . We aim to bring these to market next year ,” confirmed Frans Huvers .
In the spirit of digitalisation and Industry 4.0 , both men also confirmed plans to develop a customer portal , which will incorporate a web shop ( for parts purchase ). This portal will also feature a menu of options , such as video training and machine operation instructions as well as best practice advice . Timesavers already offers training at its headquarters for customers ’ machine operators .
“ Service and support is a crucial part of our offering ,” concluded Frans Huvers . “ That should never be forgotten . Our customers rely on us for support and we take that responsibility very seriously .” n
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72 | ismr . net | ISMR October 2023