MANUFACTURING
There are four assembly lines in the new factory, with cabs kitted out on line three with motors, wipers, lights and so on, before full assembly on line two.
On another line, the engines are assembled, and the cabs are kitted out with lights, wipers, motors, and so on before it is put onto a line for assembly.
“ All the machine’ s functions will be tested on the line; thereafter, it goes to a testing area where it will be tested by mechanics to its full capability. It will be driven around, and the mechanics will set all the pressures and check how everything works. Once everything is signed off, there is one last check, where everything is checked again,” Moffat explains.
He describes that presently the facility builds 110 machines per week and adds:“ By the end of this year, we target to produce 140 machines per week.” With future expansion that will include two more assembly lines, the factory has been designed with capacity to build 185 machines in a single shift.
While questions were raised as to why there was only one shift, Moffat says,“ We wish that we could put out 300 machines per week; the problem is that they are all customised. If we couldn’ t offer that service, where would we be today?” he asks rhetorically.
Looking around the factory floor, Moffat draws attention to the overhead light source, which is pure daylight filtering through windows in the roof.“ Combilift is ISO 14000 and ISO 18000 and, in a few months, will be ISO 50001. We are very energy efficient here, with 30 % natural light into the building, while a normal building is 12 %. At about 18:00 this evening, the LED lights will come on, but not fully, only to compensate for the difference between full daylight and a setting sun. The LED lights will also only come on if there is someone directly beneath them, within a six-metre radius. There is not one light switch throughout the building,” he adds with a grin.
( The ISO 14000 standards provide a guideline or framework for organisations that need to systematise and improve their environmental management efforts, while ISO / IEC 18000 describes a series of diverse RFID technologies, each using a unique frequency range, and ISO 50001:2011 is guidance for an energy management system – Ed.)
Machining
Innovative thinking and a focus on research and development have resulted in a production line that has embraced technology in its delivery of bespoke units. Based on the various clients’ specifications, generally, no two sheets of metal have the exact same length or dimension and no two sheets necessarily have the same drill pattern.
Moffat describes how a nearby machine has one single purpose and that is to cut steel and then points to a machine that drills and mills the metal sheets.“ We have invested one-million dollars in this machine as it is very special for our industry. [ Unlike the first machine.] This new machine that comes from America can tap a hole, machine the
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JUNE 2018