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Meeting Customer Demand to Manufacture Higher Quality Parts



(l-r) Doug Reed, VP Operations for Abbott Workholding Products, and John Mosburg, Operator, with their new NIIGATA SPN901 HMC.

"With spindle speeds up to 15,000 RPM and an ultra-rigid, high load guide way system, deflection is virtually eliminated," said an Abbott spokesperson.

The versatility, speed and power of the SPN901 allow for roughing and finishing operations on this tombstone in a single set-up.

Abbott Workholding Products, a leading manufacturer of tooling columns (tombstones), chuck jaws and master plates, needed to address a number of production issues related to its aging lineup of horizontal machining centers (HMCs).

Abbott realized that increased maintenance of its older model HMCs was resulting in more downtime and a decrease in production throughput. In addition, because of the age of the machines, repair parts were becoming more difficult to find and more expensive.

But while the cost of replacement parts was certainly an issue, there were many other problems caused by the aging machining centers.

One big concern was that Abbott's workpiece requirements had outpaced its capability to produce them. Abbott had added many new products over the years, including larger sized tooling columns that required larger workzones and heavier load capacities. Abbott also has many very small production runs, so part changeover considerations were crucial.

Another consideration - and perhaps most importantly for Abbott - was its desire to increase production quality standards. "We have always had the reputation of being a quality manufacturer, but we wanted to ensure that we constantly improve our quality standards moving forward, particularly as our customers demand tighter tolerances and higher quality products," said Doug Reed, Vice President, Operations at Abbott Workholding Products.

Several solutions were considered to meet the machining challenge, including double column machining centers. However, since it was already using HMCs and was familiar with its operation and capabilities, Abbott decided to stay with an HMC. Shop floor space at Abbott was somewhat limited, however, so the machine had to fit into a defined space.

"Key to the purchase decision, we wanted to partner with a supplier that stood behind its products and had an excellent reputation for service and support that continued long after installation," said Reed. "We were fortunate to attend an SNK America Open House and be able to speak with all of the key department people along with loyal NIIGATA users who were able to assure us, not only of their satisfaction with the reliability and performance of NIIGATA machines, but with SNK's commitment to its customers."

After reviewing the project parameters, the NIIGATA SPN901 was the clear choice for Abbott," said an Abbott spokesperson.

With a large, operator-friendly workzone, a working table surface of 31.5" x 31.5" and a maximum mass on pallet of 5,500 lbs., the NIIGATA SPN901 can easily accommodate larger workpieces. This includes the new 1,000 mm tooling columns as well as custom designed products Abbott offers its customers. With a 40 HP spindle drive motor (8,000 RPM) that generates 443 ft-lbs. of torque, the SPN901 is capable of machining A713 Tenzaloy (aged to T-6 condition), aluminum, steel and cast iron workpieces. XYZ-axis travels of 59.1", 51.2" and 45.3" mean that Abbott can produce even larger workpieces, should that be required in the future.

Rapid feedrates of 1,968 IPM improve efficiency. A FANUC 30i CNC controller achieves significant improvements in accuracy with +/-0.00016" on the XYZ stroke - ideal for the tighter tolerances Abbott was looking to achieve.

So far Abbott has seen substantial gains in production throughput. The large matrix type ATC has reduced set-up time by 25% and has improved the ability to deliver products quickly to its end users. Abbott has substantially improved quality as well by improving the tolerances of its tooling columns by 50%.

Abbott Workholding Products was founded in Phoenix, AZ, in 1954 as the Abbott Engineering & Manufacturing Company producing soft jaws and the first Pie Jaw brand chuck jaw. Spurred on by the success of the Pie Jaw, Abbott expanded the product line to include tooling columns, tooling blocks, master plates and segments. In 1993 the company moved from Phoenix to its current location in Kansas and further expanded its product line to include steel and aluminum soft jaws, cast iron and steel Pie Jaws and associated fixturing. Today, Abbott manufactures more than 4,000 aluminum, steel and cast iron workholding products and ships them across the U.S and around the world.

For more information contact:

Abbott Workholding Products

430 McCall Road

Manhattan, KS 66502

800-528-6459 / 785-776-8555

sales@abbottworkholding.com

www.abbottworkholding.com

SNK America, Inc.

1150 Feehanville Drive

Mt. Prospect, IL 60056

847-364-0801

info@snkamerica.com

www.snkamerica.com

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