Bourn & Koch Launches New Composite Platform Products |
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In 2007, Bourn & Koch Inc. embarked on an initiative to bring to the global market innovative products to replace Motch and Bullard turning centers, Springfield vertical grinders, Blanchard vertical rotary surface grinders and Fellows mid-range mechanical stroking gear shapers. Bourn & Koch acquired these product lines between 2002 and 2004. "Bourn & Koch was sensitive to the market competition for vertical turning, vertical grinding, hard turning, rotary surface grinding and shaping products in the 1,000 mm size range," said a company spokesperson. "As the OEM of these lines they tasked their engineering design team to find a way to reduce and lower manufacturing cost, improve on the old line name brands by integrating the latest technologies and produce the product faster. The result of researching through volumes of their OEM intellectual property, industry designs and studying the market place was the creation in 2008 of the Bourn & Koch 'composite platform' machine. For Bourn & Koch the 'composite platform' machine is a basic, low cost common building block, with innovative, no or low-maintenance technologies and integral and linear motors with high precision feed back that could be:
"For the potential customer, the benefit is a lower purchase cost, since the new machine design build cost is less than the build cost of a new machine of the old legacy design. The new design has, in most cases, at least 40% fewer parts than the old legacy design. "Each process configuration of the composite platform has its own set of innovative associated optional features that enhance the basic machine, peculiar to its machining application. The composite platform incorporates functionality to enhance flexibility to incorporated optional features not available in present machine platforms. "Other specialty machine possibilities also presented themselves with this new composite platform. The first "composite platform" machines were specified to be 1,000 mm capacity machines. "The first machine, a vertical OD/ID grinder with hard finish turning capabilities, was designed and put into manufacture. This machine will be available in the third quarter of 2009. "For Bourn & Koch, it allows the company to stock composite base units and columns, normally the longest lead and most expensive components of the old legacy designs. Stock base units and columns take at least six weeks out of the build cycle for any configuration machine. Further, it has the advantage of dramatically reducing the total assembled part count, composite components, less assembly time, no maintenance and faster installation and startup times. From a customer perspective Bourn & Koch can offer simple composite connected machines for multiple machining operations, for example, turning, OD grinding and gear shaping, all with connected individual machines which essentially share similar parts and technologies. "Initially, Bourn & Koch will offer a 'composite platform' design in four application configurations: B&K 1000VBG CNC Vertical OD/ID grinding machine with hard finish turning capabilities; B&K 1000VBT CNC Vertical turning center; B&K 1000VBS CNC Gear Shaping machine and B&K Combination VBT-VBS Work Center (one of many possibilities). "The
initial build of the B&K 1000VBG CNC Vertical Grinder has a basic configuration
consisting of: |
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"Optional features, shown on the machine:
For more information contact: Brian W. Cluff, VP Star SU LLC 5200 Prairie Stone Parkway Suite 100 Hoffman Estates, IL 60192 847-649-1470 Fax: 847-649-0112
Timothy P. Helle President Bourn & Koch 2500 Kishwaukee Street Rockford, IL 61104 815-965-4013 Fax: 815-965-0019
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