(l-r) Perfecto's Kenlee Maupin, Seth Cartwright and Ashley Houston
Perfecto's Kenlee Maupin programming on the Hurco control
Perfecto's Seth Cartwright (top middle) teaching apprentices
Perfecto Tool & Engineering in Anderson, IN, is known for combining precision craftsmanship and innovative solutions to solve difficult problems through a wide range of services to its customers, including details, special machines and engineering services.
"We have a wide range of customers from medical to automotive, including helping a local business out that just needs maybe one or two parts modified," said Seth Cartwright, Perfecto Divisions Operations Manager.
The manufacturing part of the Perfecto shop floor is split into two sections: on the West Side is where highly skilled employees work on parts for the special machines they build, and the East Side, which is considered the express lane, or a small shop within the larger shop. It also serves as a learning ground where apprentices earn their stripes making simpler parts.
Leveraging Hurco's Conversational Control
With a total of 17 Hurco machines and counting, Perfecto has embraced Hurco's user-friendly conversational control, which is what they use almost exclusively to program their parts.
"Everything is done conversational," said Cartwright. "We do have some 3D parts that we will use a CAM software with. It is one of those things where, as Hurco keeps progressing with their surfacing technology, we are hoping to go away from having a third-party CAM system in house and just being able to stick strictly with Hurco conversational programming."
The surfacing technology Cartwright referred to is Hurco's 3D Import feature, which allows machinists to take a customer's 3D solid model (.stp file) and import it into the control without having to enter the dimensions.
Cartwright also noted that having a simple-to-use control right there at the machine makes programming so easy that it has reduced programming time drastically: "It probably takes 30% of the time to program compared to NC programming with G- and M-code," he said.
The user-friendly conversational programming also helps shorten the learning curve on the shop's East Side.
"They are great machines to use to teach the apprenticeship program on also, where we have a skilled machinist teaching right alongside so they each have their own machine to work on," explained Cartwright.
One such machinist who learned the ropes on Perfecto's East Side is Kenlee Maupin, who has gone from student to teacher.
"I started as a young, 20-year-old kid just wanting to start something, and came in mopping floors and dumping trash and was eager to learn. I was always willing to try something new, and then I got into learning the saws and the materials, and then we worked our way over here to CNCs," said Maupin.
Between instructing apprentices and making sure jobs are completed on time, multitasking is the norm at Perfecto. The Hurco control helps them manage the challenges of high-mix manufacturing and training new machinists. Cartwright highlighted the control's graphics screen, which makes it very easy for machinists to check the program and ensure everything is right before they start cutting.
"When we can, we will run two machines," said Cartwright. "It is a homerun because you can really check that program out, hit the start button and walk away from it, and understand that it is going to do exactly what you want it to do."
Reducing Set-Ups with TMX8MYSi Y-Axis Lathe
Another homerun was Perfecto's decision to upgrade from a Hurco TMM8i lathe to a Hurco TMX8MYSi lathe with a Y-axis and sub-spindle. Due to that Y-axis, Perfecto is now able to produce parts in one single set-up that used to require multiple operations.
"We had many parts that were run on the TMM8i, which would then go to multiple operations on the mill and then to a manual broaching operation. With the TMX8MYSi, we have some parts that took about an hour and a half, and now we run some of those parts in eight minutes," said Cartwright.
The ability to machine parts in one set-up not only saves Perfecto precious time, but also reduces the chances for human error, which then leads to increased accuracy.
VM10i Mill for Small-Batch Work
Back over on the shop's East Side, Cartwright highlighted the Hurco VM10i mills as perfect for small-batch work. "With a small footprint and a large work cube, the VM10i packs a lot of productivity into an efficiently designed package," he said.
"We use the VM10is as high-mix, low-batch production, and we have them set up across from each other so that one machinist can run both. We also do a lot of small-batch production-25 parts or less over there," added Cartwright.
Although it is reserved for small batches of simple parts, Perfecto's East Side is cutting away at a big, complex program: the labor shortage. This is a growing, nationwide issue that is affecting many industries, but the field of manufacturing has been plagued by a labor shortage for decades. The societal push for four-year college education and white-collar careers has resulted in a lack of young machinists available to replace the older generations as they age out of the workforce. Perfecto's apprenticeship program benefits the job shops who struggle to find qualified workers and the workers whose skillsets and interests align better with manufacturing than a desk job.
"I grew up in a time where everyone was told they had to go to college, and if you did not go to college, you felt like a failure," said Ashley Houston, Perfecto Chief People Officer. "That is not fair because there are a lot of kids that are smart in a different way, and a lot of kids are more hands-on and would really succeed in an environment like this. They are not aware that there are programs out there that can help them learn without going thousands of dollars in debt, and they can learn, get paid while they learn and then have a great, well-paid career afterwards."
Everyone at Perfecto takes pride in being able to mentor young talent and help them start their journey down a rewarding career path.
"It is important to me because I am only here for so long, and I know what it was like to be in school and think that I was not really made for college," explained Maupin. "I am more of a hands-on learner. It was just a different type of learning for me. To be able to watch somebody, and then I get to do it hands-on, it was right up my alley. I know there might be others like that, and I want Perfecto to be here for a long time, so hopefully, I can give them my knowledge, and then they can pass it on when it is their turn, and we can just keep it going."
For more information contact:
Perfecto Tool & Engineering
1124 W 53rd St.
Anderson, IN 46013
765-644-2821
sales@perfecto.com
www.perfecto.com
Joe Hopkins
Hurco Companies, Inc.
1 Technology Way
Indianapolis, Indiana 46248
317-671-3411
hopkinsj@hurco.com
www.hurco.com