MRO Today - Breakthrough tool turns it up for BVR

Breakthrough tool turns it up for BVR

Beginning "Day One"
How would you like this morning’s problem job to be running 40 percent faster this afternoon?

Figure 1: Breakthrough single tool handled all four operations on BVR Technologies’ (carrier), boosting throughput by two thirds. New Ingersoll T-Cap multifunction tool handles turning, facing, drilling and boring.

That was exactly BVR Technologies’ situation on a standard carrier (fig 1), a turned they were machining on a regular basis. It goes into a gear assembly, which was doubling in demand at the time. At the same time, the company was also aggressively pursuing Lean Manufacturing, Kanban and SMED (set-up reduction). So naturally, BVR process engineers were pulling out all the stops.

Headquartered in Rockford, IL, BVR Technologies manufactures a variety of motion control products for aerospace, avionics and medical uses. It is part of the Esterline group of companies.

What A Difference A Day Makes
One recent morning, BVR was machining the carrier in a eight-step sequence using six different conventional turning tools on a nine year old Hardinge T42 Conquest. Cycle time was 1 minute and 40 seconds. The parts, measuring 1.5in. dia x 0.25 in. thick, run in 200 pc lots once a month.

That same afternoon, the piece was done in just three steps -- in one minute flat --using a new breed of combination tool for lathes and automatics. The tool is Ingersoll’s breakthrough T-Cap multifunction tool, which drills, bores, turns and faces. Ingersoll is among the first tooling companies to offer this style of tool. And because both companies are in Rockford, IL -- BVR became the first company to put the new tool into regular service.

Manufacturing engineer Don Dusing targeted the carrier operation because he saw a lot of room for improvement, and because many other BVR parts need the same basic processing. Don called Ingersoll’s Mike Crabtree, who had just left a kick-off briefing on the T-Cap. “It seemed a perfect fit, and BVR happens to be just a few minutes down the road,” says Mr. Crabtree, “so I drove right over with the only sample I had, and we tried it out.”

By 3 PM that same day, the part was running 40% faster than before. And Rick Ruppert, manufacturing manager could project further dramatic savings due to faster setup next time the job runs. “We’ll need to set just two tools in the turret rather than six. Reducing tool count exerts a lot of leverage in an operation like ours.”

Here’s a close look at the operation that day.

Operation #
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

10AM
Bar pull
Rough turn
Finish turn
Spot drill
Drill
Endmill c bore
Finish Bore
Part off

3PM
Bar pull
Drill, bore and turn
Part off

Figure 2: Sketch shows how new Ingersoll T-Cap multifunction tool handles four separate operations. In its first commercial application, at BVR Technologies in Rockford, IL, the breakthrough tool boosted throughput of a carrier. It is projected to decrease set-up times (SMED) and dramatically shorten delivery times for fast-growing medical and aerospace products.

To turn the part with the same tool, BVR reverses spindle direction after the bore. (fig 2)

Four In One
The new T-Cap combination tool is a new breed of tool -- literally four tools in one. It looks like an indexable drill with just one insert on the face rather than the usual two. But geometry of the insert enables drilling from solid, boring and also turning and facing. (fig 3). The entire front face is a cutting edge for drilling. And the outside corner works like a conventional turning and facing edge. Chipbreakers on both sides of the cutting edge deliver excellent chip control in both the drilling and turning/facing modes. And to save setup time still further, the optional T-Cap clamping unit boasts a built-in center height adjustment.

Figure 3: Differing edge geometries on the same T-Cap insert enable it to handle drilling and turn/bore operations.

The BVR case is a perfect illustration of the accelerating rate of change in metalworking today. “The fact that we had a breakthrough tool is just half the story,” says Mr. Crabtree. “The real key is how quickly BVR reacted, and what they’ll gain competitively by being an early adopter of a new technology. No time lost ‘kicking tires’ here.”

Making A Good Thing Better
BVR didn’t quit tweaking the operation after that first day, either. Together with Ingersoll’s Technology Center just a short drive away, they ran more tests to optimize the operation. So today, the part is run from a pre-hardened material, Rc32, that eliminates a heat treating step.

Here’s how cycle times improved that first day

Opn #
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
TOTAL

10AM
Bar pull (8 sec)
Rough turn (10 sec)
Finish turn (8 sec)
Spot drill (6 sec)
Drill (8 sec)
Endmill c bore (27 sec)
Finish Bore (13 sec)
Part off (20 sec)
100 sec

3PM
Bar pull (8 sec)
Drill, bore and turn (32 sec)
Part off (20 sec)

60 sec

With the T-Cap tool, BVR bores and drills at 295 SFM/0.002 IPM, and turns and faces at 590 SFM/0.003 IPM.

Spreading The Joy
Because the T-Cap multifunctional tool is suited to other BVR work, Dusing leaves it in the turret for other jobs. This is projected to save at least 16 manhours a year. “First, it’s one tool not six, and meets a lot of recurring needs,” says Mr. Ruppert. “Second, we don’t have to set it up with each new job.”

Looking over BVR’s entire workload and where the T-Cap tool will fit, Mr. Ruppert projects a total annual saving exceeding $10K. Drilling, turning and boring small parts represents a hefty share of BVR’s machining work, so the tool will be busy on a lot of jobs. “More important, we’ll be able to deliver sooner, handle shorter runs more efficiently and compete better,” he adds, “A tool like this helps us manage our growth. In today’s market that’s priceless.”

Test Data Instills Confidence
On that first day when Don Dusing called, Mike Crabtree could be pretty confident that the tool would work, given the test results he had seen in the Ingersoll morning briefing. Hole deviation is less than half that of competing combination tools. Surface finish is twice as good. Tool life in steel is three times better for drilling and chamfering, twice as long for turning and better for stainless steel and grey iron as well.

BVR Technologies manufacturing team plots next applications for new Ingersoll T Cap multifunction tool. Once they exploit it fully, BVR expects to save $10k a year in machining and setup costs, dramatically increase JIT agility and manage growth more effectively. L to R, Don Dusing, BVR manufacturing engineer; Michael Crabtree, Ingersoll application engineer; Paul Manning, BVR senior manufacturing engineer; Paul Ruppert, BVR vp/gm; Mike Stuhr, BVR CNC machinist.

For further information, contact Ingersoll Cutting Tools,
845 S. Lyford Road, Rockford, IL 61108-2749.
Phone 815 387 6600, fax 815 387 6968.
Email info@ingersoll-imc.com, www.ingersoll-imc.com.