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Seeing Double Brings Success
They bought their first Whitney 1524 Fabricator in March of 1998 for Brand Manufacturing. “Brand needed to replace an aging mechanical press that was not meeting the current needs,” according to Aumock. They were interested in increasing tonnage, improving productivity and achieving the benefits of safety built into the new Fabricator. Brand looked at other pieces of equipment, and purchased the 1524 Fabricator based on economics of smaller lots and cutting their production costs. The ease of programming and continuity with their shop operation also contributed to their decision. The 1524 is equipped with a Panelgage™ 1000 CNC Control and has 50 tons of hydraulic punching power. Teamed up with shear tooling, putting a 5" hole through 1/4" A-36 material is easy. “Being built in the USA was also a consideration,” says Aumock. “I’ve got a press that was built in Belgium. It is very difficult buying parts and very difficult to talk to service personnel.” Aumock is secure in the fact that service support is only a phone call away, should it be required. As buses age and the repair parts have decreasing volumes, NATP wants to keep the market alive with a balance of decreasing volumes and increasing part prices. This benefit was a driving reason for the acquisition of the first 1524 Fabricator. Using the part programs stored in the control memory, building very small quantities with multiple holes located on staggered centerlines, economically and accurately, is a reality. When dealing with large organizations like NYCT (New York City Transit) and CTA (Chicago Transit Authority), prompt part shipment with bolt on replacement accuracy is demanded. A very large factor in any successful business is the employees. “When you place a piece of equipment like the 1524 on the floor, your employees put a value on what you’ve done. Anybody who doesn’t look at that value when they purchase equipment is just fooling themselves,” says Aumock. “Our employees want to do their jobs, they want to do them in a timely manner, with high quality and on equipment that is safe. They love to deal with a piece of equipment that operates correctly all the time, like the 1524 Fabricator.” It was no surprise when it came time to add another piece of punching equipment that Whitney was a prime consideration. “When we saw the productivity of the 1524 Fabricator, accuracy, and time saved on set-up…it wasn’t a hard decision to buy another,” says Aumock. “The guys already knew the 1524 Fabricator so we bought another one with the same control.” Brand and NATP run carbon steel, stainless (magnetic and non-magnetic) in the range of 20 gauge through 1/2". Aumock reports, “If we can get in under the stripper, it’s going into that machine.” With the new 1524s, they are working on more specialized products and are no longer limited by the capabilities of the old press. “We are so diversified in products that we haven’t had a slow period in ten years,” reports Jeff. “I am always looking for something a little more specialized and a little bit fussy. Something not just anybody wants to do” (Used with permission from Whitney Metal Fabrication News, April 2001) Home | All Applications | Precision CNC Fabricators | Precision CNC Fabricator Applications |
