FoxMachinery.com
NEWSLETTER Serving Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Maryland, and West Virginia
The start of 2018 has the team at Fox Machinery settled into our new building in Exton, PA. We moved in the summer of 2017 from Bridgeport, PA to this larger space to continue hosting educational seminars and technology days where our customers can view, demo and be trained on state-of-the-art machinery, tools and automation to stay abreast on the latest technologies. New machines are filling our 6,800 square foot showroom, and plans are being made for demonstrations and seminars,
starting with an Open House May 22nd through 24th, 2018 – details to follow. Regardless of your location, as a Fox customer we welcome you to our home office for demonstrations. An appointment can be made by contacting your Sales Engineer or calling the office at 610-275-4700.
Along the line of growth, the team at Fox is excited to be sending John O’Leary to upstate New York to expand our territory of support as a leading source of metal fabrication machinery, tooling, parts, and service. John has served as Marketing Coordinator for Fox over the past 16 months. Rest assured – the upstate New York community is in good hands. If you are considering new machinery, upgrades, parts, tooling or are in need of service don’t hesitate to call. We are here and ready to help.
Delivery of Safan Darley 35-1250 to FMA’s Exton, PA showroom
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Stay Tuned: FMA’s
5 Ways to Keep Your Tooling Clean......page 2 2018 Open House 6 New Year’s Resolutions for Your Metal Fab Business......page 2 May 22nd - 24th Calling for Service - Best Practices......page 3 Exton, PA Listing of Used Machinery......page 4 Details to follow. Hire Your Most Reliable Employee......page 1
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Hire Your
MOST RELIABLE
Employee:
AUTOMATED TECHNOLOGY Good help can be hard to find. With the shallowing talent pool of qualified machine operators and increased workloads, manufacturing companies are faced with a dilemma. Not only has it been difficult to find good help, it is difficult to find any help at all. The Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte Consulting claims: “Over the next decade, there could be a shortage of 2 million manufacturing employees” “Seven of 10 manufacturing companies reporting a shortage of workers with adequate technical and computer skills” “69 percent say applicants lack problemsolving skills”
No one can argue, Time is Money, and with an average of 70+ days to recruit skilled workers, money is being left on the table and jobs are backing up or being refused. With advances in today’s technology, the answer to your hiring woes is literally at your - and your operator’s fingertips. ...continued on page 2...
January 2018
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PRESS BRAKE MAINTENANCE:
HOW SHOULD YOU DEAL WITH GALLING?
5 ways to keep your tools clean
Contributed by: WILA
Every press brake operator has encountered problems associated with galling. This is when small particles of sheet material or milling scale stick to bottom tools. Galling, which is also referred to as build-up, has a massive impact on bottom tools and sheet materials, which has a massive impact on productivity! Here are five ways to prevent galling: 1 - MANUAL CLEANING The first and most obvious method: regularly clean tools using cleaners such as Scotch-Brite. Although very effective, this approach is labor intensive and reduces overall productivity. And, of course, that’s what you want to avoid.
2 - OIL & TEFLON SPRAY
Galling can be prevented by applying oil or Teflon spray to the sheet material. Whatever you apply also needs to be removed resulting in additional time to clean the sheet material.
3 - FILM AND CLOTH Sheet material often features a white/blue film that protects it during the entire process. However, the downside is that it only allows you to work with large entry radii,
By now you may have set your personal 2018 Resolutions – some of you might be going strong, while others already have their hand in the cookie jar… regardless, it’s not too late to consider Business Resolutions for 2018. You can focus on “losing weight”, “getting it done” and “making free time” in the office, shop or plant.
1. Be More Active
Just as you may have set a goal to be more physically active, wouldn’t it be great to see your machines do the same? Assess your needs and potential setbacks ahead of time. Come up with a plan to stay ahead of lost productivity, downtime, supply reorders, assess tooling needs, schedule PM’s, etc. 2. Use Your Weekly Planner Make proactive business planning a weekly event to help achieve and stay ahead of the curve.
Consider preventative actions like weekly
...continued on page 3... Hire Your Most Reliable Employee ...continued from page 1...
SOFTWARE AUTOMATION AND INTEGRATION Thanks to advances in CNC technology, machine operators are able to accomplish more with less (time, experience, and headache) by utilizing heavily guided assistance that increases accuracy and productivity. Press Brake Manufacturer, Accurpress, has focused their operating program (ETS 3000, Vision 3D, and MOSES) upgrades on ease-of-use. Operators are given visual cues and guides during job set up, with the machine red-flagging foreseen errors, such as incorrect tonnage requirements, tool specifications, parameter or bend issues. Automatic tool
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Manufacturing Business
for your
selection, bend-sequencing and full integration with programs like Solidworks and Inventor eliminates the guesswork and streamlines the workflow from conception to completion. This software allows for other automated systems, such as sheet followers, backgauges and conveyors, which increase safety and streamlines productivity.
Click above to watch MOSES Control in action
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FULL AUTOMATION SYSTEMS In a word-Robots. Robots are the final step in complete automation. They take the operator’s role to gauge, change tools, reposition, reload, compensate and stack. Click here to explore other automation options. The Boston Consulting Group predicts that “investment in industrial robots will grow 10 percent a year . . . through 2025.” It is hard to argue when automation can be reprogrammed and updated faster than workers can be retrained. As talented workers become scarce, consider how automated technology could be utilized in your future workflow.
610.275.4700
Deal with Galling ...continued from page 2...
otherwise you will damage the sheet material. This damage can be prevented by placing a cloth between the tools and the sheet material. Unfortunately, this cloth is not fixed in place and can easily slide off the tool decreasing efficieny and productivity. 4 - MODIFY YOUR TOOLS You could also decide to implement another type of V-groove. Tools with large entry radii result in a thinner scribe mark, which means plate material is more likely to unwind than slide (‘scraping’). This helps to reduce galling. 5 - USE A COATING The most efficient and effective approach to avoid galling, when using galvanized sheet material, involves placing a coating on bottom tools., such as WILA’s OZUZN coating. WILA’S ADVICE: When working with galvanized sheet material, using bottom tools with an OZU-ZN coating helps to significantly improve productivity, which accelerates your ROI (Return on Investment). Cleaning becomes a thing of the past, sheet damage will be greatly reduced, the life-span of bottom tools will be extended and there will be less chance of sheet material becoming stuck in the groove. This technology also enables you to automate your process using a robot. Investing in bottom tools featuring OZU-ZN coating means investing in productivity!
Service 101:
best practices when your machine needs service
Before making “the call” 1. Identify “what happened” before the machine malfunctioned. 2. Check your machine for electrical shorts and blown fuses. If you are comfortable, open the electrical cabinet to check for loose wiring and connections. 3. Familiarize yourself with the troubleshooting portion of your Owner’s Manual. This, paired with a call from a tech, may be enough to get your machine running. 4. Are you able to take video and/or pictures? This is HUGELY helpful in determining the cause of a breakdown or identiofying a faulty part. 5. Keeping notes on errors and problems will help relay accurate information to a service tech. When calling “9-1-1” 1. Be ready to provide the machine’s Make, Model and Serial Number. 2. Having as many details as possible on hand helps us assign the right person to the job: a. What exactly isn’t working – what is it doing? b. What material was used when the machine malfunctioned? c. Do you have video or pictures that can be shared? d. Verbalizing specific concerns allows the tech to form a “plan of attack” before getting to your shop. 3. We recommend assigning one shop rep as the contact for the “fix” – providing a direct line (cell is best) to that person allows for accurate communication. Help has arrived 1. Make sure the area around your machine is clear. 2. Be patient while your tech is working on your machine. Our goal is the same as yours – have the machine running smoothly at full capacity as quickly as possible. We hope you never have to call for service in a panic – but if it happens – following these tips will get you up and running faster.
V-groove tooling or a Scotch-Brite pad help prevent Galling
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5. Automate Processes maintenance on your machines as well as identifying supplies and Take a look at your repetitive tasks – are you losing valuable time answering similar questions, relaying details or standard machine consumables that need reordering such as searching for information? Consider videos, software, filters, bearings and o-rings. This can help to avoid costly mistakes databases or even a good filing system to streamline and and keep you ahead of schedule. focus on growth. Manufacturers are leaders in automation, but may not be thinking past what’s already in the shop. Uses 3. Learn Something New of advanced robots go far beyond their traditional Invest in learning for yourself, your employees and even your machines! Education, including software upgrades, helps employees implementations, and your imagination is the only limitation. Set a goal to implement at least one advanced and their mechanized counterparts work more efficiently. Consider workflow system in 2018. obtaining certifications, attending training sessions or purchasing new software. Often new advancements enable technology to Give your goals become more affordable. Give thought as to how “shiny and new” some thought and might impact your business and save you time and money. write them down. Look beyond this list 4. Quit Making Do - how are you going to We all have that dreaded piece of equipment that is one wrong move achieve lower costs, away from “machinery meltdown”. Quit making do and work toward focus on new IT Click the image to replacing frustration with production. Whether it’s a faulty control or initiatives, improve preview Fabtech 2018 hiring a new employee, stop putting off getting what you need to get communication, or the job done right the first time. create visibility? ...continued from page 2...
Used Machinery
Sales@FoxMachinery.com or call 610.275.4700 for a quote Click on the machine name to read a full description, see photos & request a quote.
HYD-MECH SAW S-25A -Good condition -3 clamp vice -30 ft. feed conveyor -38 ft. discharge side -32” wide on both sides -S# 91190218 -240 V-FLA 38 -Horsepower is 10+3 Click the picture below for more pictures & to request a quote:
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Shears ADIRA 1330 SHEAR WYSONG 1010RD ACCURSHEAR 1/2 X 12’ Saws HYD-MECH SAW S-25A (DISPLAYED ON LEFT) Punching Machines WIEDEMANN C-2000I Finishing TIMESAVERS 3121-13-04 Cutting Machines TRUMPF L2510 PLASMA ESAB ESP200 WITH WATER TABLE 2004 METAL MASTER III 6’X20’ MITSUBISHI ML3015LVP CO2 LASER 126” x 360” ESAB PLASMA TABLE CSI KODIAK PLASMA Miscellaneous PEDDINGHAUS OCEAN SINGLE SPINDLE DRILL Request
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