KR Pfiffner Group

PRECISION AND FLEXIBLE MANUFACTURING

KR PFIFFNER GROUP

2 | EME Outlook issue 40

MANUFACTURING

Making Machinery Revolutionising the manufacturing industry, we spoke to Andreas Ewald, CEO of Swiss firm KR Pfiffner Group, about the company’s innovative and forward-thinking place within the sector Writer: Marcus Kääpä | Project Manager: Matthew Taylor

M

achinery manufacturing is a key element of industry function in Europe and beyond.

Turning to Switzerland and its progressive manufacturing industry, we see that incorporating and utilising the latest technologies and knowhow in the field pushes the country to the fore of such a sphere.

“Switzerland is an excellent place to work in the manufacturing industry,” begins Andreas Ewald, CEO of KR Pfiffner Group.

AT A GLANCE: KR PFIFFNER GROUP HISTORY 1970 Karl Richard Pfiffner incorporates K.R. Pfiffner AG in Zurich 1976 Development of the Hydromat - Rotary Transfer Machines 1977 Delivery of the 1st Hydromat - Rotary Transfer Machine 1989 Foundation of K.R. Pfiffner GmbH (Germany) 2005 Delivery of the 2,000th Hydromat - Rotary Transfer Machine 2007 Market introduction of the product lines RT / AT 2013 Market introduction of the product line PT 2014 Establishment of Pfiffner Japan Co., Ltd., Japan 2015 10th June Pfiffner Group joins the international FFG Group 2018 Foundation of Business Unit Multispindle and Witzig & Frank Offenburg joins to K.R. Pfiffner GmbH Zimmern o.R

EME Outlook issue 40 | 3

Your manufacturing partner

Turning / milling / grinding

From raw materials to the finished product.

Thanks to the extensive in-house manufacturing options along the entire process chain, our many years of experience and the motivated and qualified employees, you will get added value.

We work with selected partners for heat and surface treatments.

Based on many years of assembly experience, we assemble the individual components to form a complete product.

Added value through maximum precision As a competent manufacturing partner, we are a leading manufacturer of highly sophisticated mechanical key parts and assemblies in medium-sized series.

Guided by our mission, we are your competent partner who strives for a win / win situation and additional customer benefits through: • Support with the value analysis of parts and components • The joint definition of requirements and test characteristics • Carrying out demanding quality checks • The reduction in incoming goods inspections generated by the customer The company is certified according to ISO 9001: 2015 and is a member of the Swissmechanic Association.

DERO AG Hauptstrasse 36, CH-4436 Liedertswil +41 61 965 91 10 | verkauf@dero.ch | www.dero.ch

KR PFIFFNER GROUP “Globally we have one of the highest drives towards innovation comparatively, and we have very good universities as well as industry research and development. In addition, we also have a long tradition in high quality workmanship and highquality product delivery - I think that’s what makes our industry so strong.”

Ewald has always been interested in machinery and engineering. Starting from an apprenticeship in electronics and mechanics 40 years ago, he then proceeded to indulge his interests in technology through studying electrical engineering - an aspect of his life that set him on the path into the production and manufacturing industry later down the line, and as a result, to Pfiffner.

Celebrating 50 years in the industry as of 2020, Pfiffner stands as a leading provider of rotary transfer machines for the mass production of mechanical precision parts.

“We have a diversified portfolio of machines. Over the course of 50 years, we have developed a very broad modular set of machine frames, modules and process technologies that we can combine for a very wide range of applications,” Ewald tells us.

On top of its headquarters located in Switzerland, the company is present in Germany, China and Japan, and able to deliver and maintain machines internationally. Pfiffner provides the best solutions in the production of high-volume work pieces. A rotary transfer machine is able to process work pieces on different stations simultaneously, and the systems provide efficient, precise, flexible and productive results for the company and customers.

“If we look at the broad machine tool industry, the distinction between us and the standard is really our purpose: we provide customised production solutions,” Ewald elaborates.

AT A GLANCE: COMPANY VALUES CUSTOMERS AND SUPPLIERS Innovation and honesty are at the centre of KR Pfiffner Group’s company focus and fulfilling promises to its customers is the cornerstone to its success. These values set it above and apart from its industry competition and promote positive relationships with both customers and suppliers.

EMPLOYEE-CENTRIC Through exemplary leadership and in-house cooperation Pfiffner promotes teamworking and brilliant performance across the business.

Merging cooperation with open honesty, Pfiffner welcomes the prospect of employee learning and development, as well as listening to individual needs and implementing them as best possible.

• Pfiffner works success-oriented for a sustainable development of the company • Swiss quality from solution development to delivery • Sustainable and fair partnerships with customers and suppliers • Our brands – Pfiffner and Witzig & Frank • Excellent global customer service

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“We deliver a turnkey solution that’s our business. We take pride in our Swiss machinery tools mastering extremely complex tasks where very high precision is required. Our principal aim is to achieve the lowest possible cost per part.”

Pfiffner’s manufacturing quality in the industry sets itself above the rest in the nation, and it is a key player within the European sphere.

Innovative developments such as Pfiffner’s RT 100-12 CNC (RT), the flexible rotary transfer centre, showcase exactly why.

In contrast to previous transfer models, the RT provides a rotary axis for the work piece to the manufacture process. In the current industry, flexibility is both an advantage and necessity. Ewald comments on the development.

“It offers greater flexibility and coaxial precision and I think that’s a current challenging demand for many in the industry. A large amount of our customers are in the automotive industry where you require very high volumes of high precision parts,” he tells us.

“They are asking for higher flexibility to quickly repurpose those machines. Typically, a simple machine would just do one part one or two parts for 10, 15 or 20 years: The RT machine provides a high degree of flexibility to run a broader variety of parts or reconfigure the machine frequently to match variations in demand.”

MANUFACTURING

Hydromat® HC Product Line EPICplus. For rotation-symmetrical workpieces up to a maximum clamping diameter of 52 mm and up to a maximum total length of 170 mm

This necessity for innovative manufacturing flexibility can be seen through Pfiffner’s work alongside certain industry clients.

“We work with a lock production company that requires a product variation of more than 200 parts.

Of course, it is all lock bodies, but they come in all kinds of different sizes and shapes,” Ewald explains.

The RT machine is more compact than previous models and has a revolver head that features up to eight tools, each of which boast swift switch-over times when in operation.

With regards to the flexibility in demand, Ewald is confident that the RT delivers an answer to the challenges at present.

“The RT machine can be digitally connected to an ERP system,” he elaborates.

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KR PFIFFNER GROUP

Murrelektronik About Us Murrelektronik is a global leader in the development, manufacture and distribution of automation solutions.

Our products can be divided into four core lines: Power Supplies and Control, Interfaces, Cables/ Connectors and IO Systems.

“WE HAVE KNOWN FOR YEARS THAT WE CAN LOOK AT DATA THROUGH REMOTE ACCESS, BUT THROUGH THIS WE CAN ALSO ACTIVELY RECONFIGURE OR UPDATE THE MACHINES AS WELL” “Of course, you have to preconfigure every single part, define its measurements on the CNC programme, and then once it’s all set up the machinery configures automatically so you can request, for example, 1,000 pieces of product variation a, the 200 of variation B without even stopping the machine.

All the operator has to do is to scan a product code and enter the required amount of parts. The machine changes all the tools automatically on the fly for maximised efficiency during mass production.

“This is also thanks to a new control from Bosch, called the Bosch MTX is the heart of the CNC it can drive up to 99 CNC axes fully simultaneously.

A typical machine will have around thirty to sixty CNC axis, so this really shows the complexity we are dealing with.”

Beyond manufacturing machinery, Pfiffner has also developed its means of operations. As shown by the global 8 | EME Outlook issue 40

impact of the COVID-19 pandemic during last year, digital means of work and living have been both efficient and necessary. Pfiffner has been no different.

“Something we are pushing right now is remote service,” Ewald elaborates.

“We have known for years that we can look at data through remote access, but through this we can also actively reconfigure or update the machines as well. We can fix a fair amount of programming problems remotely, and we also provide a service web support in which a technician at the customers site will wear glasses with a camera to show the help line engineer real-time data.”

This allows Pfiffner employees to witness, contribute to, and aid the technicians’ work, as well as granting industry customers a remote and high-efficient digital means of service – an easy link to resolve technical problems.

Our high-quality, innovative products and focus on market requirements sets us apart from the crowd. Our customer-oriented approach ensures or tailored solutions make your applications better.

Global Organization = Local Service With more than 3,000 employees in 50 countries, it’s easy for us to “stay connected” to you, our customer. We speak your language, understand your needs and are able to provide the right solutions in the right time.

50

Countries with Murrelektronik partners

24

Murrelektronik offices

05

Production facilities

04

Global logistics centres

www.murrelektronik.com

Customer reference

Pfiffner AG is a leading global manufacturer of high-volume rotary transfer machines.

Precision and flexibility balanced with productivity, have made the company an important partner for innovative industries.

Annual Sales: 64.8 Mio. €

Employees: 260

Member: FFG Fair Friend Group

What were Pfiffner’s goals for a decentralized machine concept?

Pfiffner is a pioneer in the use of decentralized installation technology. For over 20 years they have benefitted from its advantages including: ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

Flexibility and scalability regardless of machine size and design Easy changeover to new workpieces with minimal setup times Shorter assembly times More economical solutions Increased machine availability Simplified assemblies with increased reliability Easy integration of handling device

Pfiffner thoughts on Murrelektronik’s decentralized machine concept: ■ ■

■ ■ ■

We can respond to customer needs without having to make changes to the control cabinet.

Having consistent, cost effective solutions that meet all of the application requirements gives our electrical engineering team planning security while saving valuable development time.

We appreciate how Murrelektronik worked with us to come up with the best and most flexible solution.

End-to-end scalable system solutions, which save time from planning to installation.

Detailed system diagnostics help installers and operators locate faults quickly and easily keeping machine availability high.

www.murrelektronik.com

Products used: MASi68, Cube67

KR PFIFFNER GROUP

Schlenker Spannwerkzeuge

Collets for rotary transfer machines Since its foundation in 1952 by Hans Schlenker, the Schlenker Spannwerkzeuge company has specialized entirely in the manufacturing of high-quality clamping tools.

The individuality and flexibility of Schlenker Spannwerkzeuge products has almost no limits, so the company can respond to a wide range of customer requests. 100% vertical range of manufacture guarantees e a consistently high quality and ensures the highest precision of the collets.

AT A GLANCE: COMPANY LOCATIONS • Pfiffner Utzenstorf, Switzerland • Pfiffner Offenburg, Witzig & Frank, Germany • Pfiffner Zimmern, Germany • Pfiffner Japan Co., Ltd.

10 | EME Outlook issue 40

For Pfiffner, success in the realm of manufacturing comes down to the people involved.

Tied closely to business partnerships, mutual trust held between the company and external bodies brings the highest quality products, efficiently produced, to each and every one of the firm’s customers and clients.

“We rely on these long-lasting partnerships,” Ewald assures us.

“Pfiffner works with Murrelektonik as our key supplier of network electronics and industry strength cabling. With such business partners we have a long-lasting relationship - they know a great deal about our machines and requirements that make it easier to adapt the technology to implement developments.”

And alongside this, Pfiffner’s employees make the company what it is.

“Pfiffner has very hard-working and loyal employees that are excellent highly qualified personnel, which is

The individual processing steps of a collets such as turning, milling, hardening, eroding, grinding and the final processing of these takes place in the Black Forest region in Germany.

The company’s main products include collets, guide bushes, rotating inserts and bar feed collets for all common lathes, loading magazines and rotary transfer machines.

Schlenker provides you with draw-in collets for rotary transfer machines with threaded or quick change version. The thread is screwed into the corresponding counterpart on the machine side, whereas the quick change version is merely turned into the collet sleeve and locks itself automatically.

The draw-in collets can also be supplied with a saw burr cut. The burr from sawing should not touch the clamping surface, as it can negatively affect the shape and position tolerances of the component.

There are also no limits set for the manufacturing of three-dimensional clamping contours or clamping surfaces with steps.

Convince yourself of the Schlenker quality products for rotary transfer machines.

We look forward to get in touch with you.

www.schlenker-spannwerkzeuge.de

SPANNZANGEN FÜR RUNDTAKTMASCHINEN Abgestimmt auf Ihre Werkstücke, in höchster Präzision

www.schlenker-spannwerkzeuge.de

KR PFIFFNER GROUP

MANUFACTURING

KLOPFER

Hirth-Gearing Power chucks Special clamping devices Series and special cylinders Special welding devices

ALBERT KLOPFER DE – 71272 Renningen

GMBH

s a l e s @ k l o p f e r - t o o l i n g.d e another very important ingredient to a successful company,” Ewald explains.

“Our universities, technical schools, and engineering schools produce very highly qualified individuals.

But the foundation of it is our Swiss tradition of the apprenticeship where young people learn a profession and workmanship step by step. Our in-house culture of open exchange allows our employees to learn from any mistakes made, maximising our learning and proficiency in problem-solving.”

Additionally, education plays an important role in Pfiffner’s operation as a company. Not only does the prospect of employment with Pfiffner drive aspiring technicians, engineers and others towards gaining higher qualifications, but the company actively encourages additional experience and learning from within.

“We have our own in-house apprentice programme,” Ewald tells

us proudly.

“Currently of our 250 staff we have 30 apprentices. These apprenticeships last three or four years during which the apprentices learn and gain experience directly on the job in the company, with plenty of them continuing employment with us after the course is over.

“Pfiffner contributes to the national industry by helping also to support this apprenticeship model and bring the latest talent to the field. We rely on these qualified people to help us achieve this highest quality standards that we can achieve.”

the widescale rollout of COVID-19 vaccines over Europe, Pfiffner sets its sights on the east, including aiming to introduce its advanced RT machine in Korea and China.

“We will increase our presence in Asia which is where the market grows the most,” Ewald tells us.

“It’s also where we expect to have the best market development in the coming years, given the current environment, with our major project focus being China. We are in the middle of increasing our footprint there by hiring more people to move this forward.”

2021 AND BEYOND With the latest technologies in the automotive sector moving towards electrical and autonomous vehicles, Pfiffner is turning to new applications within the manufacture of battery parts and projects for the autonomous driving sector.

On top of this, while 2021 sees

KR PFIFFNER GROUP Tel: +41 (0)32 666 35 35 ​info@pfiffner.com www.pfiffner.com

EME Outlook issue 40 | 13

KR PFIFFNER GROUP Sonnmattstrasse 28 CH-3427 Utzenstorf Switzerland Tel: +41 (0)32 666 35 35 ​info@pfiffner.com www.pfiffner.com

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