Case History:
Business: Piston ring manufacturer for heavy transportation
Annual revenue: >$75 million
Production volume: 7 days/ 24 hours schedule during 6-month season
Geographic base: Northeast Market: International
Situation
Precision piston rings were becoming less profitable due to strict finish specifications within low sound safety requirements (83dba). Labor costs were rising, as finishing continued by hand on an emery-mounted spinning wheel. The customer was searching for a better way to increase production, limit costs, and yet maintain quality and safety.
Response
Expert at process development, ADF conducted hundreds of tests in the equipment manufacturer's R&D lab to achieve the exact specifications. An Almco OR10HEV Round bowl vibratory machine was customized with 30 individual floating dividers and variable speed drive. Geometric distortion is now eliminated because each ring moves freely in a mass of light weight plastic deburring media in a vertical plane. ADF's service doesn't stop with the start-up of the new equipment. Training and follow up have ensured production and quality goals - so much so that the customer has since turned to ADF for solutions in 2 other departments where rings are manufactured with even more strict finishing requirements.
Results:
     Increased production throughput by 8 times the parts per hour
     Increased precision of finished product by replacing manual finishing with machine exactness
     Reduced labor through automation and reconfiguration of equipment to create work cells
     Decreased manufacturing delays