So, if you can double the amount of
time available for that machine to go
up and down and bend a part you save
one machine and one operator.”
The amount of tool changes a shop
does per shift or per day will determine
the efficiencies of an automated setup.
Automated tool changing systems
can be costly, but for most shops the
benefits–and the ROI–that’s possible
quickly outweighs those costs.
“We judge the benefit of an
automated tool changing system on
how many tool changes a company
does per shift. At about six tool
changes per shift it starts to be
beneficial,” says Mike Junker, brake
product manager for LVD Strippit.
“And then of course the more they do
after that, the easier it is as a payback.
So, our wheel house is at six to eight
tool changes and usually we can then
justify a tool changer.”
Even if you’re performing three or
four tool changes a day, there’s still a
benefit to investing in an automatic
tool changer. “You may not see the
Bending FABRICATING 61
salvagnini's automated bending technologies give fabricators the
ability to perform complex and intricate bends, such as the spiral
shape seen below.
