An industry leading manufacturing company uses CNC machines to machine parts. Each part requires two operations and their existing process uses two CNC machines— one for each operation, with an operator manually loading and unloading both machines. This requires an operator to tend the machines during an entire shift and strain the operator since they will need to lift and position parts into the CNC machines’ fixtures.

The process was updated to an automated CNC cell with a Fanuc robotic arm tending three CNC machines. Now with three machines, the slower operation could occur on two of the machines simultaneously, so that the faster operation could run almost constantly. This change increased overall throughput and drastically reduced operator intervention in the process.

Automated CNC Cell Solution

• Ignition SCADA Platform

• Allen Bradley ControlLogix and CompactLogix PLCs

• Fanuc Robot Arms

• Fanuc CNC Controllers

• Vertical Machining Centers

• Telesis Automatic Marking Machines

• OnLogic CS-P2102 Sunlight Readable HMI Panel PCs

Implementation Summary

After using Ignition to improve efficiency across the rest of their facility and manufacturing processes, this client wanted to upgrade their machining processes to utilize Ignition and automation.

The client worked with a machine tool manufacturer to develop vertical machining centers which could be automatically tended by a Fanuc robot arm. The arm rides on a linear rail system so it can move between the loading zone, the CNC machines, and the palletizing area.

This approach allows an operator to load parts onto a conveyor to feed the cell, then remove stacked pallets upon completion of the operation with no manual intervention required during machining.

Results

This system made the manufacturing process more efficient and productive. Using a robotic arm to tend the CNC machines resulted in faster cycle times, increased throughput for the same amount of floorspace, and less strain on operators.

Using Ignition to collect data from the process enabled the client’s process engineers to better understand the various operations involved in this process. Then they were able to further increase overall throughput of the machine after it had been running with the new configuration. This increase was in addition to the initial increased throughput as compared to the manual CNC tending process used prior to installing this automated cell.