Product category:
CAM, CNC and production management software
News Release from: Delcam | Subject: PowerInspect inspection software
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 01 February 2007
Inspection software removes quality
problem
A portable coordinate measuring machine from CimCore and Delcam's PowerInspect inspection software allowed Townley Engineering and Manufacturing to track down a costly reliability problem.
A portable co-ordinate measuring machine from CimCore and Delcam's PowerInspect inspection software allowed Townley Engineering and Manufacturing from Candler, Florida, to turn a problem with quality and service life into a competitive advantage for the company Townley is a manufacturer of replacement bearing assemblies for "matrix" pumps used in mining
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 16 Jul 2007 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Inspection software improves machinery production
Concepts NREC is transforming the way turbomachinery is designed, prototyped and tested, using PowerInspect inspection software.
Inspection software receives new features
Delcam's PowerInspect inspection software is compatible with the AIMS metrology system used by leading aerospace companies, such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
The shock and vibration from chunks of rock in the pumped mixture makes for a harsh environment for pump bearings.
The company began to encounter unexpected wear in its UBD Matrix line of pump assembly bearings in 2002.
"By 2004, bearings for as many as one pump in five suffered a failure", remembered Townley's Quality Assurance Manager, Howard Record.
Further reading
Inspection software is made for Renishaw's Revo
Delcam has developed a special version of its PowerInspect inspection software for use with Renishaw's revolutionary Revo measuring head and probe system.
Inspection software gains multi-axis option
Delcam PowerInspect's new multi-axis option allows companies with four, five or six-axis equipment will be able to undertake comprehensive verification of their parts on their machine tools
"Some failed after just one month's service".
Careful dimensional measurement with the CimCore arm and PowerInspect quickly pinpointed the causes as being problems with concentricity, perpendicularity and bore diameters of the bearing housings supplied by a contract machining company.
The supplier's management quickly found that these inaccuracies were the result of an out-of-calibration horizontal machining centre used to machine housing bores and were soon able to resolve them.
Record found PowerInspect so easy to run that he and Inspector Russell Hill had the system working on the first day they used it.
They traced the bearing housing problems with what they learned in a day and a half of demonstrations by Bob Neshta of SunCoast Precision, the local CimCore and Delcam distributor.
"We over-nighted the first inspection results and our new dimensions to the machine shops", Record said, "and got better housings from them almost immediately".
As a result, the system "paid for itself very quickly - in two weeks", Record said, based on the warranty cost of replacing a failed bearing assembly.
The portability of the arm lets Townley employees bring the entire inspection system right to the bearing housing, or any other large workpiece.
After machining, the cast iron housings weigh about 1,000 pounds.
"Because of the size and weight of the housings, the simplicity of setting up and repositioning the arm pays big dividends", Record said.
Townley's suppliers of machined components now check dimensions on all their parts before they are shipped, but Townley takes no chances.
"To give us the confidence to warranty our products to our mining customers, we inspect the housings and we inspect the final assembly", Record said.
"With the CimCore arm and PowerInspect we give our customers the best product in the industry", Record concluded.
"This leads to greater customer confidence, which leads to more sales". Request a free brochure from Delcam ...
• Delcam: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Engineeringtalk email newsletter
• Engineeringtalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
