CAM system reduces set-up time from 1h

UK injection mould maker reported that since using Edgecam CAM system for NC part programming, it had reduced downtime by 30-50%, and cut machine set-up from 1h to 3 min.

Kavia Moulded Products said it had successfully overcome Chinese competition in plastics injection mould manufacturer after installing Edgecam’s CAM system for NC part programming around four years ago The Todmorden, Lancashire, UK-based company specialises in injection mould manufacture for a wide range of industry sectors including textiles, wire goods and electrical

The company said it had been using Autodesk Inventor 3D design software for some time before investing in the latest CAM technology.

* Seamless CAD/CAM integration – Kavia selected Edgecam because of the significant efficiencies it offered along with seamless integration with Autodesk Inventor.

As Autodesk’s preferred CAM system, full associativity between the two ensures that when any modifications are made, the Edgecam NC program automatically generates new code.

With true data integrity assured, loss of data or downtime is prevented.

Edgecam told manufacturingtalk that CAM had proven to be a tremendous time-saving for Kavia in project managing plastics components from concept through production to delivery.

Kavia’s managing director, Chris Cole, said: "We considered other packages but Edgecam is clearly superior, reducing downtime by 30-50%.

Additional benefits include the data translation functionality which eliminates potential issues with third party CAD data".

He added: "The facility to simulate everything allows us to automate much more of the process, providing the opportunity to run lights out – confident that the programme will run smoothly".

Jobs can be planned to run overnight with all the necessary tooling set-up in advance – it’s just a matter of pressing a button before leaving the factory at the end of the shift.

"A lot of our manufacturing processes involve quite complex shapes, but Edgecam simplifies and streamlines our production operations," said Cole.

"In the past it would take us an hour or more to set up a machine – this is now achieved in around three minutes".

Kavia designs and manufactures of simple and complex precision injection mould tools and plastics components (nylon, polycarbonate, ABS, polypropylene and acetyl).

Providing high quality low cost tools, the company’s continued investment in new machines ensures efficient production overall and that components are produced to the required tolerance levels.

Cole explained: "In combining our design and toolmaking knowledge with state of the art CAD/CAM technologies, we are able to offer the optimum 3D and 2D solution in terms of component tool design and performance".

He continued: "Tooling can be tailored to suit customer requirements – including single to multi-impression, hot runner, auto unscrewing, moving core (hydraulic and mechanical), split cavity, 3D cavity and sprung core.

Associated mould tool mechanisms and maintenance support our total service provision from component to mould tool design through to manufacture and final product sampling".

Cole concluded: "The enormous flexibility and efficiencies that can be achieved using Edgecam have definitely given us a significant advantage over competition from the Far East when it comes to quoting customers for mould tools".

* About Kavia Tooling – Kavia Tooling Limited is a privately owned company, quality accredited to ISO 9001.

Technical excellence in the manufacture of high quality injection mould tools using the latest CNC and CAD/CAM systems enables the company to provide project management of components from design concept through to production.

For further information please visit (http://www.kaviatoolingmold.wiki).

* About Edgecam – Edgecam, a market leading computer aided manufacturing (CAM) system for NC part programming, offers a complete solution for milling, turning and mill/turn programming with unparalleled ease of use and sophisticated toolpath generation.

Edgecam is a principal brand of the Planit group, recently ranked by CIMdata as the world’s fastest growing CAM vendor, with most industrial users.