As more and more of our customers adopt lean manufacturing techniques, American Punch is taking definitive steps to ensure we continue to meet their punch and die needs.
With our customers’ move to lean manufacturing, we’re now filling smaller punch and die orders on a more frequent basis. Customers no longer order hundreds of pieces at a time and instead request small batches of five or 10 or 50 – or even just a single piece.
Gone are the days when one employee could run two machines handling 200- or 300-part orders. In place of that efficiency, we were faced with setting up a seemingly infinite number of small runs each day. This could have wrecked our productivity and turn-around times. But we decided to meet the challenge head-on, and find a way to satisfy our customers’ lean manufacturing needs.
One of these answers was an LNS bar feed servo machine, which allows us to consecutively run a wide range of small orders on the same piece of equipment, using different lengths of stock, without pausing to set up each punch and die order. One employee can plug the orders into the system in the morning and let the machine run unattended over the next eight hours and then plug in another set of orders at the end of the day to run all night with no oversight.
That worker’s attention can then be given over to other work that requires more set up and personal attention. This new capability allows us to better utilize our employee base, time, effort, energy and tool life.
Most importantly, it means we can meet our clients’ needs, delivering the right product they need when they need it, at the right price. For more information, contact us today to learn what American Punch can do for you.
