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Since their installation, the Haas machines have
revolutionised the way the company produces moulds.
In the past, the pattern for the mould would have been
manufactured from wood. The pattern then had to be
transported to the foundry where a cast was made.
The cast would then be hand or machine finished and
polished before it could enter production.
“With the Haas machines, we go straight from the
computer design to a finished product machined from
solid aluminium,” enthuses Paglia. “Such has been the
success of our drive into the automotive sector that the
machines are kept busy constantly – even through the
night, when demand dictates. We can load a component
at the end of the day shift, and when we arrive the next
morning it’s finished. At one time it would have been
unthinkable to leave a machine unattended all night,
but the Haas machines are so reliable that we have no
hesitation in leaving them. They never let us down.
“After we bought the VF- , we realised pretty
quickly that we also needed another machine. The ‘ ’
was already working hours a day! The VF- was
added at the end of 00 , and we’re now looking into
buying another couple of machines.”
Most importantly, Paglia claims that the Haas
machines have allowed Italbox to reach and maintain
the standards demanded by its newly found automotive
clients.
“The machines have helped us to evolve,” he says.
“We can now simply design the parts on our CAD/CAM
system, and the finished program can be downloaded
directly to the machine. It really is that simple. We have
thousands of parts programmed. We simply select the
required component, and the machine takes care of the
rest.”
This simplicity has helped Italbox attract automotive
giants such as Fiat, VW, Alfa and Audi to its growing
order books. Yet, supplying directly to these kinds of
companies means Italbox has to be sure the quality of
the product is good.
“We certify our own products,” says Paglia, “which
means that when they leave here, they have been
checked to the standards the client requires, and can go
directly to the production line without further inspection
by the customer.”
9 www.HaasCNC.com