volume 18 - issue 1 - Finn-Power International, Inc.

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product we save about 40%…and that’s just
labor. And I get a better part. I don’t know how
much we save from blanking because that was a
cut to size blank that we bought on the outside
Day-Brite had a series of parts that required two operators
to form a complete parts. With the robotic press brake from
Finn-Power, the company reports a labor savings of 40% of
each part bent.
to process on our older turret punch press. We
run about 500 of the 2 x 4 size a month. Our
total savings is about 50%/part.”
Other benefits of the robotic press brake
include:
Provides unmanned bending at
maximum speed
Produces exceptionally consistent parts
Can be integrated into Finn-Power’s
Flexible Manufacturing System.
Results of Phase 1
Day-Brite began production on the first
phase of the Finn-Power in September 2004
with the first shift. In December the company
added the second shift, and in February 2005 it
added the third shift. “We average
approximately 18 hours of machine uptime,”
says Dexter.
“Finn-Power’s Phase 1 introduction at Day-
Brite was a huge success,” says Bratton. “The
Finn-Power integrated system allowed us to
introduce the new product to the market for a
total of $4-million in new product sales in 2005
alone. While we hoped that the Shear Genius
would allow us to bring the contract work back
inside, we weren’t able to accomplish this at the
time because the Finn-Power system was
running at full capacity within six months.”
Phase 2 Begins
Phase 2 of the program began in March
2007 with the addition of another Shear Genius
cell; a Night Train extension of an additional
four bays; and two servo-electric E press brakes.
The new Shear Genius was the SG8 with a
maximum sheet size of 1,500 mm x 4,300 mm.
With this addition, Day-Brite brought back
75% of the fabrication that had been contracted
to local job shops. The remaining job shop
contracts mainly include laser cut parts. “Our
new Shear Genius runs nothing but pre-painted
metal, galvanized, and mirro aluminum,”
explains Bratton. “From a customer standpoint
it has helped us get products to our customers
faster. It has helped our design engineers with
product development. We dedicate our
machines and no longer have to contract
outside parts. We program the part, form the
part, and get it to them so we can now take the
product to market quickly. This has given us a
competitive edge.”
E Press Brake
The two servo-electric E press brakes have
upper and lower hydraulic tool clamping.
This Finn-Power press brake is a fast,
accurate bending solution. By applying
mechanics and electronics, a unique, patented,
mechatronic drive was developed. This drive is
based on the pulley principle resulting in a very
even distribution of forces in the top beam,
high accuracy, increased productivity, and
decreased energy consumption, and few
maintenance requirements. The frame concept
makes it possible to utilize the back gauge
system across the entire working length.
“The E Series press brake is a phenomenal
piece of equipment,” says Bratton. “Many of
our products have multiple forming operations.
With the Finn-Power E Series press brake, we
have seen increases in our productivity, quality
repeatability, and reduced set-up and
programming times. We estimate savings of 35-
40% bending with the new press brakes over
the older models.”
Reliability
Another important feature of the Finn-
Power equipment to Day-Brite has been
reliability. “We have not had any significant
downtime on the Finn-Power equipment,” says
Dexter. “The installation of the equipment went
very well. It was always on time – and when we
turned it on…it ran. Finn-Power did a very
professional job getting the equipment up and
running as well as servicing and maintaining it.”
“A key point to Day-Brite is on-time
performance to our customers,” explains
Bratton. “In 2006, we started out at 90%. Last
year, we came in at 93%, and this year our goal
is 95%. The Finn-Power equipment has helped
us reach these goals.”
“The Finn-Power integrated system allowed us to
introduce the new product to the market for a total
of $4 million in new product sales in 2005 alone.”
The two servo-electric E press brakes have upper and lower hydraulic tool clamping.
This Finn-Power press brake is a fast, accurate bending solution. With the Finn-
Power E Series press brakes, Day-Brite has experienced increases in productivity,
quality, repeatability, and reduced set-up and programming times.
14
“The integrated
automated system was the key
to Finn-Power over the
competition,” adds Philips.
“None of the other machine
producers had this capability.
Finn-Power was head and
shoulders above the
competition. The competition
had islands of automation, but
the Finn-Power’s integration of
the Shear Genius and robotic
press brake are all tied
together with the Night Train.
It allows us to run lights out
on the weekend. It was so
successful that we doubled the
size of the installation with a new Shear Genius,
the two E press brakes, and expanded the Night
Train. Future purchases being considered for
2009 include the EBe servo electric bender, the
X5 stand alone turret punch press, and another
E Series servo-electric press brake.”
Day-Brite’s business had gradually
moved away from just commondity
products to a more architectural
grade product. The company’s
challenge was to find a way to go
from product design, to fabricating
the part, and have it already
assembled to within one day. Finn-
Power provided the solution.