CPT International 01/2015

AUTOMATION
Authors: Sonja Reimann and Klaus Finzel, Communications Manager, Zeppelin Baumaschinen GmbH, Garching
Cast from the same mold
The mini-excavator hangs castings on a stand. (Photos: Zeppelin)
They are normally found when space
on a building site is particularly limited:
zero tail-swing mini-excavators.
But use of these compact construction
machines is not by any means limited
to the classic road construction, civil
engineering and landscaping applications.
Other industrial sectors have
long recognized the potential of the
compact devices, as has EMG Casting
from Waldkraiburg in Germany. A Cat
303.5E mini-excavator, complete with
sorting grab, has opened up completely
new possibilities for handling hot
cast-iron parts (at 300°C) at the medium-sized
foundry in southeast Bavaria.
Albert Tauschhuber, Director of
Tech nology and Human Ressources
(HR) at EMG Casting, has long played
with the idea of integrating a miniexcavator
in the production process.
He finally took the plunge in August
2013. When Zeppelin’s Munich
branch received the enquiry from
Waldkraiburg, its Regional Sales Manager,
Alexander Mayer, together with
his colleague Thomas Meier, Product
Manager for Attachments, analyzed
the applications and the demands to
be met by the mini-excavator and its
grapples. Then they presented a machine
to put it to the test (Figure 1).
Mini-excavator with standard
equipment and rapid-change
system
“We initially considered using special
grapples. But that is not at all necessary.
Standard equipment with a rapid-change
system is more than enough
here, because of the range and loads involved,”
was the recommendation from
Zeppelin. Now a Cat 303.5E uses its
grapples to take up cast-iron parts from
a discharge belt and place them either
in grid boxes or hang them from a stand
(Figure 2). The construction machine is
resupplied every 30 seconds.
“The decision to use the mini-excavator
was absolutely right. The excavator
fits perfectly into our workflow
and works faultlessly. Our initial
ideas about buying narrower claws
have long been discarded. I am convinced
that our solution is also a firstclass
option for reducing costs at other
works in our sector,” says Albert
Tausch huber.
A view that is also shared by the
two Zeppelin employees: “This opens
up a new segment for foundries. The
works in Waldkraiburg can be considered
a pioneer in this respect. I can well
imagine a mini-excavator for other
foundries.” Because thanks to the new
mini-excavator at EMG Casting there
is no longer any need for the manipulator,
which not only involves high investment
costs for purchasing but also
results in maintenance costs and expenditure
on spare parts, although the
works carry out many repairs themselves.
“Considered over a whole year
that results in quite a lot of bills,” says
the Managing Director. His thinking:
“For the same money we could buy five
mini-excavators. And, in fact, we have
not taken any risk at all with the new
excavator. We would have sold it again
if it hadn’t worked. But that is absolutely
unnecessary now.”
The works is well-protected if the excavator
breaks down. “We would get
a replacement device from Zeppelin’s
Munich branch within a few hours.
With the manipulator we often had to
wait for days until it started working
again,” according to Tauschhuber. In
order to be able to bridge the time with
a hired machine, a rapid-change system
was provided for the Cat 303.5E so that
the grapples remained compatible.
This solution is not just more economical.
The mini-excavator has made
the work process in the foundry more
efficient – the compact construction
machine can take on another work
step by also hanging finished castings
12 Casting Plant & Technology 1/2015