Page 24 - CMA PROfiles Fall 2017

PEOPLE POWER

less to say, this scenario allows you to maximize run time on the but there must be an intelligent human being at the control to
machine because the operator can be running jobs while the pro- get the most out of the new investment. The importance of
grammer is nesting and creating files well ahead of production. matching the right personnel to your CNC equipment cannot be
A moderate level of cross-training can enhance production, build understated, and therefore a significant focus should be placed
a strong team and significantly reduce down time. on this part of the launch.

As you might expect, this final scenario also comes with As the size of the organization grows, CNC programmers are
challenges. As throughput increases, many shops find that they assigned to multiple machines via networked systems, and
are not configured to handle the increased activity. they are less likely to be tasked with running production. On
To prepare for this increase, plan ahead and think about volume. the plant floor, it’s possible to train a production operator
Is your facility set up to handle/process more than 100 4x8 to safely run the machine without having in-depth knowledge
sheets in a day? Set a goal for higher volumes and think about of your network.
the changes that will come about with increased production. And finally, let’s think BIG!

ROLLING WITH THE PUNCHES Adding capability and capacity is exciting, and as the business
To summarize – small shops with a single CNC person have grows, there will be challenges – data storage, tool library
very few “system” problems. They are limited in their ability to standards, second shift operators/programmers, etc. So when
produce higher volumes, however, and often do not consistently you read about the world’s largest furniture producer or cabinet
reach optimum use of the machines. (As mentioned, if the manufacturer and think, “I could never start something like
machine is not running, it’s not making money.) that,” remember that they, too, started small and grew over time.

Building a dynamic team to support the new CNC router is key Always remind yourself that growing pains and challenging tran-
to achieving better yields. Yes, these are sophisticated machines, sitions are perfectly normal – and for most of us, unavoidable.

22 PROFILES FALL 2017