Redefines Plasma Cutting - wawhitney.com · Redefines Plasma Cutting ... of Esterline Technologies....

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PlateLASER®-II JoinsCopelands in Tennessee

The Affordable STORMPrecision Plasma Cutting

Tool Wear Galling You?Try Whitney’s TuffSkin™ Premium Tooling

Advantages of Using Whitney Spare Parts 3400 XP with PartHANDLER™-II

at Waste Gas Steel Fabrication

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MARCH 2003

Redefines Plasma CuttingSee the NEW RAMPAGE!, STORM & TuffSkin at Whitney's Open House, April 15 & 16

CONTENTS

Letter from the President ......................................................3

Whitney 2003 Open House ....................................................3

Whitney News Briefs ..............................................................4

An Easy(?) Way to ISO 9001:2000 Conversion......................5

Hard Work, Dedicated Employees, Faster MachinesBuild Success ..........................................................................6

RAMPAGE! Redefines Plasma Cutting ................................10

Affordability Holds the Key for the STORM’s Success ..........13

Politics, Fabrication and Innovation in Tennessee ............14

INMAGUSA Selects Legacy Equipment for Productivity ......16

Endless Variety of Laser Cut Parts ......................................18

A Safety Advantage to Quality Parts..................................20

Tooling Wear Galling You? ..................................................22

S&C Electric Keeps The Lights On ......................................24

Advantages of Using Whitney Spare Parts ........................26

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The Whitney Metal Fabrication Newsis published by

W.A. Whitney Co.,P.O. Box 1206,

Rockford, IL 61105 Phone: 815-964-6771

Fax: 815-964-3175www.wawhitney.com

W.A. Whitney is a subsidiaryof Esterline Technologies.

For more information on any articleor product, call us at 815/964-6771

or e-mail [email protected].

Editor

Sue Roberts

Production Manager/Art Director

Jeff Hoffman

Circulation Manager

Becky Edmundson

Contributing Writers

Morrie EarnestSales Manager

Al JulianMarketing Manager

Gary VosbergLegacy Department Manager

David WhiteTooling Sales & Marketing Manager

Mike DixonBusiness Development Manager

© 2003, W.A. Whitney, a subsidiary

of Esterline Technologies.

March 2003

Join us during the 2003 Open House to see new machines,new tools and exciting new options for your existing machinetools—all to help you produce parts faster, at lower costs, ANDwith more profitability.

New product introductions include:• RAMPAGE!—redefined plasma cutting system which gives

you parts 40 percent faster than the TRUECut Systems withthe same excellent quality, at the same or lower operatingcosts. (See page 10.)

• TuffSkin—tougher punches for up to ten times more hits per tool for reduced costs, more productivity. (See page 22.)

• STORM—economical plasma table series offering Whitneyaccuracy and reliability in your shop for only $75,000. (Seepage 13.)

Whitney’s large plate fabricating equipment to help you profitfrom the heavy-duty jobs will be demonstrated:

• 4400 MAX Punch/Plasma Fabricating Center with maximumspeed and power to cut and punch plate up to 1" thick.

• PlateLASER-II to cut up to 1-1/4" plate up to 10' x 40' (See application story on page 14.)

www.wawhitney.com Whitney Metal Fabrication News • March 2003 — 3

Manufacturing Matters

In 2002 the manufacturing industryexperienced a further reduction in pro-duction levels.

What is nearly as bothersome as thecyclical nature of the industrial output,is the lack of importance manufacturingreceived in the news, the financial com-munity and our own towns.

During a recent speech at an Associa-tion for Manufacturing Technology (AMT)function, Ronald Schildge from TransmaresCorp. presented a passionate speech aboutletting people know that ManufacturingMatters…for American jobs, America'sEconomy, and America's future prosperity!

Throughout the last few years we haveseen that financial gimmickry might helpto inflate stock prices for a while, but in thelong run, only making better, more reliableproducts at a lower cost will sustain Amer-ica as a manufacturing country.

Manufacturing Matters because:• Manufacturing drives productivity, and

in turn, economic growth and prosperity.• Manufacturing directly employs more

than 18 million people in the UnitedStates.

• Manufacturing workers earn higherwages, better benefits, and enjoy ahigher standard of living than manyother workers in our society. In 1997,the average U.S. manufacturing workerearned $39,300 a year in direct wages,with compensation including benefitstotalling $48,000. The average for allU.S. workers, was only $33,500 a yearwith total compensation of just over$40,000. And many can only find parttime employment without benefits.

• Manufacturing represents only 10 per-cent of the workforce but it contributes30 percent to the nations gross domes-tic product year after year after year!!

Manufacturing Matters to the Americaneconomy in other ways; some directly,some indirectly.

Manufacturing has long been recog-nized as the basis for a vibrant, moderneconomy that creates wealth, stimulateseconomic growth, and helps to ensure con-

tinuing high levels of employment for itscitizens. The 18 million people employedin manufacturing are not only productiveworkers but they are also active con-sumers, tax payers, investors, and importantmembers of their local communities.

We all have entered into a new centuryof global competition, high productivityand incredible technological innovation.An environment that enhances manufac-turing growth is therefore essential to ourability to compete globally.

The Economic Stimulus Package helpsprovide the means to up-grade produc-tion equipment to take advantage of thehigher productivity levels of today’s newmachine tools.

Come visit us during our April OpenHouse and see this new productivityyourself.

LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

by Joe Mayer, President, W.A. Whitney Co.

WOW! Look what WAW has done for you NOW!

Cont’d on page 5

Join us for W.A. Whitney‘s Open HouseApril 15 & 16, 2003 • Whitney Technology Center

4 — Whitney Metal Fabrication News • March 2003 W.A. Whitney — The Leader in Plate Technology

Russell Warren, with three companies inthe truck body, trailer and suspensionbusiness, has expanded the manufactur-ing capabilities of his various operationswith the purchase of two of Whitney’slargest hydraulic punch/TRUECut‚ plasmacutting combination machines.

Warren Manufacturing, Inc., located inBirmingham, Alabama, manufactures acomplete line of bulk feed delivery bod-ies and trailers, parts for all brands offeed hauling equipment, and transporta-tion equipment for delivery of ammo-nium nitrate for the explosives industry.In December they took delivery of aWhitney 661 ATC (Automatic ToolChanger) with 45 tooling stations, 60tons of hydraulic punching power, andTRUECut-400 plasma.

Also in December,Warren, Inc. locatedin Collins, Mississippi installed a 4400 MAX,Whitney’s largest and most recent addi-

tion to the punch/plasma line. The 4400 MAX, with 100 tons of hydraulicpunching power, 16 automatic toolchanging stations, and the TRUECut-400Plasma Cutting System, will punch andcut parts for dump truck bodies fromsteel, stainless and aluminum. This plant also produces its own hydrauliccylinders, hoists for dump bodies, dumptrailers, and ice control and agriculturaltruck mounted spreaders.

“Making the investment in these machines in these times speaks to our

financial strength and commitment togrowth,” says Russell Warren, President.“We look to the future and plan to con-tinue our expansion of capabilities as weanticipate the needs of our customers.

"Our experience with our first Whit-ney punch/plasma, a model 3400, pur-chased in 1997 which will be relocatedto our Plant City, Florida plant, encour-aged us to continue our investment inadvanced technology making us moreproductive and leading to new cus-tomers and orders."

Warren provides several public andcommercial entities, including govern-mental, agricultural, transportation andconstruction companies, with all of theirdump truck and specialized truckneeds. They maintain a fully stockedparts department for immediate re-sponse and also have a service facilityin Columbia, South Carolina.

Whitney’s shaped inserts offer substantial savings over full-bodied tooling. Users experience the same accuracy, the same durability and more flexibility, and save up to 50 percent on tooling costs.

One insert holder accommodates a large range of shaped inserts, which cost muchless than the full-bodied tooling.

Standard or special positioning orientations are available.Standard orientation slots are positioned at 0 and 90 degrees. A pin and slot system aligns the tooling at anyangle for accuracy. The positioning pin is easily re-moved for the use of standard round inserts. Specialorientation slots can be added for a small charge.

All Whitney shaped inserts are available in standardtool steel or HSS to accommodate any application.

The size and part number are etched on the tool radius for easy identification without removing from the holder.

Orders received by 11 a.m. CST are shipped same day!

WHITNEY NEWS BRIEFS

Warren Machine Tool Purchase ExpandsProduction Capabilities At Three Plant Locations

Use Shaped Inserts to Reduce Tooling CostsBy Up to 50 Percent

Representatives of SigmaTek Corporation will be at Whit-ney’s Open House to show the new SigmaNest Version 6.0.This version of SigmaNest includes enhancements to maketool management and repositioning on Whitney machines a breeze.

Here’s your Whitney Open House Check List:• Reserve April 15 and 16 on your calendar. (Finish taxes.)• Begin your list of questions and solutions to discuss with

Whitney engineers during the Open House.• Watch your mail for more details on Whitney’s 2003 Open

House product introductions, demonstrations and free educational presentations.

• Prepare to say “WOW”!

Use one of these easy ways to register:• Notify your Whitney Representative or Sales Engineer.• Go to “events” at www.wawhitney.com and register via net.• Use the fax-back form on the inside back cover.• Call Whitney’s Becky Edmundson at 815/490-0536.


Whitney, an early recipient of the ISO 9001Certification, successfully passed the con-version audit to the newest, latest ISO9001:2000 Standards, the set of interna-tional quality standards that governs theoperations of manufacturing and serviceorganizations.

ISO 9001:2000 Certification is awardedwhen a company provides proof of competency in the following qualitymanagement principles: customer focus;leadership; involvement of people;process approach; system approach tomanagement; and mutually beneficialsupplier relationships.

Whitney found that accomplishingthese goals and the conversion to ISO9001:2000 was relatively easy because ofthe existing application of a strong 6-SigmaToolbox and Value Stream Mapping tohelp Whitney make improvements and

raise expectations. Lean manufacturingpractices and quality principles alsohelped pave the way for the conversion.

The concept of creating a sense ofownership and process-based modelingwas the synergy and basis of completingISO 9001:2000.

Several Whitney policies, in place prior to seeing the requirements for ISO9001:2000, assisted with the seamlessconversion:

• our emphasis on customer focus,individual sense of ownership,

• being open to new ideas from theworkforce,

• and finally, making improvement aneveryday expectation.

Whitney simply had to documentpractices already in place, such as creat-ing a structure to tap the teams’ ideas

and put them to work identifying andsolving problems, and implementing solutions; acceptance of new ideas; andtraining on innovative improvement tech-niques and strategies for team members.

The new ISO standards now support a structure to identify internal customersand suppliers and provide a statistical format to measure performance and improvement.

Whitney’s attention to meeting and exceeding customer requirements wascommunicated by everyone during this important audit.We accomplished this goalas a team and are dedicated to continuingour quality improvement efforts. ◆

For further information on achieving quality standards

use your favorite search engine to locate information on

6-Sigma, Value Stream Mapping, and Lean Manufacturing

or visit standardsgroup.asq.org.

An Easy(?) Way to ISO 9001:2000 Conversion

Plasma Goes HyTech

Jon LindseyPlasma Process EngineerHypertherm

Learn about the latest engineering innovations in the plasma cutting process.

Laser Integration and Justification

Speaker TBA

Discover how to integrate lasers into the production flow and how to justify equipment purchase.

Whitney Open House cont’d from page 3 Two free educational seminars each day:

ISO CERTIFICATION


What happens when a small family business was cre-ated to service steel mills…then the mills cutback orclose? If it’s Waste Gas Steel Fabrication in Fairless,Pennsylvania (just outside of Philadelphia), it struggles, stabilizes,changes and succeeds as a versatile metal fabricating shop.

Founded in 1975 by the Cloman family as a rebuilder of steelfurnace waste gas devices such as recouperators and precipita-tor products, the company was redirected into steel fabricationservices with the decline of the mills.

The Waste Gas of today meets virtually any plate fabricating

need including laser, plasma and oxy-fuel cutting, grinding,machining, bending, rolling, drilling, welding, painting, shearing,sawing, delivery and, in some cases, even storage. A separateand very active Furnace Division creates housings for ceramicfurnaces that ship worldwide.

A move and four expansions have brought the shop from thebeginning 3,200 square feet to 60,000 square feet.

Hard Work,DedicatedEmployees,Faster MachinesBuild Success

3400 XP APPLICATION

Tony Martelli, V.P. Operations (left), and Kyle Cloman, president andowner, review prints.

The fully integrated load/unload material handling system frees the operator for other tasks once the production cycle is initiated. The drop table on the machine’s outfeed side removes completed skeletons.


Growing with the CompanyKyle Cloman, president and owner, has worked in the businesssince he was a junior in high school.

“I’m a welder/fitter by trade,”Cloman says. “I learned from mydad who started the business to do mill furnace repair jobs that noone else wanted to handle. He taught me how to weld, bend, fitand fabricate. I learned from the best craftsman in the business.”

Today, even though he is more comfortable in the shop, themajority of Cloman’s time is spent making sales calls and aggres-sively pursuing growth for the company and its 48 employees.His “hands-on” background adds value to his customer interac-tions,“I can sit down with a customer and quite often tell them ifthey’re doing something wrong, why it’s wrong, how long it willtake to do a job and the best way to get the job done.”

The combined punching/cutting capability of the 3400 XP allowsWaste Gas to complete many parts in one operation rather than two.

Operator Jim Millward shows edge quality on one of the partscompleted on the 3400.

The PartHANDLER-II loads material into work clamps on the infeed side of the 3400. Plate up to 1,000 lbs. can be automatically loaded.

Cloman uses his close customer relationships to gain marketintelligence and direct his business decisions. He looks at the in-dividual industry needs rather than general trends and believesthat the only way to succeed today is to work hard and provideproduction on bigger and faster equipment.

Investing in TomorrowTo get the job done, Cloman has invested heavily in new equip-ment throughout the past three years, positioning the companyto run with the economy as it begins its climb out of the reces-sion. His expectation is that 2003 will be better, though not abanner year.

“You’ve got to look at each year getting a little bit better instead of saying,‘When are we going to come out of this?’We need people to have faith in one another to get everythinggoing and get busy again. We have to work our way out.”

What is helping Waste Gas work it’s way out? The broad customer base of 365 companies that require a wide variety ofwork, the ability to effectively handle jobs of one or two parts as well as production runs, a talented, dedicated group of employees, and new equipment.

Expanded CapabilitiesA Whitney 3400 XP with a PartHANDLER-II is a new addition. Thepunch/plasma machine and integrated material handling equip-ment was purchased to fill a productivity gap between Waste Gas’laser and large plasma tables, and machining operations.

Cloman saw the opportunity to produce parts in one opera-tion rather than two, saving time and reducing production costs.Savings that could be passed on to his customers.

Parts that used to be cut on the laser or plasma machine,then moved to a machining center for internal configurations,are now cut and punched in one step on the 3400 XP.

“It’s very cost effective for us to shift some of those parts. Alot of the parts can go on the Whitney and be produced in half

the time than on the laser,” says Cloman. “And the savings issubstantial when we compare the hourly rate to run the Whit-ney to the big laser.

“The Whitney is allowing us to go back to some of our cus-tomers and give them cost cuts they’ve been asking for,” Clo-man adds. “We’re revisiting customers today saying,‘Hey, wehave a Whitney now.’”

As with all new equipment, there is a period of adjustment andthe discovery of what the new machine can do. Cloman reportsthat every day they find additional parts that can be producedmore economically on the 3400 XP. Each time a job is moved tothe Whitney, they are impressed by the machine’s capabilities.

Tony Martelli, Operations Manager, is very pleased with theedge quality as well as the increased production speed. WasteGas is finding that the cut is “90 percent” of what they get fromtheir laser and considerably better than the cut from theirplasma burning tables.

Material Handling AdvantagesThe combination of the 3400 punch/plasma with the skeletondrop table and the PartHANDLER-II automatic load/unload sys-tem, creates a fully functional unit called the 3400 FLEX.

On the 3400 XP the production cycle is automatic and com-plete. Raw material is loaded and positioned by thePartHANDLER-II. Parts are punched and plasma cut by the 3400.Small finished parts are removed via drop door; larger parts areoff-loaded by the PartHANDLER-II using programmable mag-nets. A drop table removes the completed skeletons while production continues, uninterrupted, on the next plate.

“The Whitney load/unload allows the operator to run the machine and also do other things in the general area,” Clomansays. “The Whitney might be running and instead of standingthere he might stack, or quality control parts. The machine canbe producing while he is doing quality work which is done atevery work station here.”


Nine tools can be positioned on the 3400 XP backrail forpunching, forming or marking material up to 1" thick.

Scott Johnson, programmer/operator, works with nestingsoftware to assure efficient material usage on the 3400 XP.


Moving Forward TogetherWaste Gas’ability to run parts of all sizes and thicknesses con-tributes to their success. Their primary business is steel plate fabri-cation but they are also strong in structural fabrication includingduct work. Nine certified welders create assemblies from mild steel,aluminum and stainless.

Most of the Waste Gas employees have been with the com-pany many years—several began their working careers at theshop and worked their way from one position to another. Re-gardless of what position they are in, they all agree with thecompany philosophy of doing the job right the first time whiletaking customer service to the highest level.

Cloman repeatedly credits his employees, including Ruthann,his wife, who handles Human Resources, with the company suc-cess,“Anyone who owns a business and says, ‘I did this’, is wrong.In this day and age, you need more than one guy. You need agood group of dedicated individuals. We’ve all worked our wayup the ladder as the company grew.

“You have to believe in yourself, your company and yourpeople…and work. We’re all working harder today than ever

before.” ◆

Find out more about Waste Gas Steel Fabrication atwww.wastegas.com.

Waste Gas has found that the cut from the 3400 XP is 90 percent of what they get from their laser and considerably faster.Many of the parts move on to a press brake or weld station.

Press operator Zihad Ibric works with parts from the 3400 XP.


Looking to save pennies to stay competitive?How would you like to save dollars instead?

The world is full of trade-offs. Great tastingfoods are fattening; powerful cars are gas-guzzlers; fine jewelry isexpensive; we all get caught balancing our desires with our limita-tions. Trade-offs apply to metal fabrication as well. As newprocesses and technologies are introduced, there are normallytrade-offs which limit the opportunities. Speed, quality, and costare generally three variables that are mutually exclusive—for ex-ample, turning up the speed knob in any process generally hasconsequences in quality.

So, when Whitney introduced the RAMPAGE! process, many ex-pected to see a down side. Not so—RAMPAGE! redefines plasmacutting with faster speeds, lower operating costs, and larger operat-ing window without loss of quality. Furthermore, existing users caneasily benefit from this technol-ogy. The most economical processin the industry has achieved amajor breakthrough, a paradigmshift that pays dollar size divi-dends when we are looking forpennies to stay competitive.

In 1993,Whitney introducedthe TRUECut® process. At thattime, this oxygen plasma cuttingprocess offered major benefitsover the previously used airplasma process by providing numerous benefits including awider operating window, dross-free cutting, longer consumablelife, and better accuracy and cutquality. The response from ourcustomer base was staggering—the new process broadened the acceptance of the punch/plasma process. Now, 10 years later,RAMPAGE! has done it again. This new process provides majorthroughput and economic benefits over both the standard TRUECut process, as well as all competitive processes.

What is RAMPAGE!?In December, 2001, the Whitney and Hypertherm® developmentteams laid out a plan to reduce the cost of plasma cutting.While Hypertherm’s HT 2000 product already had the lowest op-erating cost in the industry, we felt that a dramatic improvement

in speed was needed to solidify its positionfor the upcoming years. The goals of theproject were aggressive:

1. Increase cutting speeds by 40 percent in 1/4" through 1/2"mild steel at 200 amps.

2. No increase in operating costs.3. Maintain existing cut quality.4. Use the existing HT 2000 Plasma Cutting System with a mini-

mum amount of field upgradeable modifications.We are thrilled to note, and proud to announce, that all of the

project goals were met.

Cutting SpeedsNot only were the project goals met, they were exceeded in manycases. Advantages from this process begin in as thin as 10 gage

material! In 1/4" mild steel, cut-ting speeds increased from 160inches/minute to 230 inches/minute. That’s a 44 percent im-provement. In 1/2" mild steel, afull 50 percent improvement wasrealized—from 80 inches/minuteto 120 inches/minute. Across thematerial thickness range,RAMPAGE!cuts 40 to 50 percent faster thanthe TRUECut process.

Now here‘s the good part—the operating window is wideopen. For example, dross-freecuts in 1/4" material ranged from160 ipm to 240 ipm with no discernable difference in edgequality, kerf angle, or part size.

A similar window was seen in the entire range of thicknesses.In other words, the process is wide open. Figure 1 shows thecutting speeds and conditions we tested at Whitney. At our firsttest site, the cutting speeds were commonly even faster thanthe new “book” values.

We know, from our customer base, that most Whitney userspush the cutting speeds of the current process beyond book values. While the book values for 1/4" mild steel suggests 160inches/minute, many of our users push it to almost 200 inches/minute. With the standard TRUECut process, this extra speedcomes with the sacrifice of part quality and potentially machine

RAMPAGE!™

Redefines Plasma Cutting

Figure 1. Data from Whitney’s extensive testing. The pale yellow bars indicate the dross-free operating range ofthe RAMPAGE! process. The red dots indicate the nomi-nal cutting speeds. The yellow dots indicate the nominalcutting speeds for the standard TRUECut process.

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PUNCH/PLASMA INNOVATION

by Al Julian • Marketing Manager


wear and tear. Part quality will suf-fer due to additional dross, kerfangle, and kerf lag (kerf lag is wherethe top and bottom of the cut aredifferent resulting in irregular con-tour definition and washed out cor-ners). Machine wear results becausethe slag spray is not truly vertical,and is therefore directed into theside of the slag collector resulting inaccelerated wear and/or failure ofthe slag collection system.

With RAMPAGE!, the part qualityis consistent throughout the operat-ing range, kerf angles and sizes areconsistent, and the arc is “stiff”,resulting in no kerf lag, and a trulyvertical slag spray, greatly reducingwear on the slag collection system.In other words—faster cuttingspeed, better part quality, and more uptime.

Operating CostsThe overall operating costs of the plasma cutting process are dependent upon power consumption, gas costs, and consum-able parts costs.

1. Power Consumption—At first, one would assume thatpower consumption is identical between the two processes.Both use 200 amps of cutting current. However, since the RAMPAGE! process is running 40 to 50 percent faster, the actualpower consumption per inch of cut is greatly reduced. For example, it takes 1.5 minutes to cut 120 linear inches of 1/2"steel at 80 inches/minute with the TRUECut process at 200 amps.With RAMPAGE!, it takes only one minute to cut the same lengthof cut, still at 200 amps. This results in 1/3 less power consump-tion for the same length of cut.

2. Gas Consumption—There is a 12 percent increase in oxygengas consumption per hour. Again, using the same logic as describedabove, the gas is on for a shorter amount of time per part! By using12 percent higher flow rate, but increasing the cutting speed 40 to50 percent, the gas is on for a shorter length of time, and the totalgas consumption is reduced by 20 to 25 percent. Taken over a year’stime, this results in significant savings in gas expense.

3.Consumable Parts—Consumable parts cost is the single great-est expense in plasma cutting operating costs. These costs are af-fected by the price of the nozzles,electrodes,and other torch parts,aswell as their life. Since consumable cost plays such a big role in overalloperating costs,we quickly realized that, for this project,we could notafford to make costly consumable parts—they would need to besimilar in manufacturability as the existing TRUECut consumables.Furthermore,the life of the consumables could not suffer.

Maintaining the life of the consumables turned out to be thebiggest challenge in the entire project,mostly because it had a toughact to follow. The TRUECut process has long offered incredible con-

sumable life—many of our users ex-perience staggering life for a set ofconsumables. However,using ad-vanced modeling techniques,andlong hours of testing,modification,and re-testing,a design was achievedwhich produced the desired life curve.Our test site indicated that weachieved an average life of over 1,000starts for a set of consumables. Thismet or exceeded the expectation asshown on Hypertherm’s life curve forthe HT 2000 process (see Figure 2).

Not only is the RAMPAGE!process faster, it maintains theeconomy of the TRUECut process(the standard of the industry).

Quality of CutOur customers tell us that dross-

free parts are a given. They also state that the most importantaspect of part quality is repeatability. In these respects, theRAMPAGE! process excels.

As already stated, the dross-free operating window of theRAMPAGE! process is wide open. Furthermore, the publishedcutting speeds for the process still leave some head room formaterial and process variations. Dross-free parts are a given,and the RAMPAGE! process delivers.

Which brings us to repeatability. Plasma cut accuracy is de-pendent upon the consistency of kerf angle. It is normally notan issue as to whether the process delivers a one or a three de-gree kerf angle, but rather whether a one and a three degreekerf angle appear on different edges of the same part. Themaintenance of a consistent kerf angle determines process re-peatability. Our testing has shown that the RAMPAGE! processdelivers not only small kerf angles, but also much more consis-tent kerf angles than any other conventional plasma cutting system on the market, including TRUECut. RAMPAGE! delivershigher quality parts at faster speeds and lower cost.

Total Cost of OwnershipSo let’s get back to saving dollars, not pennies; it’s time to do themath. RAMPAGE! is standard on all Whitney punch/plasma offer-ings, including the 3400 XP, 3700 SST, and 4400 MAX products.Using a standard nest (a “benchmark” nest of parts Whitney hasused for process comparisons over the last 10 years), we analyzedthe total cost of ownership for a 3400 XP with TRUECut, and a3400 XP with RAMPAGE! The total cost of machine ownership includes labor costs, operating costs (for the entire machine), anddepreciation costs (the amortization of a financial payment perhour). Our Investment Advisor model takes into account all as-pects of these costs for each process considered. Figure 3 showsthe effect RAMPAGE! gives us on the average of one nest of partscut in five different material thicknesses between 3/16" and 1/2" in

120011001000

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LongLife Oxygen TechnologyCompared to Conventional

Oxygen Plasma Electrode Life

Figure 2. Our test site averaged over 1,000 starts overthree machines and two weeks—meeting or exceed-ing the expectation from Hypertherm’s life curve.


thickness. Amortized over an entire year with a three shift opera-tion, that translates to a savings of $120,000 per year over the samemachine with TRUECut cutting technology.

Even more staggering is the same analysis compared to highend 4.0 kW laser (see Figure 4) showing $187,000 per year costdifference—dollars toward the bottom line. Will your customerspay you $187,000 per year to have their parts cut on a laser? Orare your customers pushing you for additional cost reductionsthat you cannot afford today?

Is It Real?Just ask Dale Harper,Vice President and General Manager, andWayne Mount, Production Manager at Mancor Industries in Oakville,Ontario. Mancor tested the RAMPAGE! process on their three Whit-ney machines—two 3700 ATC’s and one 3400 RTC. The result?Mancor ran their three punch/plasma machines non-stop for twoweeks and received more parts at the end of each shift than everbefore. Aside from the feed rate changes, no other programmingchanges were made—even for common cut parts. In some mate-rial thicknesses, Mancor even exceeded the book values.

“In our next corporate meeting, I will be introducing thisprocess to the other facilities as part of our ‘best practices’ pro-gram” says Dale Harper. Mancor’s sister plant in South Carolinahas three Whitney machines as well.

Existing Users—You‘re in Luck!RAMPAGE! is available as a retrofit to all existing TRUECut users,and the best news is that it is very affordable. Call your localWhitney distributor, or contact Whitney service directly. We willbe glad to help you save money.

Some final thoughts on the big picture for the 3400 XPWe have made major design enhancements on this product over thelast two years,and it is important that all of our customers understandthe continuous improvement process we have undertaken here at Whit-ney. We are an industry leader,leading the way in process economy forfabricated parts. Our Investment Advisor model has shown us the direc-tion we need to go in order to maintain our leadership position.

Here are some of the changes and enhanced offerings wehave made in the last two years on the 3400 product line alone:

• Faster rapid speeds—from 1,000 inches/minute to 1,500inches/minute.

• 10 percent faster tool change times.• 67 percent reduction in drop door cycle times.• 50 percent reduction in torch ignition times.• Skeleton Drop Table—automated skeleton removal within the

existing machine envelope.• PartHANDLER-II automation package—for loading of raw ma-

terial, and unloading/sorting of large parts.• Tool Caddy—tool expansion system for reduction of set-up.• Open Architecture CNC Control with improved communication

features, remote diagnostics, messages, and contour definition.• TuffSkin Premium Tooling (see related article on page 22.)• RAMPAGE! Plasma Cutting Technology.

Each of the above has provided a benefit to the bottomline—for reducing the cost of fabricating sheet metal and plate.So if you are an existing 3400 RTC user, change your referencepoint. Today’s 3400 XP has made a good thing better, faster, andat a lower cost. You do not need to trade off cost for quality.Today’s fabricator can have his cake and eat it too. ◆

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70


$19.68

$14.18

$24.03

4.0 kW Laser

$9.02

$6.83

$15.78

3400 XP with RAMPAGE!

DepreciationOperatingLabor

Figure 3. Cost analysis of the 3400 XP with RAMPAGE! versusthe 3400 XP with TRUECut shows the substantial economicadvantage of the RAMPAGE! system in the thickness rangeof 3/16" through 1/2" (3.5 – 12.7 mm) steel.

Figure 4. Cost analysis of the 3400 XP with RAMPAGE! versusa 4 kW laser cutting machine shows the substantial eco-nomic advantage of the 3400 XP in the thickness range of3/16" through 1/2" (3.5 – 12.7 mm) steel.


Own a Whitney for $75,000! It sounds absurddoesn’t it?

In January of this year, Whitney introducedthe STORM Plasma Cutting Machine, with prices starting at$75,000 for a complete 5' x 10' system.

The Whitney STORM is an economical version of the ADVAN-TAGE Precision Plasma Cutting Machine. While the ADVANTAGEfills the need at the top end of the precision plasma cuttingspectrum, the STORM offers many of the same benefits for amuch smaller pricetag. The best part isthat, even with thiskind of affordability,you still get Whitney’strademark high qualityservice, dependability,and support.

Our prospects andusers drove the need toadd the STORM to ourproduct line-up. We weretold that there are certainapplications where the ini-tial investment level plays thepredominant role in machineselection. However, even at theseinvestment levels, there are clear,high expectations for machine capa-bility and service. Let’s face it, $75,000 isstill a lot of money, even in 2003 dollars.

So, let’s look at what the STORM offers:• Precision, unitized steel frame.• 5' x 10' table—for a slightly higher invest-

ment, the STORM is also offered in 6' x 12' and6' x 20' sizes.

• Segmented downdraft table to allow for connection to theoptional fume extraction system.

• 1.00" (25 mm) thickness capacity.• Hypertherm®‚ EDGE II CNC Control.• Hypertherm Powermax 1650, 100 amp Air Plasma Cutting

System. Also available with optional High Definition PlasmaCutting Systems, and HT 2000 systems.

• Whitney installation, support, and service.

The decision to offer this machine withHypertherm’s Powermax 1650 was based onthree key criteria:

A large number of prospective customers have indicated toWhitney that the initial investment level is the most importantelement in the decision-making process. The Powermax 1650offers a tremendous value for minimum investment.

Hypertherm’s new Powermax 1650 offers exceptional features for minimum investment. In fact, the cutting technol-ogy offered by this compact system is the same co-axial flow

technology that Whitney’s exciting new RAMPAGE! process is based on. That

means faster cutting speeds forthe dollar! And since it is anAir Plasma System, the operat-

ing costs are much lower thanother technologies.

When the timecomes to expand capabilities to a highdefinition system, theSTORM can be retrofit-ted, so you maintainthe majority of your

initial investment.With genuine Whitney support,

you lower your risk by depending upon arock solid company with almost a century of his-

tory and longstanding high quality service. Whitneyservices the entire machine, including CNC and cuttingsystems, not just the table. When investing your com-pany’s money, it makes sense to take no more risk than isabsolutely necessary.

With the recent departure of several players in theplasma cutting machine industry, it makes sense to purchaseyour next machine from the company that will be here foryou today, tomorrow, next week, next year, and ten yearsfrom today. No matter what you need — a repair part, highquality service, or application advice — Whitney will be hereto assist you.

So, whether you are creating artwork from steel, making partsfor your own product line, or making parts for others, the STORMprovides the technology and the quality to produce those partsfor a small fraction of the cost of other technologies. ◆

Affordability Holds the Key for theSTORM’s Success

by Al Julian • Marketing Manager

PRECISION PLASMA—NEW PRODUCT


Whether serving in an elective office, developing concepts ofcomputer-based management programs, directing the revital-ization of a 700-bed hospital’s profitability, promoting historicproperty preservation, or running a well equipped metal fabri-cating job shop, David Y. Copeland, III, practices the applicationof hard work and common sense.

Copelands, Inc., in Ooltewah,Tennessee, covers 48,000 squarefeet and employs twenty-seven. Founder David, who served asstate representative from 1968 through 1992, acts as chairman.His son David Michael Copeland (Mike) began working with thecompany while he was in high school. Mike took over many oper-ational responsibilities while his father was in the state legislatureand now holds the position of president and general manager.

In 1965, David started Copelands in a two-car garage withone “buzz box” welder. With the PlateLASER-II becoming itsmost recent acquisition, the company has positioned itself to bea significant supplier of laser cutting services, specialized plateand section rolling, and general fabrication.

Although a laser was in the acquisition plans for some time,the timing of the purchase in 2002 was driven by the Govern-ment’s Relief Stimulus Package enacted to encourage busi-nesses to buy capital equipment.

“I dug into the details of the package and came to the realiza-tion that because I had an operation that had been profitable for

the past several years, there was tremendous opportunity herewhich could achieve my objective of putting in a laser and con-tribute to the national purpose of buying equipment which wouldcreate a job somewhere else down the line,”explains David.

Expanded CapabilitiesThe need to purchase a laser was recognized when the word“laser” began appearing on part specifications with increasingfrequency.

“There is a magic about the word laser,” David says. “We nowhave two generations of engineering students who have comethrough school with the word ‘laser’ ingrained in their brainsthrough their studies.”

Even though the accuracy and precision of a laser cut part isnot always critical for a part’s application, Copelands finds thatmore and more companies are insisting on laser cut parts.

“Over time I believe we are goingto find that there is a recognition thatthere is a place and a need for laser,but that just “laser cut” doesn’t auto-matically mean a better job. Untilthen, we are going to give the cus-tomer what the customer wants,”David adds.

Accuracy, Speed, SizeCopeland’s PlateLASER-II is the first ofits kind. In addition to providing theaccuracy and speed of a flying opticssystem in a work area that is 10' x 20', ithas a dual shuttle table configurationthat allows the production of parts upto 40 feet long with repositioning.

Politics, FabricationAnd Innovation In Tennessee

PLATELASER APPLICATION

The PlateLASER-II, shown while being assembled, features a dual shuttle table configu-ration allowing the production of parts up to 40' long with repositioning.

Founder and Chairman David Copeland III (right) and today’sPresident and General Manager Mike Copeland review prints.


The PlateLASER-II quickly and accurately cuts up to 1-1/4"mild and stainless steel and up to 1/2" aluminum. Its linear mo-tors provide increased speeds, particularly in the thinner materi-als, due to extremely rapid acceleration and deceleration.

Since the purchase of the PlateLASER-II, Mike has spent agood portion of his time prospecting and cold calling. He is seeing what Copelands terms the ‘halo’ effect.

Mike explains,“I call on companies to introduce the new laser.They want to know about the new capabilities. This allows us tobid on laser-specified parts that we could not do before. But it alsocreates an opportunity to investigate the other fabricating needsand offer the full services of our shop.That’s called our ‘halo’ effect.”

Copelands’ customer base of over 400 companies changes asrapidly as their shop capabilities. And they are preparing for an-other shift in shop dynamics, a totally new workflow, as thePlateLASER-II capabilities are incorporated into the daily produc-tion schedule.

Improved tolerances eliminate secondary operations, in turn reducing the need to move material from station to station. Largerand more complex parts can be completed in one operation ratherthan multiple operations. And the nesting capability of the ma-chine’s software allows a variety of parts to be nested efficiently onone plate and produced in one operation with reduction in scrap.

These changes increase overall throughput and reduce perpart costs, fitting well with today’s “lean manufacturing” initiatives.

Lean and JMSAccording to David, lean manufacturing is simply a new termapplied to practices that have existed for years in successfulshops. Copelands’ version of “lean” began long ago when hewrote a simple payroll program that over time developed intothe currently used 4th generation computer-based Job Manage-ment System (JMS).

JMS begins with an estimate and follows a job all the waythrough billing.

Years of data are used to develop time and cost standards foreach operation performed. Each individual process is referred

to as a “discrete” operation. For example, drilling a 1" hole in 1"steel is one discrete operation. Drilling a 1" hole in 2" steel is another discrete operation because of the thickness variable.

Each job that flows through the shop is considered a “bun-dle” of discrete operations. By referring to their historical data,Copelands can determine the time it will take to produce thefeatures on any part and provide an accurate estimate.

“The estimator reaches back into the computer data, pulls thetime values from the records and says, this is what it takes to dothis job,” David explains.

When the customer places the order, this JMS estimate trig-gers the purchase of material.

JMS coordinates the arrival of the material with the issuance ofshop travelers. The travelers track each discrete operation as it isperformed, driving the job to the next sequential process. Opera-tors log the start and finish times of each discrete operation on theshop computer, tracking the particular job and collecting additional

Cont’d on page 17

Copelands, a general fabrication shop, provides servicesincluding laser and plasma cutting, specialized plate and section rolling, and welding.

Operator Tony Albritton (left) and Mike Copeland check a program on the PlateLASER-II’s Intelligent Laser Control (ILC)with a built in Material Parameter Library (MPL) that makes iteasy to change from one material or thickness to another.

Finished assemblies of many sizes are cut, punched, formedand welded for Copeland customers.


INMAGUSA (Ingenieria y Maquinaria deGuadalupe, S.A. de C.V. of Engineeringand Machining of Guadalupe) is a firsttier manufacturer of heat-treated and non-heat-treated framerails and reinforcements for medium and heavy duty trucks,busses and recreational vehicle manufacturers. They also pro-duce steel components for various industrial applications.

INMAGUSA started producing frame rails in 1974. Today, theyare one of the three largest producers in North America, servingcustomers in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with sales inexcess of $50 million dol-lars annually.

Strategically located, their120-acre site is close to steelsources and within threehours of the Mexican/UnitedStates border. Their locationfacilitates their daily ship-ments to no less than six locations in the three NorthAmerican countries.

The INMAGUSA family isover 1,000 people strong,working three shifts perday, six days per week.They pride themselves ontheir engineering strength,designing and buildingunique processing equip-ment specifically for framerail production.

In addition to offering a wide variety of straight as well ascontoured frame rail products, they provide the option of e-coator powder coat protection.

Increasing ProductionIn 1995, INMAGUSA produced 80 frame rails per day. Today,they are supplying in excess of 1,000 and are positioning thecompany to increase the output to 1,400 per day.

Customized frame rails from INMAGUSA are provided fullyprocessed, line set,and just-in-time for very specific applications,com-plete with the Vehicle Identification Number stamped on each rail.

Looking to focus on customer demand and to optimize pro-duction in their 100-man fabrication facility, INMAGUSA began

looking for a machine that would givethem versatility and help them increaseproduction without a large capital

investment. The machine to be added to their facility had toprovide excellent reliably and service had to be readily availablefrom the manufacturer.

When Eduardo Loya Galaz, Technical Director and EngineerHector Falcon, Gerente De Productos Especiales, saw a 3400 RTCat another company, they were impressed. But funds allocatedfor the equipment did not allow the purchase of a new 3400 RTC.

So INGMAGUSA investi-gated the availability of aused model.

Whitney’s Legacy Equipment Departmentbegan a search and inspring of 2002 provided INMAGUSA with a used1997 3400 RTC, meetingtheir need for efficient fab-rication of material rangingfrom 10 gauge to 1/2" andsatisfying their economicvalue requirements.

Before delivery to INMAGUSA, the machinewent through a completerefurbishing at the Whitneyplant, assuring that it was capable of the mosteconomic production.

Whitney also backed the Legacy 3400 RTC with a warranty forparts and service, lowering the risk of ownership of a used ma-chine tool, and provided on-site training so operators could beproduce parts quickly and efficiently.

Proven ValueAfter six months of production in the INMAGUSA specialty fabrication shop, Falcon notes that lead time decreased fromone-month to ten-days. A delivery improvement of 66 percent.

Much of the time savings is found in the elimination of sec-ondary operations. Parts that were previously punched, drilled,then cut, are completed in one punch/plasma operation.

INMAGUSA has worked to become a certified QS 9000 manu-

INMAGUSA Legacy Equipment ReducesLead Time by 66 Percent

by Gary Vosberg • Legacy Department Manager

WHITNEY LEGACY EQUIPMENT

INMAGUSA’s 3400 team: Standing left to right, Engineer Hector Falconand Foreman Adrian Guajardo display a frame rail part. Kneeling left toright,Operators Roberto Valadez,Ismael Carrizales and Rigoberto Cuellar.


facturer. Their next quality objective is to achieve ISO 14000 Cer-tification, so quality and accuracy is critical to their continuousimprovement plan.

The TRUECut oxygen plasma cut is proving very impressiveover past cutting processes and meets the quality and accuracyneeds. Approximately 35 percent of the parts coming off theWhitney, go directly to welding operations where fit up is ex-tremely important.

Operators of the 3400 RTC appreciate the machine’s capabili-ties for easily producing parts from various thicknesses of mate-rials and because of its ability to “nest “ both small and largeparts on a plate to achieve good material utilization.

Choosing UsedThere have been many attempts by manufacturers to build the “ultimate machine”. Most popular machines, if not all, have gone

through an evolution of changes, some for the better and some forthe worse. Knowing which of these attempts have been successfulis crucial to not buying what may become a “white elephant”.

The key to buying a pre-owned machine is to know whatmachines have been designed and built to win the productiv-ity race based on performance. When deciding on an “experi-enced” machine, a buyer should take into account who theseller is, the machine model and its performance, and its main-tenance history.

Prospective buyers should have confidence that they can eas-ily get support for maintenance, operator training, and repairs,ideally from the original manufacturer.

Whitney’s Legacy Equipment Department offers Legacy productsthat lower the risk of used equipment ownership by backing pur-chases with service, warranties and training. Strictly buying from aused machine dealer leaves the buyer to his own devices. ◆

Politics, Fabrication and Innovation cont’d from page 15

data. Once the job is finished, shipping postsa record that initiates billing.

Unique CompensationCopelands’ employees enjoy a uniquecompensation plan that also ties into JMS.Employees are paid per process com-pleted, based on the same standards usedto create customer estimates. In additionto base pay, they receive an amountbased on each completed job as deter-mined by the JMS standards.

For example, if JMS estimates that a jobshould take eight hours, the operator’s com-pensation for completing that job is pre-de-termined by the eight-hour standard. If hecompletes the job in less time, he still re-ceives the full pay and is free to move on tothe next available job, putting more dollarsin his pocket for his day’s work.

David smiles when he says,“At first theemployees were very reluctant to try it.Then when the first fellow doubled hispay, everybody wanted to get in on it!”

Health insurance is another uniqueproposition at Copelands.“Copelandsdoesn’t furnish or sponsor health insur-ance,” explains David. “For every dayyou work here we give you extra money.If you choose to buy health insurance,we’ll do the shopping and we’ll do pay-roll deduction and remit payment foryou. But we don’t furnish or sponsorhealth insurance.”

It works like a bonus program. If anemployee misses a day of work, his insur-ance payments will remain the same,even though his paycheck may besmaller. The results are improved atten-dance, controlled investment forCopelands, and assistance with health in-surance costs for employees.

“The lawyers and accountants say thatthis is a new business model. They’venever seen anyone else do it. It’s workedso far,” David says.

Industry ChallengesDavid provides insights to industry chal-lenges based on his years of active in-

volvement in industry, government andhis community.

He identifies four key problem areas:1) excessive regulation that diverts re-sources into compliance requirements;2) having to compete with significantlylower wage structures such as foreigncompetitors; 3) heavy tax burdens that divert available resources from newequipment investment (somewhat offsetby the Relief Stimulus Package); and 4) general domestic economic conditionscausing customers to delay purchases.

David remains active in his community,serving on various boards and committees.He also continues sharing his business andindustry knowledge with government offi-cials at all levels, working to improve the cli-mate for U.S. manufacturers.

As a company, Copelands plans to aggressively serve their customers, pro-viding processed parts and finished products to large corporations andsmaller shops. They will continue tosearch for and incorporate better, fasterand more efficient ways of producingparts and doing business. Copelands willcontinue their innovation. ◆

NOTE: The Relief Stimulus Package is in effect through

September 11, 2004. The provision allows a first year

deduction of 40 percent and 57 percent over two years.

There is no limitation on purchase value. (You may want

to investigate this opportunity with your financial advisor.)

Mike Copeland can still step in as need-ed to produce parts on Copeland’s firstWhitney, a Panelmaster punch/plasmapurchased in 1978.


Imagine the possibilities. That’s the mantra at Laser Engineering andFabrication, Inc. (L.E.F.) in Tulsa, Oklahoma when a customer calls.

L.E.F. has eight laser cutting machines producing parts frommaterials ranging from carbon, stainless, inconel, hastoloy and aluminum to other specialty metals plus plywood, acrylic,plastics and composites. Cutting thickness varies depending on materials, ranging from .001" through 1-1/4".

Once the parts are cut, L.E.F. offers turn-key products and serv-ices including etching, forming, welding, assembly, powder coat-ing and machining (i.e.: drilling, counter boring and threading).

When Ron LaPelle, president and general manager, estab-lished L.E.F. in 1987, it was the only “laser service bureau” in thearea. Now, several area fabricating shops compete for laser cut-ting services. LaPelle stays a step ahead by continually increas-ing services and capabilities.

Today they employee four programmers/inside sales peopleto assist with part designs from prototype to production runsfrom blue print, artwork or CAD interface with nearly any format.

Choosing a LaserL.E.F.’s first laser was small by today’s standards, but it laid thegroundwork for company growth. In addition to other lasers,L.E.F.’s expansion included the purchase of fabrication equip-ment such as press brakes, robotic welders, a machining center,and various machining and production equipment.

“Our original laser was a 1500 watt with a 5' x 8' (60" x 98")cutting table. Since then, we’ve added a laser just about everytwo years,” says LaPelle. “We’ve retired some and added others.”

That first laser has been modified for special jobs, including

cutting tube, channel, angle and contour formed parts, and stillproduces parts today.

Each year the type and quantity of work flowing through the shop is analyzed to determine which laser will join the L.E.F.family. Consideration is given to the size of the machine, power,productivity and reliability.

In 2002, the decision was made to go after the market forthicker, precision cut materials, particularly stainless, inconel, has-tolloy and aluminum alloys. That prompted the purchase of theWhitney PlateLASER that cuts up to 1-1/4" mild or stainless steelwith a positioning accuracy of ±.001", and a processing accuracyof ±.005" to ±.015" depending on material type and thickness.

Expanding Customer BaseJohn Baker, sales manager at L.E.F., explains,“Since we’ve addedthe PlateLASER, we’re targeting customers that use thicker

Endless Variety Of Laser Cut Parts

PLATELASER APPLICATION

Operator Chris Gripe produces parts that go to other fabricating processes including forming, welding, powder coating andassembly. Cutting speeds, tight tolerances and the ability to cut thick stainless are key to securing new customers.

President and General Manager Ron LaPelle supports a fin-ished assembly that goes into a hitch for a gooseneck trailer.


stainless and aluminum products. With the PlateLASER, we are more competitive by eliminating secondary machiningprocesses, and holding closer tolerances than plasma and other cutting methods.”

Expansion of the stainless cutting capability remains the main purpose of the PlateLASER at L.E.F., but right now it is cut-ting quite a bit of carbon steel from 3/16" up to 1". Producingparts with tight tolerances at high cut speeds is key to capturingnew business.

The Intelligent Laser Control (ILC) with the Material ParameterLibrary (MPL) makes it easy to shift from one material type andthickness to another. The cutting and piercing speeds, assist gases,gas pressure and the lenses used are all specified by the software.

With 6000 kW of power, the PlateLASER cuts carbon, stainless,nickel, alloys, aluminum and specialty metals considerably fasterthan other machines available today.

Rick Nacke, operations manager, says,“The PlateLASER has performed admirablyand reduced cut production times by 25percent to 50 percent on large, long run,high quantity jobs.”

Grills and PartsA glance around the L.E.F. shop at any giventime emphasizes the wide variety of parts pro-duced for nearly any purpose you can imag-ine. L.E.F. parts production ranges from metalart, jewelry and signage to industrial and OEMcomponent parts and sub-assemblies.

Materials vary, thicknesses vary, and size of parts range from small, intricate pieces for designer artwork to large parts for a number of heavy-duty crane assemblies and hitchesfor goose-neck trailers.

And the list is about to expand again.ThePlateLASER worktable can accommodate 80" x 160" plate, weighing up to 4,600pounds—allowing for large part production.

L.E.F. is also the sole manufacturer of the Coastal Gas Grillsline. These are heavy-duty gas grills, ranging from the large,wheeled Coastal Supreme to the Hoss tailgate model designedto take-along.

Parts for the grills are laser cut from 304 stainless steel on thePlateLASER, formed, and welded at the Tulsa plant. Assembly iscompleted and the finished tested products are boxed for retaildealers.“All at L.E.F.” L.E.F. also produces a complete line ofCoastal Grill stainless accessories.

Sticking with Laser“We’ve looked at other cutting processes to add to our capabilities,”explains LaPelle,“but we’ve elected to stay with lasers and offermore fabrication services for our customers. We offer turn-key prod-ucts—we can deliver parts, sub-assemblies or the whole product.”

The possibilities are endless. ◆

Coastal Grills is one of the L.E.F. customers to receive turnkey services — frommanufacturing and assembly to testing and packaging for retail sale.

The PlateLASER cuts parts from a variety of materials and thicknesses. Operations Manager Rick Nacke (right) and OperatorChris Gripe inspect the edge of a PlateLASER part.


A Safety ADVANTAGE To Quality Parts

ADVANTAGE APPLICATION

The quality of the parts in Elliott aerial equipment is not on theminds of construction and maintenance crew members as theywork up to 158 feet above ground level.

That’s because safety and quality are built into the aerialequipment manufactured by Elliott Equipment Company. Everypart used in building the work platforms and cranes goes

through stringent quality checks before going to assembly andinto a customer’s product.

Elliott’s well-supported customers are leaders in industries including construction, signage, departments of transportation,utilities, municipalities and mining.

Whether servicing a Fortune 500 or a small, family ownedbusiness, expectations for Elliott equipment are the same.Built-in safety is always number one. Customization with a wide variety of safety and convenience design options is num-ber two. A very close number three is durability and overallequipment value.

From One IdeaDick Elliott, an electrician by trade, grew tired of climbing up anddown electric poles in the early 1950’s and put his engineeringtalent to work. He designed an aerial work platform, the first Hi-Reach product of Elliott Equipment Company. During the fiftyyears since that first design, Elliott has continually increased its

product offerings and added new indus-tries to its list of customers served.

Today’s company of 110 people buildsaerial platforms and cranes, concretepumping booms, jib winches, diggers,outriggers, and a wide variety of specialequipment. The product mix continuesto grow with this year’s addition of hy-draulic cranes specifically designed forthe concrete dumper industry.

Manufacturing ChangesAs the markets Elliott served expanded,manufacturing processes needed tochange. Elliott moved to a “modular”

manufacturing system toallow more mass produc-tion of parts.

Jim Umshler, plant manager, explains,“Basically,we’ve added more fabrica-tion equipment to allow usto redesign and take someof the hours out of eachunit. Our customers wantthe best they can get for theleast amount of money. Weunderstand that.”

In addition to the modu-lar approach, Elliott has instituted Material Resource Planning(MRP) to help them reduce inventory and control their manufac-turing costs.

While these steps are being taken, the primary focus for themanufacture of parts remains on quality to meet Elliott’s guar-antee of equipment safety.

The ADVANTAGEAn ADVANTAGE Precision Plasma Table replaced an older table ina modular cell to produce parts from mild steel and high tensilematerials ranging from 3/8" to 1" thick.

The quality of the cut and the Hypertherm®Plasma System were deciding factors inElliott’s choice of the ADVANTAGE.

Umshler chose the ADVANTAGE with high definition plasmafor two key reasons. First, to improve the quality of the parts;and second, to eliminate down-stream processes.

“My old machine had too much kerf,” Umshler explains. “Youhad to have a real big radius on one end of the hole to get towhere the bolt would draw through.”

Other plasma machineswere considered before Elliottchose the 6' x 12' ADVANTAGE.

Deciding FactorsThe Hypertherm® Plasma System was a key element in the decision. Elliott chose theHD 4070 HyDefinition, one ofthree plasma options availableon the ADVANTAGE, to givethem the versatility of cuttingup to 1" while maintaining cut quality.

“I almost could not believethe straightness of the cut on1" steel,” says Umshler. “Mostof our parts have holes inthem and I didn’t want to burnthe parts and then move themto punching. This ADVANTAGEallows me to do that.”

Another advantage to Elliott’s choice is the easy-to-use control. Operator trainingwas quickly accomplished onthe familiar Windows®-basedCNC that provides a real timecut path display.

SigmaNEST ™ software, which was already in place for otherElliott equipment, efficiently nests parts to eliminate scrap andincrease production efficiency. Although most programming isdone in the office, the Parametric Shape Library, Shape Repeatand Nester features allows the flexibility of easily programmingparts at the control.

Built to LastWhen Umshler began lookingat plasma tables, he restrictedhis search to machines withHypertherm® systems, andcompanies that have proventhe staying power of theirequipment.

There is a lot of older Elliott equipment still in usetoday. Umshler points outthat as their larger customersbuy new, replacement equip-ment, the older models aresold into service at smallercompanies.

“We build a better piece ofequipment with quality, flexi-bility and durability. There area lot of used Elliott’s outthere.” And Umshler wanted aplasma table from a companythat shares Elliott’s belief inquality and durability.

“I picked Whitney becauseof their reputation,” Umshersays. “Whitney stands behindits equipment.” ◆


Elliott uses only the highest quality components to manufacture their truck-mounted aerial equipment for construction and maintenance applications.

Welder Mike Umshler creates assemblies with parts that wentfrom the ADVANTAGE to forming.


Tool Wear Galling You?

TOOLING INNOVATION

To better serve our customers,Whitney has introduced TuffSkinpremium tooling, a high perform-ance tool which extends the life oftooling by three times in standard punching applications and upto 10 times under severe applications. TuffSkin achieves this lifeextension due to its high lubricity, abrasion resistance and highcompressive strength. Unlike some coated tools, TuffSkin main-tains its performance even after regrinding.

TuffSkin gives you the ability to efficiently produce someholes that were previously difficult and costly to achieve.

Punch & ShaveIn 2001 Whitney introduced the 4400 MAX punch/plasma combination machine. Among other attributes, this machine hasthe capability of punching mild steel through a thickness of 1".With 100 tons of punching power, it quickly became evident thatthe machine could perform punch and shave operations for thickmaterial, eliminating drilling in some applications. However, withthis new capability came challenges in creating a new tool thatwould stand up to the punishment of the shaving operation.

Without a doubt, punch and shave is the most brutal toolingapplication for CNC machines. The punch and shave techniquehas been used by Whitney customers for many years generallyin materials 1/2" thick and less to achieve a straight hole withminimal breakout due to die clearance.

Punch and shave is a two hit process with the first hit makinga standard punched hole. The second hit uses a slightly largerpunch with a tight die clearance. As the second punch entersthe material it shaves it, in a broaching fashion, producing adoughnut shaped slug.

This broaching action creates additional friction and after justa few hits can cause the material to weld to the sides of the

punch. As more strokes are made,more galling takes place until thepunch is beyond repair.

TuffSkin helps eliminate the factorsof galling. The sides of the punch have the effect of being morelubricating and creating less friction than standard punches.This slippery surface prevents galling and buildup of heat.

Common applications for punch and shave include mak-ing straight holes for tapping. A standard punched holewould reduce the full penetration of thread through a signifi-cant portion of the material. Often when creating a hole fortapping, the thread diameter is equal to or less than the ma-terial thickness.

Within limits, TuffSkinallows us to punchholes less than materialthickness. This is due inpart to increased com-pressive strength of thebase material.

Another application isproviding better holequality for connectingpins. With severe break-out, the pin might rock back and forth producing a wear pointand premature failure.

Better hole quality is also often needed for bushingsand other guiding devices. The better hole can eliminatedrilling so the bushing can be pressed into place.

Stainless SteelStainless steel is one of those materials that is difficult to punch in any thickness. In thin sheet we try to reversethe punch just after it enters the material and createsthe shear.

In heavy stainless plate punching we often powerthe punch completely through the material effectivelydriving the slug into the die. This causes the punch toheat up and galling occurs on the sides of the punch.

The added lubricity of TuffSkin reduces tool wear.One customer, Arrowhead Conveyor, Oshkosh, Wisconsin re-

ported substantial increase in tool life with TuffSkin. TimKrueger of Arrowhead provided feedback from the testing.“Reluctant to jump in with both feet, we began testing on oneof our high use punches…. Test results have shown that tool lifehas increased significantly.”

by David White • Tooling Sales & Marketing Manager and Morrie Earnest • Sales Manager

Figure 1. Pre-punched hole (normal die clearance)

Punch and shave slugs

Figure 2. Second shaved hole (tight die clearance)


But longer tool life is not the only benefit. “The benefit wesee with the TuffSkin tooling is not the cost but the time savedwith the extended life. Compared to the standard tooling wewill only be changing and sharpening the TuffSkin tooling oncecompared to four times. The savings can even extend past theshop floor into purchasing, receiving and even on shipping costswhen you reduce the numberof purchase orders.”

PerforatingPerforating often involvespunching hundreds or thou-sands of holes in a plate ofmaterial. The high duty cycleand heat issues can reducetool life, especially when com-bined with small hole sizes.

Karen Taylor of Seguin Fabricators tested WhitneyTuffSkin tooling in one suchapplication. Taylor says,“Seguin Fabricators, Ltd. began testing the Whitney TuffSkintooling product after having short tool life problems with a.531 square punch through 1/2" A36 material.

“We spoke to David White, Whitney Tooling Sales and Mar-keting Manager, about the problems we were having with thisparticular application. It wasn’t long before he talked to us

about testing TuffSkin tooling on our next run on the .531square punches.

“The TuffSkin generated three times more hits than thestandard tooling before requiring sharpening. In fact, we gotnearly four times the hits of standard tooling after beingground. The additional up front cost of the TuffSkin tooling

over standard tooling willmore than pay for itself in avery short time…”

RegrindWhitney solid body flatfaced punches have 7/16worth of grind life on theface of the punch. In thepast, conventional coatingswould flake off the sides ofthe punch soon after theface was ground for sharp-ening. This reduced the ef-fectiveness of the punch.

With TuffSkin the punch will not lose it’s effectiveness whensharpened. Test results by Whitney customers indicate thepunch life is extended even after grinding.

TuffSkin is available for 28XX, 36TC, and 44TC Whitney style tools.Interested in learning how TuffSkin can make your life easier?

Call your Whitney representative today. ◆

Whitney TuffSkin tooling extends the life of tooling by three times in standardpunching applications and up to 10 times under severe applications

“Compared to the standard tooling we

will only be changing and sharpening the

TuffSkin tooling once compared to four times.

The savings can even extend past the shop

floor into purchasing, receiving and even on

shipping costs when you reduce the number

of purchase orders.”

— Tim Krueger, Arrowhead Conveyor


S&C Electric KeepsThe Lights On

CNC PRECISION FABRICATOR APPLICATION

Think of the lost work, opportunities and profits each time theelectric power goes down.

S&C Electric Company, based in Chicago, Illinois, has taken on the responsibility of providing switching and protectionproducts for electric power transmission and distribution since1911. Solutions are provided for electric utilities and commer-cial, industrial and institutional power users worldwide.

In addition to Chicago, S&C facilities are found in Franklin,Wisconsin; Alameda, California; and Orlando, Florida. Subsidiariesoperate in Toronto, Canada; Curitiba, Brazil; Naucalpan, Mexico;and Suzhou, China.

S&C’s broad range of products helps deliver electric power efficiently and reliably. Some are used to switch circuits. Othersminimize damage to equipment in the event of a fault or reducethe area of an outage by automatically rerouting power flow.And S&C’s sophisticated power-quality products can deliver unin-terrupted power for an entire facility, for crucial process industries.

The main manufacturing and engineering campus in Chicagocovers 46 acres. More than 20 buildings house a million squarefeet. 1,700 employees keep manufacturing going 24 hours aday, every day.

Fabrication and assembly operations are spread throughoutthe site. Approximately 400 pieces of fabrication equipmentproduce parts that feed twenty different assembly lines.

As a vertically integrated company, S&C produces nearly allcomponents that go into its products, working with all types ofmaterials from polymers to metals to electronics. Coordinationof processing the thousands of parts that go into S&C assem-blies is one of the Chicago plant’s biggest challenges.

S&C business is very reactionary. If there is an electricalstorm, ice storm or hurricane, they see a direct impact in sales,particularly of some smaller products. They need to be able toprovide immediate response to their customers.

Improving FlowS&C’s Advanced Manufacturing Project (AMP), a two-year-oldwork flow initiative, is tasked with reducing inventory of fabricatedparts and work-in-process, while improving production flow.

AMP has rearranged production by creating manufacturingpaths, like mini-factories, within S&C. Each fabricated part is as-signed to a path based on the processes required to fabricatethe part. Design engineers have been challenged to only intro-duce parts that can be produced within one of the AMP paths.

The paths need to incorporate equipment that is flexible

enough to work with the wide variety of materials, allowing forquick change-over.

Parts cover a wide range of thicknesses, up to 1/2". Part dimensions vary. Lengths measure anywhere from 1-1/2" up to 12'. Stock includes mild steel and bus bar—both aluminumand copper. Shapes include flats, angles, channels and specialaluminum extrusions. One typically common feature among the variety is the need for at least one hole.

As AMP was put into place, one of the initial actions was to “reprocess”each part, looking for opportunities to improve pro-duction processes. Improvement was particularly sought for partswith lower volume job order quantities. Although there are manylarge production runs in S&C's fabrication operations, the machinesin the particular path where the 1530 was added will commonlysee lower volume job orders, some only requiring one or two parts.

Parts fall into two classifications—standards and specialswhich are customer specific. In one of the paths being exam-ined by the AMP Team, standard parts were run on a regularpunch press, sometimes requiring two operators. Set-up timescould take up to 2-1/2 hours even on the lower volume job orders. The specials, customer specific parts, were basically donein the old job shop prior to the introduction of the path system.

George Meyer, Associate Senior Engineer, explains that opera-tors had to hand mark the part, center punch every hole thengo to an ironworker and literally push the part through punch-ing one hole at a time using a hoist for material handling. Thelarger holes had to be drilled with a trepan tool. “It was a lot ofhandling and noisy equipment.”

Why the 1530“We looked at every single part that ran through that buildingand asked,‘Are we running it the best possible way?,’” says BobDempsey, Project Supervisor, AMP Team. “Some of the parts wedidn’t have a great answer for.”

Advanced Manufacturing Project team members, from left toright: Mike Nonos, Project Engineer; Phil Olson, Senior AssociateEngineer, Operations Support; George Meyer, Associate SeniorEngineer; and Bob Dempsey, Project Supervisor.


The AMP Team investigated a variety of solutions and foundthat the flexibility of the 1530 CNC Fabricator met the challengeof reducing cycle time, the time from when the order is releasedto the time it is finished, for their broad family of parts runningthrough the Metal Fabrication Division. Dempsey points out thatthe 1530 added a capability to the shop and contributed toachieving their cycle time reduction goals.

“The flexibility and the short set-up times are key thing tomaking the whole idea of the fabricator work. We can run shortjobs and the set-up time is not as burdensome as in the past—that is a huge benefit,” adds Dempsey. “Plus, we are going to realize more capacity out of that machine because the set-upsare so quick and easy.”

The Whitney replaced an older standard punch press. It com-pliments the other machines on the floor which includes lasers,CNC turret, torch cutters, ironworkersand radial presses, and punchesstructurals in one process which can-not be done on the other machines.

The machine was justified on acycle time improvement of 42 per-cent on parts taken from the oldpress. To date it has improved cycletime by 50 percent.

Tooling ModificationsHole placement on some of the aluminum extrusions didn’t workwith the standard 28XX tooling. SoS&C and Whitney engineers workedtogether to develop special punchesto satisfy the applications.

Meyer explains,“We actuallybrought Whitney engineers in. Theylaid out some of the parts for us, gave us a print, showing uswhat we could do with special tooling in the 1530. We had toextend the length of the punches to be sure they would clearthe legs of the extrusions.”

Ten extended length punches were designed to accommo-date different hole configurations. A group of special puncheswas also developed for use with 4" angle iron.

Another specialty area—punching a very large hole, wasjointly addressed. “Since we were punching 1/4" aluminum, thetonnage (30 tons of power) allowed the 5" diameter holes, butthe stripper was a problem. We worked with Whitney and theycame up with a special stripper,” says Meyer.

Safety and CodesAs you look around the S&C shop it is very apparent that employee safety is a key, constant concern. The shop is clean.Every tool, bin, material source has a designated area. Workpieces are placed at ergonomically appropriate heights.Machines display safety labels. Operators are protected bysafety glasses, shoe guards, and sleeves.

Safety teams conduct monthly reviews and make recommen-dations which are immediately evaluated and, in most cases, im-plemented. Managers are involved in monthly safety meetingsto review any potential problem areas and to look for ways tocontinually safeguard their operators.

Before the 1530 was purchased, the safety manager visitedthe Whitney facility to review the machine from the standpointof operator safety.

“We reviewed the safety of the machine before we everbought it,” Phil Olson, Senior Associate Engineer, OperationsSupport, says. “One of the positive issues was the clear plasticprotectors (guards) in front of the punches. They helped us sellthe machine internally from the safety standpoint.”

Although the 1530 replaced an older machine, it did not inheritits location. Mike Nonos, AMP Project Engineer, worked with the

employees involved with the 1530’smanufacturing path to identify thebest location. “The actual location wasan idea from one of the supervisors inthe area. With the AMP reducing ourinventories, we have fewer work tubsout there which helped create spacefor the 1530’s new location.”

When the Fabricator was deliveredand installation complete, a committeeincluding representatives from mainte-nance, safety and environmental de-partments, gathered at the machine togo through a variety of checks. Beforeit was officially turned over to beginproduction, it had to pass with all department approvals. Lockout/tagoutrequirements were satisfied, its positionand work tables were ergonomically

correct and “everything”was agreed upon for safe operation.Olson explains that every step to adding a machine to the S&C

floor is planned out well in advance to allow the smoothest, mostefficient install. Planning for the Whitney—identifying location,arranging for utilities, coordinating minor machine changes to meetChicago codes—while the machine itself was being built.

Results of the planning, according to Olson,“The install wentvery well this time. We had one pass of the committee reviewand made it to production.”

Employee ApprovalThe 1530 has received the stamp of approval from the opera-tors, too. It is one of the first machines that is programmed onthe floor by the operator. It has proven to be easy to run.

The supervisors appreciate the fact that operators were able to get up and running quickly with very little training.A core group of S&C operators were trained on site at the timeof installation. That group, in turn, trains others.

“Basically, the shop is happy,” Meyer says,“and that is whatmakes the whole thing work.” ◆

Operator and Team LeaderBob Stencel punches a 5"diameter hole through analuminum exterior base. The1530 processes parts rangingfrom 1-1/2" to 12' long.

Operator and Team LeaderBob Stencel punches a 5"diameter hole through analuminum exterior base. The1530 processes parts rangingfrom 1-1/2" to 12' long.

Advantages of Using Whitney Spare Parts

WHITNEY SPARE PARTS


Why come to Whitney for spare parts,tooling and consumables? Here areseveral good reasons!

Excellence in Customer Service Whitney has always been committed to excellence in CustomerService. We realize the critical role played by a Professional Cus-tomer Service Team in preserving your investment and in help-ing you to maximize a return over many years of usage.

This tradition is reflected in the results of a recent customersatisfaction survey among users of 36TC-style tooling.

Ninety-five percent of Whitney customers surveyed were satisfied. The reasons quoted most often were 1) excellent prod-uct quality and reliability, and 2) the quality and responsivenessof the field service teams.

ToolingWhen you buy from Whitney, whatdo you get for your tooling dollar?First, you get the best tooling for yourWhitney machine.Second, you sup-port tooling development. Part ofyour tooling dollars are reinvested into new product development.A good example of the results of this investment is our new TuffSkintooling (page 22).And third, we offer free technical support.

We want your tooling business, this is why we continue to innovate and design special tooling for different applications.New tooling is thoroughly tested in Whitney machines, underthe same conditions that exist in your shop, to ensure your return on investment, and verify our design principles. Whitneyis the only company that can make this claim. Our competitionhas no ability to offer this type of testing. They don’t have ourmachines. They simply copy our designs.

Whitney has the design and engineering staff to ensure thatyou have the right tooling for the right application and we standbehind our advice. We are the right people to talk to for yourspecial tooling design needs.

Our goal is to make sure that our tooling performs well and gives our customers the most run time possible on theirWhitney equipment. This should be a critical consideration when buying tooling. Ask yourself which tooling supplier is mostinterested in machine up time and customer satisfaction withregards to Whitney equipment.

Spare parts and consumables, available off-the-shelfIn our central warehouse in Rockford, Illinois, Whitney maintainsa vast inventory of spare parts and consumables to support

every machine Whitney has made.This should be a significant considera-tion when deciding where to go for

repair parts and consumables. This inventory shortens deliverytimes which results in significant reductions in down time.

Spare part sales help subsidize Whitney’s free technical support. Whitney has engineering resources dedicated to providing phone support for our customers and field service engineers. Their advice helps resolve problems quickly.

Machine Performance Audits (M.P.A.)Whitney offers complete machine performance audits, where anexperienced engineer checks your machine from top to bottom.

The M.P.A. includes:An extensive survey of yourmachine(s) following a 150-point check list which covers:1. Inspection of all axis compo-

nents including ballscrews,ways, bearings blocks andworkclamps.

2. Review of any safety related issues.3. Punching tonnage, punch and die alignment and hydraulic

system check-up.4. Operator performance and knowledge check. If training is needed,

we offer courses on-site or at the Whitney Technology Center.5. Proper functioning of all plasma system components.6. Perform blank handling.7. Advise on new technologies and retrofit kits that may

dramatically increase the productivity of your machine.8. A full written report detailing the recommended repair work,

the required replacement parts, and the estimated laborhours to perform the repairs.

Additional Benefits • 20 percent discount from current service rates on additional

days of labor.• 10 percent discount on replacement or repair parts.• No charge for travel time to and from your facility.

Let’s work out a Spare parts, Tooling and Consumable Package Solution for your annual production needs. By working together, we can ensure the component and consumable quality and delivery you need at the best price.Your benefit? The best uptime and productivity from your Whitney machines. ◆

Whitney has the design and engineering

staff to ensure that you have the right

tooling for the right application and we

stand behind our advice.

by Mike Dixon • Business Development Manager

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Fax to 815-964-3175 or Mail to: Becky Edmundson, WMFN, P.O. Box 1206, Rockford, IL, 61105March 2003

See Whitney ProductsAt Our Open House

April 15-16, 2003use the form above to register

Register for Whitney‘s Open HouseFax to 815/964-3175 or register via web site at www.wawhitney.com

I’ll be there ❑ Tuesday, April 15, 2003 ❑ Wednesday, April 16, 2003

Arriving about a.m/p.m Arriving about a.m/p.m

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The following Team Members will join me:

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I/We will attend the following seminar(s):

Plasma Goes HyTech Laser Integration and Justification

❑ 10:30 a.m., Tues., April 15 ❑ 1:30 p.m., Tues., April 15

❑ 10:30 a.m., Wed., April 16 ❑ 1:30 p.m., Wed., April 16

With Whitney’s NEW 3400 XP and 4400 MAX Hydraulic Punch/ TRUECut® combination machines. Customers see thirty percent or more savings over laser cutting and other processes. They save money and make more money when processing plate up to 1" thick.

Why? Lower labor and operating costs, and higher part production amortized across a machine which costs less than most competitive offerings.

Want to know more about how a Whitney punch/plasma can impact your bottom line? We have the answers.

For information about Whitney's complete line visit us online at www.wawhitney.com. Or contact us at 650 Race Street, Rockford, Illinois 61101. Phone: 815-964-6771. Fax: 815-964-3175.

W.A. Whitney is a subsidiary of Esterline Technologies, listed on the New York Stock Exchange as ESL.

W.A. Whitney Co.AN ESTERLINE COMPANY

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