Product category:
Mechanical fasteners, fixing and joining, and equipment
News Release from: Arnold Umformtechnik | Subject: Fastening - rapid prototyping service
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 16 June 2006
Fastening firm offers rapid prototyping
service
Fastening company offers rapid prototyping using specialist RP team to reduce delivery lead time for customised short runs to three weeks - costs are reduced by simultaneous procedures.
With its innovative methods and services, Arnold Umformtechnik, Germany, the fastening specialist, has forged a solid position on the market In view of the constantly growing demand for small runs with delivery lead times close to those of standard products, Arnold has strengthened its Rapid Prototyping team and acquired more up-to-date machines which can be deployed more flexibly
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 20 Feb 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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The basic requirement is to reduce development costs and cut development times.
This is where Rapid Prototyping makes a considerable contribution.
It can be used to manufacture working parts straight from CAD data.
In the past delivery lead times of up to 30 weeks needed to be scheduled, particularly for the development and production of functional samples or special short-run solutions.
Now the specialists at Arnold have the possibility to produce and supply complex customized fasteners within as little as three weeks.
Whereas in the past a large proportion of these components principally served as view models or prototypes, the engineers at Arnold now go one step further.
By producing function types with properties very close to series production, they are making use of the growing need for Functional Prototyping.
Engineers at Arnold are currently receiving around 150 enquiries a year for this type of prototyping.
And Arnold's own modern tool stock means that it is able to use Rapid Prototyping to manufacture short runs quickly, effectively and above all economically.
Arnold has also cut down on administrative time primarily by setting up a specialist RP team.
The team has installed a direct acceptance process which eliminates the waiting time for the full design process common throughout the industry.
Receipt of an order automatically starts off the technical evaluation process, such as the typical materials to be joined, or checking the mechanical properties of the fastener.
The Arnold method also gains time by simultaneously translating the 3D CAD data into the product.
And the time-consuming 'tool design' and 'tool procurement' processes are completely eliminated.
The raw part goes directly into the machining process, where it is turned ready for use in the final process.
The part is then ready for the function test.
"Using this almost simultaneous process we achieve quality in our products faster and more directly," said Reinhard Barth, product development and management manager at Arnold Umformtechnik, commenting on the advantages of Rapid Prototyping.
"We produce runs of up to 1,000 extremely complex fasteners all possessing the same properties as the bulk manufactured cold formed parts- for a quarter of the time and cost.".
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