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News Release from: Mori Seiki UK
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 17 August 2005
Mori Seiki gears up for growth
Mori Seiki is working hard to achieve 5% global market share, reduce its production costs to 60% and increase its manufacturing capacity to 800 machine tools per month.
Mori Seiki is working hard to create the foundations necessary to support its ambitious aims to achieve 5% global market share, reduce its production costs to 60% and increase its manufacturing capacity to 800 machines per month Pollard the sole UK distributor for Mori Seiki is already contributing to these plans, exceeding its 2004 sales targets by nearly 30%
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 5 Jun 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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Mori Seiki has made major changes in Japan moving its headquarters to Nagoya, the industrial centre of the country.
It has three manufacturing plants, Iga Campus - the largest machine tool factory in the world with a capacity of 270 units per month; Nara Campus - for smaller machines with a capacity of 250 units per month; and the new Chiba Campus with a projected capacity of 100 of the newly launched NT series integrated mill turn centres per month.
Hiroshi Mizuguchi, vice president of Mori Seiki, explained the most important change, "Mori Seiki is the first machine tool manufacturer to change to cellular manufacture".
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"Previously six processes were necessary to complete each machine tool".
"Now there are three cells, each managed by one person".
"Waiting time between operations has been eliminated and production time has been halved." Continual monitoring of the assembly process enables the company to trace operator movements and make improvements to the ergonomics at each stage of production.
Mori Seiki is making large investments in new equipment.
It has already invested in a bridge mill for large components, gear grinding machines, tool grinders and a spindle grinding line.
It also has a further three year investment plan to purchase $150 million worth of new machinery".
""We have a policy of manufacturing all the critical components ourselves to maintain control over quality and meet our customer's delivery requirements," said Mizuguchi".
""Mori Seiki is unique in manufacturing its own ballscrews".
"The savings accrued from making our own has made it possible to introduce DCG technology, which requires two on each axis, while keeping the cost of the machine competitive." The ballscrews are machined from solid before heat treatment then ground automatically on a range of machines including a Mitsui Seiki GSE 200B capable of machining some of the largest.
Currently the ballscrews are sent out for induction hardening, however a new 924m2 heat treatment plant starts operating in October 2005 at the Iga Campus, continuing the policy of bringing work in house.
Dr Masahiko Mori, president of Mori Seiki said, "We anticipate that the new heat treatment plant will shorten deliveries by ten days." The company consumes 2,700 tonnes of cast iron per month to supply the massive castings used in Mori Seiki machines.
It uses Japanese domestic suppliers to maintain quality and has found that only two are capable of meeting its stringent requirements.
Mizuguchi added, "To secure the supply of quality castings we have taken a 33% share in the Japanese Watanabe Steelworks".
"Some of our competitors are using Chinese castings".
"With the growth in the Chinese economy, much of the casting manufacturer's capacity is taken up with domestic demand, making it difficult for them to meet delivery and quality targets." To further enhance productivity, engineers from Mori Seiki and Watanabe are collaborating in a new foundry at the Iga Campus, to be opened at the end of 2005.
The capacity of this new plant will be 100 tonnes per month, so its primary purpose will be for prototype castings and for the provision of research and development facilities aimed at shortening lead times and increasing the quality of castings both in house and at Mori Seiki's suppliers.
The main factory at the Iga Campus contains over 100 machine tools including induction hardening machines, 32 bridge mills, Waldrich Coburg machines for grinding and hard milling slideways, and a robot served Taiyo Koki hard turning and spindle grinding cell.
Production continues 24 hours per day with lights out operation.
Additionally, the turning shop contains a further 300 machine tools while a sheet metal manufacturing area is set aside for producing prototype enclosures.
At the Iga Campus 220 engineers use Solid Edge to develop mechanical and electrical systems.
They utilise concurrent engineering techniques in partnership with the Mori Seiki Digital Technology Laboratory in California, taking advantage of the time difference to carry out dynamic analysis of the machine structure overnight, cutting the development times by half.
In total, the company has 430 development staff, with software development centred at its Nara Campus.
A new machine design goes through rigorous prototype testing.
The new NT range required more than 10 prototypes before the final design was perfected.
Service is important at Mori Seiki.
Dr Mori said, "Customers expect a 15 to 20 year life from their machine tools".
"The spare parts centre in Japan can ship 90% of spare parts within 24 hours, while the centre in Stuttgart can ship 85%".
"We also have a service centre in Japan which is available 24 hours per day, 365 days per year, and our aim is to replicate this in Europe." Mori Seiki is confident about achieving its targets.
Dr Mori concluded, "We export to 67 different countries and machine tool consumption is a product of GDP.
Low priced Asian competition is not sustainable for customer service while the growing Chinese domestic market will occupy the capacity of Chinese machine tool manufacturers". Request free introductory details about products from Mori Seiki UK ...
"Our policy is to provide high technology and high quality to a global market at a competitive cost.".
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