Honiton-based TWM Technology, part of the EuroTech Group, has doubled the output of its existing machining centres by using the Delphin modular clamping system from System 3R.

‘We won an exceptionally large volume order from a global mobile telecommunications company that meant we had to pull out all the stops to get more parts from our existing machinery’ explains Gareth Henwood, TWM’s Engineering Manager. ‘Faced with almost an impossible task, especially on the JIT delivery targets, we were absolutely delighted when System 3R came up with a solution that fulfilled all our objectives and at an affordable price.’

TWM manufactures high precision metal packages for the electronics industry, machined from a variety of metals. This particular contract was for a two-part aluminium housing for a microwave diplexer used as a waveguide in a mobile telecommunications base station. High precision and exceptional repeatable accuracy of +3micron were high on the list of requirements. System 3R initially lent TWM Delphin parts to trial and they soon saw the gains that could be achieved. The diplexer is relatively small (15 by 5 by 5cm), with complex machining in each part of the housing cavity, which must then fit tightly and accurately together. It is machined from two solid billets, then plated and assembled.

‘The tables on our existing Mazak machining centres are fixed in size so it was important that we selected a clamping system that not only enabled us to get on as many parts to be machined as possible, but also to change fixtures quickly. Our previous system would not allow us to fit the job on at all’, says Henwood. ‘In addition we also had the added bonus of being able to operate lights-out production 24/7 for the first time.’

The clamping system enabled the company to change its existing vices within 2 minutes but also at least 1 hour in set-up time was saved job-to-job even with manual pallet-changing. The long cycle time for such a high precision part of almost 10 hours was also easily accommodated by adding lights-out production for 4 days a week. There are 16 parts per pallet, each undergoing three separate machining operations.

Pallets, jigs and fixtures are made in-house, and everything has now been adapted to the Delphin system including the plating operation. ‘Our initial concerns regarding accuracy and successful 24/7 production were unfounded. The machines are kept cutting, downtime is minimised, we’ve upped productivity and, above all, we get double the number of components every 24-hours than we were getting before’ says Henwood. ‘And on the back of the success of this order, we are buying a new machining centre at a
substantial £1/4 million investment.’

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