Kegelmann - A 30% capacity increase with WorkNC and Zwicker

The German company Kegelmann Technik GmbH has developed into a specialist supplier of prototype components and low volume aluminum and plastic parts. Starting in 1989 as a pioneer in rapid prototyping, using stereolithography and laser sintering, the company expanded into tool making to increase its range of services and now employs 60 people. It attributes a large part of its success to process automation, and by integrating Zwicker Systems’ Winstat Framework and WorkNC, Sescoi’s automatic CAM/CAD system, it has achieved a 30% increase in capacity.

<< Automation from Sescoi and Zwicker Systems has led to a capacity increase of at least 30 % in our erosion section. >>
Stephen Kegelmann, Kegelmann Technik GmbH.

Stephen Kegelmann explained his initial philosophy, “We did not want to be a run of the mill tool maker. We set our sights on establishing a modern and efficient business right from the start. For us this meant adopting standardized processes.” The methods, such as origin point clamping and palletization, which he installed in 1998, have now become common practice, but even back then he envisaged a fully automated tool making process.

In 2003 Stephen Kegelmann and his employees began to lay out the requirements for an automated system, which would guarantee smooth workflow without bottlenecks, paper, missing data and double entries. Starting with the erosion section they envisaged four steps - extraction of the electrode shape from the CAD data; electrode toolpath programming; machining and inspection; and feeding the erosion machine with the correct information and electrodes to cut the part. The company selected the Winstat Framework software from Zwicker Systems in 2004. The system uses transponder chip technology to achieve automation, recording shop floor activity and eliminating the risk of error. It manages the delivery of technical information and electrodes to the correct stations on the shop floor. The existing close cooperation between Sescoi and Zwicker Systems was a major advantage in integrating the systems, so when Kegelmann was having difficulty finding suitable software to extract electrode data from its CATIA CAD system, Sescoi was ready to help.

Stephen Kegelmann said, “We have collaborated with Sescoi on other projects so we had already had experience of its willingness to develop solutions to suit our particular needs.” It took a few months to complete the development on WorkNC’s electrode module to achieve the functionality and integration required by Kegelmann’s engineers. Stephen Kegelmann continued, “We did not want compromise, but wanted to work in a fully automated way with few menus and little data input. This included direct recovery of all data from the CAD system, and the ability to generate roughing and finishing electrodes, erosion gaps and other attributes with one click, as well as automated data transmission to Winstat Framework and the corresponding workstations. Intensive work by the Sescoi project manager and the other team members resulted in solutions for every task. This was a highly innovative achievement for both parties."

Since 2006 all the electrode manufacture at Kegelmann has become paperless and automated. Documentation is created with one click of the mouse and is displayed in HTML format on shop floor terminals. Stephen Kegelmann said, “The operator no longer needs to physically transfer data from the drawing to the machine. This is now fully automatic. We have virtually eliminated the risk of using incorrect data and, as a result, our engineers are more relaxed and can concentrate on their task. Our erosion machines were previously a bottleneck in the production chain. This has now completely changed as automation has led to a capacity increase of at least 30%."

Following the success in the erosion section, Kegelmann Technik is starting its next project. Before the end of the year, aluminum and steel milling will be fully automated. The company has already invested in a robot and two machining centers and is expanding the use of Winstat Framework and WorkNC. Naturally, Sescoi is involved in the development.