Case Study – Guaranteed ways to avoid buying the wrong plasma cutting machine with drilling and extra machining capacity
GUARANTEED WAYS TO AVOID BUYING THE WRONG PLASMA CUTTING MACHINE WITH DRILLING & EXTRA MACHINING CAPACITY
We all look at developing our business to improve our competitive position and be more efficient. It is fair to think about all of our assets and our people when we do this, guarding ourselves against making the incorrect choice.
As a business, irrespective of what we do, we all aspire to increase our market presence and serve new sectors. One recent client’s experience highlighted the outcomes from poorly considered choices. We have all seen other organisations that have rushed in headfirst when they have seen an opportunity without proper preparation and understanding of the resources required to be successful. Through the hurried selection of an underwhelming and cheaper specification this machine ultimately provided a disappointing end product.
The plasma/drilling machine, whilst it was new and was the cost-effective model from the machine tool builders’ product offering, only provided competitive drilling capacity in carbon steel and missed the higher margins available when processing a Q&T plate, often used in the mining industry.
It is easy to make a poor choice if the drilling capacity does not have the necessary power to drill the appropriate diameter holes competitively. This is highlighted when drilling higher tensile Q&T steel that requires additional torque at the carbide drilling tool bit and not necessarily a larger motor. Specialist Machinery Sales plasma cutting machine tool builder has a design and intellectual property built into the specification, with auditable advantages that lower the cost per part when comparisons are made with natural competitors.
The capacity to service the gap in their business to process and supply Q&T plate was lost to other businesses that were supplied the appropriate machines to service this market from Specialist Machinery. A faster ROI would have been possible had the machine specification not been sacrificed for a lower-priced machine tool. Is this something your business has considered?
HOW DO YOU BUY THE WRONG PLASMA CUTTING & COMBINATION MACHINING-CENTRE?
By not asking the right questions about the specification from the subject matter expert, your businesses expected performance outcomes might not be realised. When we bring assets into our business we do so because we expect they can bring value. If we do not understand ‘precisely’ how that value is going to be realised, are we making a good choice?
The client’s business was considering both models suitable for processing Q&T plate from Specialist Machinery. The client, to mitigate the risk of investing in the incorrect machine, provided Q&T part drawings so time studies were provided from the machine tool builder. This provided evidence that a correctly specified machine was going to meet the business’s performance expectations and provide the fastest ROI.
The risk of getting this wrong would have significant long term implications to the clients’ business and the bottom line; incorrect utilisation of resources, cash flow, floor space, power and limitations on the type of work the business can bid for and win.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU BUY THE WRONG PLASMA CUTTING & DRILLING MACHINE WITH EXTRA MACHINING CAPACITY?
By not understanding the gap that has driven the need for change, we can often find comfort in familiarity, prior knowledge and peer relationships. While this can be a good source of shared experience, very few will tell us what happens next. Lost contracts, damaged reputation, reduced capabilities and a poorly engaged workforce are the experiences that have been recounted by too many clients, who have chosen an underpowered drilling spindle that does not have the required torque to be a competitive drilling Q&T plate. If the price per part offered to the market is not competitive then the machine will produce a slower ROI. It is imperative to be competitive when drilling and machining all material grades. When the majority of plasma machine tool builders fit the same Hi-Definition plasma source then your business has a competitive point of difference in the market you operate.
AN EXAMPLE OF HOW EASY IT IS TO GET IT WRONG, WHICH IS MORE COMMON THAN YOU WOULD THINK.
There are owners, in Australia, of combination plasma cutting and drilling machines who did not know, until it was too late, that the drilling spindles ONLY offered mist coolant on top of the plate. These machines must SLOW the drilling speed and feed rate down by 30% when comparisons are made to the machines supplied by Specialist Machinery. The preferred choice for lubricant delivery provides the superior performance of supplying atomised lubricant and high-pressure air through the spindle and drill to the tip of the tool. This high air pressure low coolant usage at the cutting tip lowers the cost per part and consumable costs. Any carbide cutting tool representative will testify it is imperative to slow drilling speeds and feeds by 30% when using mist coolant on top of the plate, to protect the expensive carbide drilling tips and to avoid increasing consumable costs.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU BUY THE CORRECT PLASMA CUTTING & DRILLING MACHINE WITH EXTRA MACHINING CAPACITY?
When we accept that our current assets are not performing (by capacity, availability or reliability) we know we need to either supplement or replace them.
A gap analysis can identify the performance shortfall and highlight deficiencies in the business’ capabilities. Information will be required regarding capacity expectations, revenue and SWOT profiles, value gap analysis, supply chain management, complementary processes as well as material handling, training and support.
Partnering with a machine tool supplier who has the knowledge and expertise to match your business’ performance outcomes to a machine tool specification, will assist you to bid for and win work. Clients of Specialist Machinery Sales have reported the value of engaging and gaining our support as well as participation in the design process to create the specification that will maximise your value and ROI.
Through implementing a specification driven selection that delivers increased capability, sector relevance and potential revenue streams are enhanced. Clients are able to forecast a more competitive, efficient and productive product offering when performance and quality concerns are addressed. This in turn produces happy customers.
If all of our assets and our people have the versatility to do not only what we need today but in our future, how much more confident would we be with what that future looks like?
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Contact Specialist Machinery Sales today to discuss a superior machinery strategy for your business.