Artem Komarov noted that there are many ways to make a hole in a plate. Manufacturers have many effective ways to achieve this goal: bench presses, drilling machines, stamping presses, plasma, laser, and waterjet cutters. The choice of which way to go usually comes down to making the hole most efficiently.
Plasma cutting, drone drilling.
Automated drilling and plasma cutting machine. Significant savings when launched in unmanned mode. Operates 200 working days a year without the participation of an operator.
You don’t have to worry about problems that arise without supervision, because it is an intelligent system. Its software is programmed to stop production and send notifications when problems occur. If it detects an error or the head is applying too much pressure due to tip wear, it will stop production and issue an error code notifying you to replace the drill tip. It will not lead to self-destruction.
Starting a drilling cycle during the night shift. You need to set up the plate, run the program and you can leave. He will work all night long, drilling all the holes, applying all the markings. Then use the plasma cutter to make more complex cuts. Drilling is recommended for any standard round holes because it is faster, more efficient, and less expensive than a plasma cutter. And then the plasma comes in to cut out figures or slotted holes.
The plasma cutter is equipped with a bevel head, so it can bevel at 45 degrees and cut 360 degrees, upside down or outward. The latest version of the machine can mill slotted holes.
Metal plate with holes
The software will automatically guide the drill into round holes, and then where a slotted hole is needed, after the drilling cycle is completed, it will use plasma to make slotted holes. Thus, it is a very versatile sheet processing machine.
The cost of consumables for drilling is much lower than for plasma. On some tips, drills can make 1600 holes; Plasma cutter can cut fewer holes before replacing consumables.
This saves time on labor—and therefore significant cost savings—compared to using plasma. Someone must be present when using the plasma torch because it is flammable. This drilling and plasma machine is simply very efficient.
Laser cutting
The power that we are realizing with laser technology is that it allows you to change the size of the holes and do exactly what you want, without the use of punches of different sizes. It is possible to change from a round hole to a slotted hole by simply changing the design in the software. Plasma cutting technology has advanced to compensate for the taper.
Fiber technology was limited by the thickness of the material it could cut. While advances in fiber laser technology have increased the thickness of the material it can cut and increased cutting speeds, CO2 is useful for cutting 3D parts.
With a laser, it gets a little tricky when you must make holes in pipes and at corners. Obviously, there are lamp lasers for this, but they require a significant investment and take up a huge amount of area.
Stamping
Making holes in sheet materials with punching meshes is effective in four areas: production speed, savings in material purchase costs, material recycling and repeatability.
Production speed
One way to improve stamping efficiency is simply to speed it up. Stamping is fast. On a standard mechanical press, you can stamp between 20 and 90 beats per minute; even faster on a high-speed press, although this is usually done for small electrical parts. This is faster than three holes/finished parts per second.
In addition, multiple holes can be made using a multi-hole die/composite die such as a five-out die to speed up production.
Material cost
Another consideration in determining the most efficient method is the method of acquiring the material. In many cases, a coil is more economical to purchase than a preform because less processing is required. Thus, from the point of view of the cost of the material, stamping really has an advantage, Komarov Artem concluded.
