Lead Time for Gantry Automation Cut 50%

Doosan’s new, pre-drilled bed castings reduce the lead time for gantry-equipped turning centers from, typically, six to seven months to as little as three months. So reports Bill Carr, director – applications & systems team for Doosan Infracore.

“The reason,” Carr explains, “is that the castings for eleven models of our Lynx and Puma turning centers are engineered at the factory to accommodate gantry load-unload systems. This enables us to install the systems at our domestic headquarters, while retaining the precision and rigidity previously achieved only with factory installation. By using machines and gantries already stocked in our warehouse, we can design a system to our customer’s specification, install it, and have it out the door is less than half the time required for a delivery from the factory.”

Carr continues, “Most ‘retrofit’ systems are simply gantry elements mounted on non-integrated posts.  Accidents, such as being hit by a forklift, can affect the precise alignment of the system, and result in hours of downtime while alignment is restored. The Doosan system is a fully integrated, rigidly constructed package that can withstand routine abuse and relocations without losing precision. Equally important, material-handling components used in conjunction with the gantry system are all readily available from domestic sources, again saving valuable time when replacement parts are needed or retooling is required.”

Carr further enumerates the advantages of automation: “Automation provides the technology boost that increases productivity while reducing labor dependency, even with short production runs.Compared to robotic systems, Gantries are simple machines that are easy to operate and maintain. They are also faster than robots and typically require less space.Furthermore they allow convenient access to the machine’s interior, and don’t present the guarding challenges that come with robots.”

Doosan gantry models are designed for parts up 20 lb, and as large as 8” diameter by 6” long.  Large stockers require little floor space, but are able to hold parts sufficient for hours of unattended operation, and a selection of fast-indexing grippers minimize out-of-cut time. Gantry loaders and unloaders are presently available on Lynx models 220LC and 220LM, and on Puma Models 240, 240MSB, 280, 280M, 300 and 300MSB, as well as the Puma 2000Y and the 4-axis Puma TL2000 and 2500 machines.

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