Case Study
Situation
A senior quality engineer for a leading machining company is saddled with alarming scrap levels, and armed with only hindsight data to help prevent it. Precision is crucial to these intricate manufactured components. Real-time, automated data collection empowers operators
“Operators are discerning underlying problems and taking initial troubleshooting measures without having to wait for an engineer to conduct a study….”
Critical Issue
Five work zones were only netting 40 percent first-pass yield while generating staggering annual scrap costs.
Reason
Pertinent inspection data was manually collected and hand recorded. It was costly, difficult to manage, and weeks often passed before usable data became available.
Meanwhile, product with defects too-minute to be visually detected passed through manufacturing processes riddled with hidden issues.
Compiling the data to identify underlying issues required the extensive efforts of Six Sigma Black Belts on staff. When issue causes were exposed, it was often long after the fact.
Vision
The quality engineer envisioned an automated data collection system that would seamlessly integrate with the company’s ERP system, gages, coordinate measuring machines (CMM), and more. It would have to provide real-time data and be easy for machine operators to use so they could take initial actions toward problem prevention.
Hertzler systems provided
GainSeeker automated real-time data collection. It collects data directly from all plant devices, including the scheduling system.
Results
First-pass yield jumped from 40 percent to nearly 99 percent—and in less than six months. Scrap costs plummeted for the formerly problematic five work zones.
“GainSeeker has empowered our operators to drill down into the data in real time to see how a process is performing,” says the senior quality engineer.
“Operators are discerning underlying problems and taking initial troubleshooting measures without having to wait for an engineer to conduct a study. This has proven priceless.”
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