Saws Cut New Ground.
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Current profile cutting technology was just not adequate for SpeedFrame's
needs, so it has invested in ground-breaking custom built saws which are unique to
the industry.
SpeedFrame is one of the worlds fastest growing manufacturers of new and replacement windows.
Since it was formed four and a half years ago SpeedFrame has invested more than £3m on land
and buildings, and are now investing heavily in state-of-the-art automated equipment to
ensure that they can meet the high volumes of window frames required in the next millennium.
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As part of its £5m investment in 1998, SpeedFrame has funded the development of QUADRA-CUT,
"The Latest Generation" multiple profile saws, which double the cutting capacity of anything else
available currently on the market.
Explains Deputy Managing Director Steven Taylor: "The technology was just not there for our needs.
We simply could not fit enough saws into our factory to provide enough cut profile
to take us to the output levels we want."
The QUADRA-CUT machines are being developed by Window Machine Developments Ltd of Pontefract in collaboration
with Advanced Control Systems Ltd.
Features include:
- Four profile lengths cut simultaneously.
- Inkjet printing of full manufacturing and traceability information direct to the frame.
- Digital positioning and measuring, minimising the risk of error and giving greater cutting accuracy for
both height and length.
- Touch screen interface giving the operators fast, accurate and easy access to information regarding current and
next batches of cuts.
- Remote networked Optimising Server system with specially developed software for optimising cuts to obtain the maximum
yield from each profile.
Three machines are being installed this year with a further seven to be installed next year. All machines will
be networked to the Optimising Server, which has a capacity of handling ten machines.
Advanced Control Systems Ltd
has developed the Optimising Server software and the operators touch graphics display.
The Optimising Server sends the cut sequence to the machine, the touch graphics display then informs the operator
what type of profile to load into the machine. The operator then initiates the cutting process through
the touch screen. The screen display updates as each cut is produced showing how much of the
profile has been cut, how much is remaining and providing status / warning messages as necessary.
Having a remote networked server means that a computer can be dedicated to optimising cuts without impacting
on performance of the machines. Also the Optimising Server can show status information about each machine including:
- Tabulated Yield, Cuts & Waste statistics with a print option.
- Current & Next Batches and when machine is likely to become idle.
- Error messages at the machine are logged by the server and can be re-viewed at any time.
- Event log showing what was done and when.