LaserControl at Playmobil.
As the business approaches its 40th wedding anniversary, some 2.6 billion Playmobil numbers presently populate the earth. Numerous new figures are launched every year, putting high needs on the in-house mould store. To achieve optimal efficiency in unmanned, automated procedure, Playmobil’s numerous machining centres have been using LaserControl measuring systems of Blum-Novotest already for 15 years.
” For Playmobil figures, hundredths of a millimetre count,” says Attila Britting, head of Playmobil’s internal mould store in Zirndorf near Nuremberg. “The purpose in building the shot moulds is to generate finished plastic items that need essentially no rework– which is crucial in view of an everyday production of about 10 million individual components and also over 100 million figures a year. Consequently, the mould separation have to also be a high-precision operation, so that there are not any burrs on the private components or the completed number.”
And also not least, the moulds are specified for exceptionally high quantities, manufacturing runs of 200,000 to 300,000 items from one mould are no rarity. The called for efficiency can only be attained by partly automated manufacturing together with the normal two-shift operation. So a selection of devices functions overnight on prepared jobs. To execute these tasks, several of the machining centres are equipped with pallet changers and also tool magazines with the capacity to hold as numerous as 120 devices. The makers even maintain running unmanned over the weekend break. The Blum-Novotest systems are mounted in the machining location of the automated DMG five-axis machining centres.
BLUM laser determining system in the Playmobil mould-making shop
BLUM laser measuring systems assist geobra Brandstätter to generate injection-moulding devices successfully and in high quality
After every device modification, the laser automatically gauges the length and also span of the tool prior to machining, and after machining checks for breakage and wear. Therefore, our skilled workers no longer have to pre-set the device in the pre-setting device. A brand-new tool is just shrink-fitted into the holder and also determined at machining rate after suitable. This guarantees that the tool data in the maker is right, mathematical mistakes or data analysis mistakes can no more happen. More attributes consist of high-speed automatic compensation for the thermal expansion of the whole equipment and for spindle displacement. Wrong tool information can have expensive consequences such as malfunctioning tools, rejects, or device blockage. A spindle damaged by an accident will certainly set you back at the very least 18,000 Euros to change.
Without a monitoring system to identify worn or busted devices, automated manufacturing is hardly possible. The LaserControl system’s damage screen guarantees that broken device discovery runs right away after every machining action. Depending on the shows, the machining centre can after that either exchange the tool for a twin or notify the on-call service staff, that can log in to the device over the Internet as well as keep an eye on the workshop with a webcam. At Playmobil, as many as four of the key devices are held in the tool changer, which implies that the automated over night tasks run extremely reliably.
We mostly use steel with a high chromium content since it reveals the least wear during the big volume production huge. It does trigger substantial tool wear throughout cutting, nonetheless. That is why it is extremely important to watch on the running times of the private devices. The BLUM laser gauging systems do this very well.
Blum-Novotest makes it possible for the multiple injection mould to be produced in ultimate high quality.
In the manufacture of very complex injection-moulded devices, hundredths of a millimetre count: All solitary parts are exactly matched per other.
High-precision dimension in a filthy environment presents a major difficulty, as well as air conditioning is important to the manufacturing procedure. To safeguard the optical system from being dirtied, the gauging system is mechanically sealed from the coolant by a pneumatically operated shutter piston during machining. The turning tool is likewise cleaned up with pressed air prior to measuring in order to make certain that the measurement is not impaired by swarf, dirt or cooling down lubricating substances. During measurement, a stream of obstacle air provides security against soiling.
The LaserControl systems have really been their cash’s worth at Playmobil. The systems are practically upkeep cost-free; and, after greater than one decade in continual procedure, the seals resemble new. Most importantly, nevertheless, the experts have never been let down by the laser systems and have actually experienced nothing but advantages in terms of service, also. “We have had only great experience with BLUM lasers– as well as we conserve working time since there is no requirement for pre-setting”, Marco Mendl, team leader CAD/CAM/NC, sums up. “The precision of the LaserControl systems is astounding, too. Based upon our experience, its repeatability is within less than two thousandths of a millimetre. And also for us, something is for sure: Without the BLUM laser systems, this level of automation would not be possible.”
Based in Zirndorf near Nuremberg in the Franconia area of southerly Germany, geobra Brandstätter GmbH & Co. KG is the supplier of Playmobil, and also thus Germany’s largest toy supplier. The Brandstätter Team runs manufacturing facilities in Germany, Malta, Spain and the Czech Republic. It employs more than 3,700 people worldwide, and in 2012 generated complete sales of 591 million Euro. At the heart of the multi-award-winning plaything idea are the 7.5 centimetre tall Playmobil figures, which are marketed in over 30 historic as well as contemporary themed series to more than 80 countries all over the globe. Approaching their 40th anniversary, there are presently some 2.6 billion Playmobil numbers inhabiting the earth. Together with premium plaything high quality ‘Made in Europe’, since the year 2000 the innovative company has likewise been producing LECHUZA high-grade plastic planters.