NEW SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES
09 November 2006 - Metalforming Machinery Makers' Association

David Handley, Technical Director of Thame Workholding, said: “Hilma vices are extremely versatile and used in conjunction with our own solutions we have been able to standardise many processes and improve quality and throughput.” Quick set-up times are key to Thame Workholding’s ability to produce batches of components ranging from one-off specials to large batch sizes for over 750 stock items.

Using Hilma vices alongside their own components has enabled Thame to reduce set-up times dramatically. Thame Workholding, the new trading name of Thame Engineering Co. Ltd, has been in business for sixty years, but since the Management buyout in 1988, has gone from strength to strength. The company offers design, manufacturing and servicing capabilities to a large customer base ranging from one-man bands through to OEMs and blue chip organisations. Thame Workholding operates a thriving export business from its Long Crendon base, shipping a third of its output to up to 27 countries including Germany and the United States. To meet its weekly shipment to its subsidiary in Germany, the company operates 24 hours a day. This enables an order to be placed as late as Thursday afternoon and then produced during the night shift for shipment the next morning. A flexibility that the market demands and that the company’s production processes has to be able to accommodate. Thame’s workholding production is also split 50-50 between manufacturing batches of up to 450 components and machining one-off specials. It has increased its product portfolio over the past few years from standard chuck jaws to include lathe chucks and systems, vacuum workholding for turning machines and machining centres and prismatic fixturing.

As a result, Thame needs to accommodate a wide range of machining requirements that will work with a variety of different materials: primarily EN32, 16MnCr5, EN24T and Aluminium. These were all factors that David Handley had to take into account when they decided to move away from traditional clamping to hydraulic clamping. As well as the obvious improvements this offered for their turnaround times, they also wanted to increase the number of automatic power vices in order to help prevent operator repetitive strain injury. Having dealt with Roemheld for over 15 years, a SWAT analysis led to the decision to specify Hilma vices that Thame felt offered both the versatility they needed, and the flexibility to be adapted to suit their particular requirements. David Handley said: “The vices are easy to use, even for unskilled operators and are ideal for heavy duty machining. They are also very reliable: previously we had parts fly out because we could not tell if they were properly clamped, so they have saved us a few thousand pounds in cutters alone. They are easy to keep clean, with a good size and stroke. We use them in conjunction with our own components, such as our gripping vice jaw, to maximise ease and speed of set-up: which is vital for our productivity.“ With the cost of steel on the increase, by modifying the EL125 quick change vice and using it with one of the company’s own solutions, Thame has also managed to reduce material quantity on all specials. The company can now hold on just 3mm of material in the vice for machining rather than 15mm prior to using Hilma. The resulting need to machine less material off has significantly reduced costs. The company operates 12 CNC machines, four horizontal machines, six vertical (multi-pallet) machines plus CNC Turning and employs four in-house designers.

Thame utilises Roemheld’s Hilma Euroline 125 vices and hydraulic slides, TS towers, DS 125, and SM160 vices within its production process and also demonstrates its serrated jaw system with a Hilma SM100. The company is committed to quality (ISO2000) and customer satisfaction and is constantly implementing smarter working and best practice through initiatives such as 5S training and Lean manufacturing. To this end, its entire workforce is currently being put through the Lean programme in conjunction with the Manufacturing Advisory Service.

As the world workholding market continues to act unpredictably and projects become uncertain, Thame Workholding is constantly looking at moving into new markets to meet ever-changing customer demands. The company is looking to expand its specials business in the United States to supplement its thriving, ongoing exports of standard products, high cost innovative workholding for medical components are also targeted to that country. It is also currently developing prismatic clamping solutions in response to customer requests for increasingly flexible workholding technology. David Handley said: “We believe our design capabilities set us apart in the marketplace and also give us the flexibility to adapt to the ever-changing market conditions, whether we are modifying old fixtures for customers or designing completely new ones.” -ends- Note to editors: • Roemheld is exhibiting at MACH 2006 on the following stands: o Stand 4405 Workholding, Tooling Village o Stand 4916 Die Change, Metal forming Area • Thame Workholding will be displaying its innovative solutions at MACH stand 5967, one of which incorporates the Hilma mini clamp from Roemheld. • For more information on Thame Workholding call 01844 208050 or visit www.thameworkholding.com • For more information on Roemheld products, visit www.roemheld.co.uk or telephone 01604 497665. Picture captions (hi res images available from RMA Design): 1.Operators planning next batch on Euroline 125 2.DS125 with standard jaws machined to suit hexagonal components. 3.(on website)TS 125 Tower System, complete with specially adapted jaws , designed by Thame engineering For general press information, please contact: Alison Phipps RMA Design, 95 Spencer Street, Hockley Birmingham B18 6DA Mobile: 07770 656876. e-mail: alison@rmadesign.co.uk Tel/Fax: 0121 323 2881 For technical information, please contact: Bill Neal Roemheld (UK) Limited, Moulton Park Business Centre, Redhouse Road, Moulton Park, Northampton NN3 6AQ Tel: 01604 497665 Fax: 01604 497648

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