Case Study - Direct Edge Manufacturing

Download the Case Study - Direct Edge Manufacturing (PDF).

The project

• Increase material yield and utilisation of sheet metal offcuts from CNC laser cutter utilising software to manage offcut inventory. ​
• Seek efficiencies in the laser cutting process and reduce rework originating from programming.

Background

• The materials used in production (mild steel, stainless steel, aluminium) are highly recyclable and there are established systems in place for collection and recycling.
• The company maintains a large inventory of offcuts to optimise value inherent in the material and reduce embedded energy in each product lifecycle.

Objective

• Maximise the profitable yield ​of materials.

Targets

• Reduce scrapped metal by 50%​
• Reduce off-cut inventory by 50%

Outcomes

What was implemented?

• Google Sheets introduced for real-time collaborative management of inventory by production and programming teams.​
• Peer review of nesting drawings within programming team to promote improvement.
• Greater forward visibility for weekly scheduling to optimise nesting of parts on each sheet.
• Regular combined team meetings to improve communication.

Key issues

• A big software solution was too expensive to implement; we needed a simple alternative.
• In small business, production equipment takes priority over other upgrades as this is where the most value is added.
• Getting information from suppliers and internal stakeholders took a lot longer than expected​.
• We had to get both teams working together to support the improvements.

Performance against targets

• 50% less rework in programming overall.
• 50% reduction in offcut inventory.

Lessons learnt

• A few small changes can make a big difference​.
• Businesses everywhere have waste management issues​ but some of these could be solved through greater collaboration​.
• Tasmania doesn’t have a very large recycling/waste industry ​compared with other regions.
• Metal products are relatively easy to recycle, compared to composite materials like fibreglass!