In keeping with its company slogan of ‘Small investment – big effect’, Buchen, Germany-based rotary table manufacturer Weiss GmbH brought eight machine tools ‘up to speed’ with the help of clamping devices from Hainbuch.

“We had to reduce set-up and idle times through optimised precision and shorter machining time, and felt that Hainbuch could support us in this endeavour,” says director of tool management Thomas Schuster.
Together with Hainbuch, the existing clamping programme of conventional three-jaw chucks was promptly analysed and appropriate alternatives were found. The result was the introduction of customised clamping devices for the eight machines.
Hainbuch’s Toplus clamping system (pictured) was implemented to ensure optimal precision with high clamping forces, while the Centrotex quick-change system was also integrated into the manufacturing process to facilitate the rapid change-over of numerous component types.
The large transport cams manufactured by Weiss are soft machined with indexable-insert tools. Viktor Gruslak, acting department manager responsible for cam milling, says: “With the old fixtures we had set-up times of between 2-3 hours for a complete conversion. Now, the overall time is between 10 to 20 minutes. That is a huge saving.”
Asked whether clamping device providers other than Hainbuch were contacted, Schuster says: “At that time, we were extremely thorough in looking over the offerings from all possible vendors, but the Hainbuch solution was the best suited to our parts.”
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