Publication date: 16 July 2008
Best known for its ‘Henry’ vacuum cleaners, Numatic is a UK company that produces a range of domestic, commercial and industrial cleaning equipment for the international market. Sales had been growing year on year, and the production department was being put under increasing pressure.
Explained Paul Kelly, Production Engineer at Numatic International Ltd, “We needed to look at ways of increasing our production to cope with the demand. We were at the stage of either having to put on an extra shift, or buy another wire processing system.
“We decided on the latter and contacted a number of suppliers, including Contax,” continued Paul. “We were looking specifically for an additional machine to make the ‘Henry’ loom assembly, so we sent all the suppliers a set of wires to examine, and told them our performance requirements,” he said.
Numatic were already using a Komax Alpha 411 that they purchased from Contax 11 years ago. They had always been satisfied with the level of service from Contax, so ensured that they were included on their tender list.
“We knew Contax, and have had dealings with them for over a decade,” said Paul. “They have always been very supportive – and the service engineer – Rob Goodall – in particular, has been excellent. He has always been very helpful and willing to go the extra mile for us”.
When Numatic considered all the options, the Contax solution was clearly the winner. Admitted Paul, “It was an easy decision, and in fact, there were not that many wire processing machines that could do exactly what we wanted. We chose the Gamma 333PC-B based on the price and performance – and, of course, the assurance that we would continue to have excellent service from Contax”.
The Gamma system purchased incorporated a unique modification. The machine was tailored to ensure that it was able to run continuously for longer without operator intervention. With a standard system, the machine will run off batches of wires, these will be fed into a two level catchment tray, and when both trays are full, the machine will stop.
Numatic’s system is the first one available to use a floor tray, so allowing a far greater number of wires to be produced before the tray needs to be changed. According to Paul, this allows the Gamma to run unattended for a further one and a half hours, so saving operator time.
Additionally, Contax configured the machine with a doubling unit. This will enable it to put two wires into one terminal. Currently, these wires have to be produced as single wires with a ‘piggybacked’ style of terminal.
This requires the use of an additional terminal and a manual connecting assembly process. By halving the number of terminals used, and reducing the time taken to produce the loom, Numatic will be able to cut their production costs significantly.
In conclusion, Paul said, “The Komax Gamma 333PC-B has exceeded our expectations! The new Gamma is producing around 3,400 wires per hour – which is excellent. This has meant that our production capacity has increased beyond our target figure.
“At this rate, it will not take long for the Gamma to pay for itself, and our production has become so much faster and more efficient. We are very satisfied with our new system, and look forward to the next decade of good service from Contax,” he said.
Phil Shorten, Director of Wire Processing Systems for Contax Ltd added, “It’s nice to put a smile on the face of your customer!”.
Contax is one of the UK and Ireland’s most comprehensive suppliers of automation equipment. Products range from PCB assembly, automatic optical and x-ray inspection, reflow solder, screen printing, precision liquid dispensing, cable preparation, robotic soldering and robotic assembly as well as cleaning systems. All of this is backed up by Contax’s after sales operation and an extensive second user department to fully support their installed base.
For Further Information, Please Visit http://www.contax.co.uk
