thunderskunk
Cast Iron
- Joined
- Nov 13, 2018
- Location
- Middle-of-nowhere
Evenin' folks,
I was hoping to pick at the pool of tough-won experience and well-practiced shop management. What does it take to get to lights-out machining and inspection from a management standpoint?
I have a slight idea of what it takes for hardware: dual station vises, tool probing, tool life management, possibly part probing, a DCC CMM with lots of table space, etc. Input on these things would be welcome as well, but my focus is on the "other stuff" such as scheduling, employee culture, resource planning, maintenance planning, finance, etc.
In my mind, it's the way to go. We're a small shop with only 6 machinists, and they are indeed machinists. I'd almost call them all toolmakers, but one is a bit crustier than the rest, so we reserve that title for him. While there are plenty of other issues to settle before we get to that point, I think it's a great goal to strive for: Why do we need to have ERP working smoother? Well, it would help get things up and going for lights-out machining. Why do we need to invest in more workholding hardware? Why do we need to upgrade office software? Etc. Etc.
I was hoping to pick at the pool of tough-won experience and well-practiced shop management. What does it take to get to lights-out machining and inspection from a management standpoint?
I have a slight idea of what it takes for hardware: dual station vises, tool probing, tool life management, possibly part probing, a DCC CMM with lots of table space, etc. Input on these things would be welcome as well, but my focus is on the "other stuff" such as scheduling, employee culture, resource planning, maintenance planning, finance, etc.
In my mind, it's the way to go. We're a small shop with only 6 machinists, and they are indeed machinists. I'd almost call them all toolmakers, but one is a bit crustier than the rest, so we reserve that title for him. While there are plenty of other issues to settle before we get to that point, I think it's a great goal to strive for: Why do we need to have ERP working smoother? Well, it would help get things up and going for lights-out machining. Why do we need to invest in more workholding hardware? Why do we need to upgrade office software? Etc. Etc.