Olympic Steel – Schaumburg, IL: Jonathan Reyes

Using automation to load and unload the laser cut sheets takes some time. Jonathan Reyes, Laser Operator, came up with an idea to reduce the time it takes the laser to load and unload sheets. The N Cell Computer controls the loading and unloading of the machine when the table is empty. The operator can …

Using automation to load and unload the laser cut sheets takes some time. Jonathan Reyes, Laser Operator, came up with an idea to reduce the time it takes the laser to load and unload sheets. The N Cell Computer controls the loading and unloading of the machine when the table is empty. The operator can use the N Cell to load another sheet which reduces the time the automation takes unloading cut parts. Unfortunately, the N Cell Computer is located too far away from the exit side of the pallet changer. Jonathan suggested they move the N Cell Computer to be closer to the exit side of the pallet changer, allowing the operator to load a sheet immediately after he manually clears the table. This allows the operator to cut down the time the automation uses. This change also makes the laser more user-friendly, saves time and money. Only using the partial of the automation to unload cut parts gives back 78 hours per year, equaling nearly $50,000 savings from eliminated downtime.

Lesson Learned:

Sometimes ideas to improve processes aren’t because something is done wrong, but because it could simply be done better…safer and smarter.