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A lineup of CINCINNATI press brakes helps Cutler-Hammer plant to boost production

The Cutler-Hammer plant in Grand Prairie, Texas, is a feeder facility for 16 sister assembly plants around the country. Using five recently purchased 90-ton hydraulic CINCINNATI press brakes, along with another CINCINNATI press brake it has relied on for years, the factory forms 125,000 steel parts per month which become components in a wide range of control and automation equipment.

A unit of Eaton Corp., Cutler-Hammer is one of the world's leading suppliers of electrical control products and power distribution systems. This equipment is used in residences, high-rise apartment and office buildings, commercial sites, hospitals and factories.


	A lineup of CINCINNATI press brakes "The first two CBII hydraulic press brakes we purchased were replacements for older mechanical press brakes we had," manufacturing engineer Doug Weikel said. "That really got the ball rolling. We purchased the other three CBIIs in order to increase our production." All five CBII press brakes were purchased within a few months of each other in 1999 and 2000. A key factor in helping to achieve the Grand Prairie plant's production-increase targets is the CBII's ease of operation. Bill Schimmel, a manufacturing engineer, pointed out that the CINCINNATI press brakes are "very, very operator-friendly, and with a diverse group of operators in our plant, that's important." A simple control with program storage is an essential element in the CBII's ease of operation. "It doesn't make any difference which operator recalls the job from memory to bend the material," Weikel said. "He still produces quality parts. This part-forming repeatability is vital." CINCINNATI press brakes deliver improved productivity, the result of fast setup, rapid cycling and increased accuracy. The CBII press brake models feature a multi-axis microprocessor control that enables an operator to program all steps in a bending sequence to permit a single part- handling.

New hydraulic press brakes boost throughput

In assessing the plant's need for greater production, "we determined that it was largely in our press brake area where throughput could be improved," Weikel said. That led to the decision to buy the CINCINNATI machines.

The three forming speeds of the press brake work together to optimize and maximize productivity. Since acquiring the CBIIs, the Grand Prairie plant has boosted throughput by 25 percent. "They really work," Weikel said. "They put out the volume. We are processing 1.6 million pounds of sheet steel every month." The plant's part production includes both cold-rolled and galvanized steels, in gauges ranging from 16 through 7.

"These are the machines we want to go with and grow with," Schimmel said.

"We're very pleased with the equipment," Weikel added. "We're looking to purchase more as we phase out our mechanical press brakes."


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