February 2021 Volume 3

AUTOMATION

Three Considerations for a Truly Successful Parts Feeding System What should your organization look for when it comes to parts feeding systems? Certain features and functionality should go without saying but remember how important parts feeding systems are to your overall production goals. You may be able to orient parts in a variety of different configurations, accept numerous loading options, and specify virtually any type of parts distribution, but if certain elements of your parts feeding system are not properly engineered, it will not be a successful solution for your business in the long run. Here are three things you should consider in order to turn your business into a world-class production facility and continue to meet your productivity targets. 1. Integration Flexibility You need a system that works with your production environment. While there are systems available that can be readily obtained and not customized, that does not mean they are the right ones for your business. What matters is that your parts feeding system integrates with and supports the other equipment, IT infrastructure, and control systems in your facility. Obviously, parts feeding systems by their design support upstream processes in production, but consider what you really need to make the entire process turnkey and seamless. While Part Feeding Systems are typically the last item added to a process, the integration of this equipment is crucial to

make everything work together. The controls package on capital equipment today is more complicated than ever before. With this sophistication, signals and switches can communicate between downstream processes to cue up more parts to feed. The integration of these software and hardware components provides greater flexibility and reduced downtime if they are planned out properly. 2. Reliability Parts feeding systems play an integral role in both themanufacturing of the main throughput process in your operation, as well as the overall uptime of your facility. Automation is key to a successful production environment, but that automation must be reliable. The last thing your facility and team need to deal with is a machine repeatedly breaking down, becoming jammed, or failing in its intended purpose.Thesemachines are long-term investments, which is why you want to work with a part feeding equipment provider that designs systems to operate continually with little ongoing maintenance. In evaluating the application of feeding parts into an induction heater, one of the most common methods to feed billets is to use vibratory bowls. However, in a survey conducted by Feedall Automation in 2018, U.S. forgers stated that the biggest issues with vibratory bowls were with maintenance and down-time (see Figure 4). Therefore, when considering part feeders, you need to look at the reliability of the equipment and the total cost of ownership.

Figure 4: Biggest issues with vibrator bowls for feeding induction heaters & presses

FIA MAGAZINE | FEBRUARY 2021 16