More than a software solution, a vision
Kartesis Industries adopted a 4.0 production strategy thanks to Ellistat's APC for automatic machine tool control.
- Technical and organizational gains
- Up to 95% reduction in adjustment rate, scrap rate below 2%
- Producing more complex parts for new markets
History
Kartesis Industries, founded in 2014 and based in Bonneville, in the Arve Valley, is the result of the merger of several family-owned companies. The group combines bar turning technologies with plastic injection, overmolding as well as assembly to produce, or co-develop with its customers, finished or semi-finished products. Historically a Tier 2 automotive subcontractor, the Group has a worldwide presence, enabling it to produce close to its customers. It has sales of €70 million and 550 employees, including 250 in France. With the end of the combustion engine forecast for 2035, Kartesis Industries is focusing on quality - with the aim of zero defects - and innovation, in order to diversify into other business sectors. Since 2018, under the impetus of Thierry Callendrier, Managing Director of Kartesis Industries, which represents the 2ème generation of managers, the group has implemented a 4.0 strategy for production. It has chosen ELLISTAT and its APC solution for automatic control of production resources.
The Kartesis Group's 4.0 strategy is based on two pillars. Firstly, data management (ERP, MES, SGED software packages), i.e. data acquisition and retrieval. Secondly, the modernization of our core business, namely production via our bar turning and precision machining activities. In this activity, Kartesis produces medium to large-scale micron-sized parts in stainless steel, steel and aluminum. Machining is carried out on multispindle lathes to shorten cycle times - 6 to 8 bars simultaneously - and single-spindle lathes for smaller production runs and prototypes.
To face up to competition in the bar turning sector, Kartesis made the choice in 2018 to launch an ambitious production digitalization program. Recruited in 2018 to steer the 4.0 project, Alexis Vulliez, explains that one of the components of the 4.0 project was to automate production so as to be able to work in a closed loop: " As we all know, it's very difficult to recruit, and in the next 2 or 3 years, many bar turning specialists will be retiring. We had to find a way of integrating new operators and ensuring that we didn't lose any of our skills.. "
Ellistat's APC software was chosen, as it enabled both real-time production monitoring and visualization of the quality produced by conventional control boards. But above all, with the APC module, Kartesis could control the machines in a closed loop. This means that the operator only has to measure the parts produced, while the software calculates the corrections and sends them to the machine. Machine set-up and dimensional quality are automated and no longer dependent on the operator.
" Since using APCcomments Alexis Vulliez, we have seen a reduction in set-up time of between 90 and 95 %. Whereas it used to take 40 minutes to set up a part, today everything is set up automatically, in less than 5 minutes. As for the correctors, whereas they used to be traditionally entered manually, they are now automatically integrated from the APC. The loop is now closed. In the end, it takes 5 minutes for a part to be right, and APC has enabled us to reduce variability and thus the scrap rate, which is now less than 2%."
The production workshop in the throes of change
Since 2018, much progress has been made. The integration of software for closed-loop machine correction initiated the transformation of the workshop. With APC, set-up operations are minimal, users are limited to control operations and are now more available to focus on their machining business with machine maintenance and servicing logics.
It's no longer an option to leave a qualified setter in charge of a small fleet of machines on a full-time basis. Today, the organization gives the operator the responsibility of measuring parts and taking care of day-to-day production operations. Skilled setters are called in when mechanical work on the machines is required, and when setting up is more than just sending numerical corrections. Everyone is called upon to perform to the best of their abilities.
Project 4.0 is much more than just an accumulation of IT solutions to digitalize production. It is a true industrial vision of what tomorrow's production should be. To maintain its position as a leader in its sector, Kartesis Industries has integrated new technologies into its production processes. The benefits of the project are not simply technical (reduction in set-up times and scrap rates), but also and above all organizational.
For example, the layout of the machines has been redesigned to give self-service access to 1 Zeiss Duramax 3D measuring machine, close to the machine tools. This new organization gives greater autonomy to the operator, reducing the demands on the setter and improving production performance.
APC's ease of use: two weeks to integrate a new operator
Before using APC, it took two months to integrate a new recruit, as he had to learn how to read drawings in detail, translate the drawing into manufacturing routines, find the dimensions on the part, check all the dimensions, and so on. With APC, as part of an internal mentoring scheme, integration takes just two weeks - and only 2 or 3 days in the case of a bar-turning specialist - because all the information is integrated into the software and accessible to all.
For Kartesis Industries, the APC solution is adapted to the market and meets their needs in terms of standards, performance and organization. A win/win relationship was quickly established with Ellistat. For example, Kartesis Industries tests Beta versions of new APC functionalities, and Ellistat develops solutions for integrating new types of machine.
Alexis Vulliez appreciates the close relationship with Ellistat, the very easy and regular contact with the team, and the exchanges with the developers on concrete cases. As far as training is concerned, Ellistat's e-learning offer on APC covers all the topics and saves a lot of time.
To date, APC is used throughout Kartesis Industries' bar-turning business, and is currently being installed in the rework sector. International deployment has been finalized in Slovakia, the United States and soon in Mexico. A total of 200 machines are concerned. And of the 110 machine tools installed in France, a third are running with the Ellistat solution. The goal is to reach 100%.
In addition, Kartesis Industries is now present in more diversified markets. These include, for example, the production of parts for e-mobility - e-bike department, electric vehicle motors - as well as connector technology. The Group is also present in the heavy goods vehicle sector, and in other high-tech sectors such as aeronautics and energy.
And Alexis Vulliez concludes: " We're very proud of the way our workshop has evolved thanks to the APC software solution. It has radically changed the way we control our machines. We can now develop a new, more dynamic and efficient culture of variability control, with tangible results in terms of quality and productivity. Production staff gain real working comfort, and we can easily envisage greater complexity. APC gives us a definite competitive edge. The solution has enabled us to produce new types of parts and expand into new markets. "