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Completed
Project Objective
Procure new manufacturing equipment to increase mockup fabrication capabilities.
Project Description
This project aimed to procure new manufacturing equipment to increase fabrication capabilities overall on the team. This included a new computerized numerically controlled (CNC) router, metal shear, metal break, horizontal band saw, and laser cutter with enclosure. These machines either replace aging equipment, providing more capability, or provide new capabilities the team did not have before.
Project Results and Conclusions
All five of the procured machines have been delivered and are in the process of being connected to utilities and being set up. The CNC router is a ShopSabre Pro-408, which is taking the place of a 12-year-old Laguna CNC router. The Laguna router will still be used as a backup device and stored in another location to improve workflow. The ShopSabre CNC is an overall faster machine, with a rapid travel time 9x faster than the laguna. The ShopSabre also has increased capabilities in the materials and types of cuts it is able to perform.
The laser cutter is a brand new machine and capability. It provides the team the capability to make more complex cuts in a faster, more precise, and repeatable fashion. Previous capabilities included cutting materials by hand, such as softgoods, or cutting using the CNC router, which has limited capability to do zero-radius cuts.
The metal shear, break, and horizontal band-saw are newer machines replacing aging equipment. The replaced equipment will still be used as backup or placed in other facilities to improve workflow. The new machines are capable of manipulating larger and thicker metals, providing new capability the team did not have previously.
This project will benefit all programs and projects that utilize the fabrication capabilities of the team. This includes construction of mockups for Human Factors Engineering Assessments but also other fabrication needs across the Center. This equipment will save time overall by providing equipment that is newer, faster, and can conduct more complex manipulation of materials than was previously achievable. Previously many of these cuts and manipulations had to be done by hand which is time consuming, increasing schedule delays and overall cost.
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