U.P. Tool, a specialist South Korean tool manufacturer, has invested in a dozen CNC (Computer Numerical Control) machines manufactured by Australia’s ANCA, boosting production and reducing labour costs as it creates medical and smart-phone products.
Melbourne-based ANCA is a global leader in tool and cutter grinders. Its CNC grinders are used for manufacturing precision cutting tools and components across a diverse range of competitive industries including cutting tool manufacture, automotive, aerospace, electronics and medical.
“When the mobile sector started using smart phone technology we knew it was a good opportunity but needed the cylindrical function and laser measurement available in ANCA machines to enter that market,” says UP Tools joint representative director Sung-Jae Lee.
“Investing in our machines gave us the capability to provide customers with optimised tools for mobile quickly with a fast cycle time while producing complicated shape processing. It set us apart from other suppliers.”
Founded in 2012, UP Tools originally purchased one ANCA RX7 to make special custom tools and medical implants. UP Tools has since grown its facilities to have 12 CNC machines, including ten of ANCA’s CNC tool grinders and two cylindrical grinders.
Chief Technology Officer Byung-Seung Choi, who has a lot of experience in tool processing technology and benchmarking the capabilities of cutting tools, advised acquiring more ANCA technology for its flexibility and efficiency. UP Tools started with special custom and medical implant tools before entering the standard end mill and customised cutter market.
ANCA, founded in 1974, now has offices in the UK, Germany, China, Thailand, India, Japan, Brazil and the USA. The firm recently launched new software allowing its customers to monitor the performance of their machines no matter where they are in the world, and to make data-based decisions on operational improvements.
“Customers wanted a smart factory concept where machines grind tools all day everyday with minimal intervention and the ability to remotely monitor machines for better intelligence on grinding performance and down-times,” said Thomson Mathew, ANCA Software Product Manager.
The new software suite is designed to give our customers as much intelligence as possible on their machines performance, allowing companies the ability to produce highly accurate reports on machine usage allowing them to identify waste and increase overall equipment efficiency.
The CNC machines reduce the need for staff on site, lowering costs, and improving productivity compared to an unmanned site.
UP Tools now plans to aggressively expand in the US, Vietnam, Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong and China.
“The automation available on ANCA machines has been a great help. With the automatic loading system and Management Suite software, tools like Production Monitoring will mean we can maintain our competitiveness with less operator hours but no concern about reduced quality,” Lee says.