Forklift manufacturer Crown relies on software from CENIT

Crown introduces simulation-based offline programming based on FASTSUITE Edition 2

Stuttgart, March 28, 2018 - The forklift manufacturer Crown relies heavily on robotic welding automation for fabrication/production of their equipment in the Roding (Germany) facility. The company has now begun to replace the time-consuming manual teaching of the robot systems with simulation-based offline programming for tool path generation. For this, the company relies on the FASTSUITE Edition 2 software and the CENIT team.

Crown is one of the five largest forklift manufacturers in the world. The US-based, family-owned company has a global production, sales, and service network with 19 manufacturing sites around the world and more than 500 sales offices in 84 countries. As a customer-oriented innovation leader, Crown regularly sets trends in the field of material flow solutions. For the production of forklifts, it is critical to develop robust and durable products that meet the customers high demands for quality, ergonomics, and reliability, as well as meeting safety-relevant requirements. High quality standards based on a customer-oriented focus are met by Crowns high vertical integration: up to 85 percent of the components are produced in-house.
Crown has been producing forklifts in the Roding facility since 1986. Today there are several complex robot systems with up to 13 axes in the production floor. Programming and fixture construction play an important role. However, some of the solid steel components have seams that are difficult to access or many welds on a small area. This makes manual teaching and fixture construction difficult.
For some time, Crown has been considering using offline programming. Florian Braun, project manager in manufacturing engineering, saw an opportunity to optimize the use of welding robots. One supplier convinced the team: The IT and software consulting company CENIT, with its software FASTSUITE Edition 2, could fulfill their requirements. The 3D simulation platform offers a sophisticated technology package specifically for offline programming of welding processes. A benchmark was set to program a component with the OLP software on a Reis compact weld cell and perform a download. Above all, it was judged how well the download works and how close the robot follows the contour of the weld path.
The software features required by Crown:
• CAD data-based welding seam generation (CAD-to-path algorithms) with automatic approach and departure strategies. Welding path generation not only describes the robot's motion paths, but also includes the control commands for the welding technology. In this way, many manual programming steps are avoided and optimal process parameters are always used.
• The parameters for the weld seams and the positioning of the torch to the workpiece can be easily adjusted if required.
• External axes and workpiece positioners are automatically positioned and interpolated.
The performance of FASTSUITE in the field test was convincing to Crown. Although the cell had not yet been calibrated and prepared for offline programming during the test, the toolpath was already very close to the expected result on the test part. FASTSUITE was able to demonstrate its "ease of use" and the high level of expertise in welding production that CENIT brought gave Crown additional assurance that they had found the right partner.
The implementation project had three phases. At startup, CENIT configured the software for the requirements of the corresponding system (phase 1). This was followed by the creation of a digital layout model of the cell (phase 2) that corresponds to the real installation. At the customers site, phase 3 began with the calibration of the facility with the digital model.
The result: The first welding cells were integrated into the simulation environment at the beginning of summer 2017. Instead of taking several days, programming a new workpiece or part variant now only takes a few hours. This is because the programming takes place in the simulation environment of FASTSUITE Edition 2 (offline, i.e. parallel to the productive operation of the system) and as a result the downtimes of the system have been significantly reduced. The production interruptions for setting up and teaching new components has also been reduced to a minimum. The welding quality of the solid steel parts are consistent and corresponds to Crowns high standards.
In summary, the OLP project has had a positive impact on streamlining the development and design of toolmaking. It is much faster and easier to determine the right fixture because the simulated system is available with all kinematics and peripherals as a virtual 3D model. Instead of testing the real device prototypes over and over, the virtual device can be tested for accessibility and then built in real life. New components can be optimized during development for later welding production.
New ideas are already emerging in the Roding facility today. With FASTSUITE, Crown has a software solution that they can grow with, it is open and scalable - and an ideal first step for a company with a strong Industry 4.0 vision.

About CENIT
CENIT is your partner for successful digital transformation. With a broad solutions and services portfolio, CENIT enables clients to optimize their horizontal and vertical business processes. Our solutions are based on innovative technologies in: product lifecycle management, the digital factory, and enterprise information management. With interdisciplinary knowledge of the processes involved and their considerable expertise in the field, CENIT consultants provide customers with end-to-end advice to ensure that solutions are implemented with an understanding of the entire value chain. With a holistic approach and based on trusted partnerships, CENIT takes responsibility for solutions on behalf of our clients. From the initial consultation to the introduction of innovative IT solutions, right through to ensuring a cost-effective operation. The CENIT team adapts to each client, taking a practical approach, which enables measurable, operational optimizations. CENIT has been helping prestigious customers in key industries to gain competitive advantages for over 25 years! CENIT has over 800 employees worldwide who work with customers from: automotive, aerospace, industrial equipment, tool and mold manufacturing, financial services, and trade and consumer products industries. www.cenit.com

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