The manufacturer of the original plasma power supply was in the process of discontinuing all support on the plasma system ButlerBuilt purchased in 1993. Additionally, the drive carriage on the plasma cutting system had an outdated rail design, and the drive capabilities were considerably less than newer machines on the market. An upgrade would cost almost as much as a new machine.
The decision was made to purchase a new machine, and Ashleman began an intensive process to research the best systems to meet their needs.
"Our first plasma system gave us good service for almost 15 years, but we chose to refresh with a new machine, new warranty, and new technology," Butler said.
All About the Accuracy
After mapping out ButlerBuilt's specifications and thoroughly researching several plasma systems, Ashleman determined the final decision on a machine would be based on three factors: part repeatability, tolerance of a finished piece over the life of a consumable, and optimal cutting speed.
"With our old system, as the consumable life grew, so did the part tolerance," he said."It was something we were trying to minimize, and it worked out great to find the machine that would do it for us."
ButlerBuilt selected a Genstar cutting table and a KALIBURN Spirit 150a plasma cutting power source from Westwood Robotic Technologies in Elizabethtown, N.C., in the spring of 2007.
The Spirit150a is a 150-amp machine, which gives the seat fabricator the power to maintain repeatability over the consumable's life span. The power source is more than double the size of the company's previous 70-amp system.
The new plasma cutter also gives ButlerBuilt the capability to cut materials up to 1-inch-thick plate, if necessary, and ¾-in. plate on a daily basis.
The majority of our production is 0.090-inch through 3⁄16-inch aluminum, but we were maxed out at high-tolerance cutting of ¼-inch pieces. Now we can quality-cut as much as an inch thick if we need to," Ashleman said.
ButlerBuilt's 150-amp system delivers the speed and cut quality it needs for a majority of the aluminum it cuts. But it also provides the strength necessary to mimic the same results on harder aluminum alloys, which can be comparable to cutting carbon steel.
Picking up Speed With the New System
Since installing the new plasma cutting system, Ashleman said the company's productivity has picked up significantly.
"The operator can square a piece by himself with our preset start points, press the start button, and walk away. The machine comes to where it needs to," he said."The new machine has definitely reduced time for setup and starting."
Ashleman recalled how everyone would have to wait on the old system's gantry to move out of the way at a slow 60 inches per minute (IPM). Now he can assign a preset to the control and the gantry and torch move out of the way.
"I can press the button, tell it where to go, and go back to doing other things … I'm not waiting on the machine," he added.
The company also is getting the accuracy it built the business on. The new plasma cutting system is delivering the same size hole from start to finish. Ashleman said that when he sets the machine to make a series of ½-in. holes at 150 IPM, the tolerances remain the same. With the older machine, the plasma torch would form an egg-shaped hole, and as the consumables wore, the hole became even more egg-shaped
Ashleman added that ButlerBuilt is experiencing time savings related to the elimination of secondary processes. The old plasma cutting system left a much grainier finish on the edge, he said, and forced the welders to file the finished weld joints. The new table can produce smoother cuts that don't require any cleaning of the cut parts
Ashleman estimated that the new system has allowed them to cut their consumable costs in half. A big reason for this is the equipment's automatic gas console (AGC), a feature that automatically sets cutting parameters, monitors a consumable's usable life, and displays the required torch parts and part numbers.
"Having the auto gas console has taken all of the guesswork out of changing amperage and consumables, and I really see that as a major timesaver," he explained. Before having such a control system, the operators set the gas manually, which resulted in discrepancies from one operator to another. Consumable life was consistently inconsistent.
Now the ButlerBuilt team can have a seat and enjoy the benefits.
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