Facilitating modular machine design

The wide acceptance of modular machine design by manufacturers worldwide has been advanced by new products from the supplier world that cater to modularization. Configurable plugs and connectors have become a preferred alternative to hard-wiring internal systems, making modular-based machines much easier to take apart and reassemble for maintenance or upgrading. Even plugs and connectors have to be represented in an electrical design package. An advanced CAE like the EPLAN Platform can automate the creation and placement of function modules and connectors in a fraction of the time it takes using a legacy CAD. For OEMs like Shenji Group Kunming Machine Tool (KMT), the benefits of using an advanced CAE for modular design include the increased speed with which variants of a standard platform can be created or modified along with accurate connector diagrams to integrate the modules. “In its first year using EPLAN, the company was able to quantify the improved productivity it delivers. Doing design packages for existing models used to take three months in AutoCAD, but now takes only two months in EPLAN. And for new products, what took up to six months in AutoCAD is being done in three and a half in EPLAN.” Modular design slowed by legacy CAD tools
KMT is one of China’s most established manufacturers of high precision machine tools dating back to 1936. Located in Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, the company is known for over 140 Chinese “firsts” in industrial design and production, with achievements like the country’s first universal toolmilling machine, first large horizontal boring machine, and more recently, its first large-scale flexible automated production line. Its major products include horizontal and floor-type boring and milling machines and horizontal and vertical machining centers. Saw productivity benefits of design automation
KMT’s electrical engineering staff had a lot of experience with using AutoCAD, but undertaking modular design underscored the need for an electrical CAE that would automate a great deal of the workload in producing documentation and build packages for both variants and new products. KMT wanted to make greater use of standardized content, so projects would be completed faster and with great accuracy. In a legacy CAD environment, modular designing is labor intensive, with a great deal of manual data entry as well as copying and pasting, all of which increases the number of errors, says IT Director Yuan Yu. KMT’s solution was to adopt EPLAN Electric P8 in 2011. As with most adopters of EPLAN, KMT’s 18 electrical engineers like the individual productivity functions that speed up projects, like automatic device tagging, automatic cross-referencing, automatic report generation and global revisions management, says Dir. Yuan. Almost immediately, their productivity shot up and there was a marked improvement in the quality of documentation. Company took strategic approach with EPLAN implementation
As the same time, the company set up EPLAN strategically for modular design. The engineering department created a complete project template with a standard structure, drawing frame, forms, symbols, device identification and more, says Dir. Yuan. Included in the template are all the function module schematics and proper interfaces between modules. “Therefore, for new orders, we only need to select the appropriate functions in the standard module to complete a new project, so everything becomes simple.” One click to complete connection diagram
There are special design rules for plug connections, which require visual and graphical connection diagrams and identification of the general installation positions and connections between plugs to guide the actual wiring work. In a CAD-based environment, producing that entailed a great deal of work, and errors occurred frequently, especially when plugs weren’t modified to reflect changes to the electrical layout. The company had searched for a more efficient way to produce accurate connection diagrams but didn’t find one until evaluating EPLAN´s automation capabilities, says Dir. Yuan. “Now we only need to press a button to produce the connection diagram, something which in the past took a long time to complete. It’s so convenient.” EPLAN sets up PDM linkup
EPLAN has been linked to the company’s Windchill PDM system via an interface created using the EPLAN API (Application Programming Interface). This allows users of programs like Solidworks for mechanical engineering to have access to EPLAN data within their own environment. The interface is working exceedingly well, another validation of the company’s choice of EPLAN, says Dir. Yuan. This IT integration is especially important in managing parts inventories and procurement. The company maintains a database of over 2,000 components in the PDM, but in the past, that database was not transparent to the electrical designers. They had to work off lists provided them, but now have access to real-time component availability and can update components in the PDM without leaving their EPLAN environment, says Dir. Yuan: “That means the working efficiency is greatly improved and the company’s resource allocation is more rational.” In its first year using EPLAN, the company was able to quantify the improved productivity it delivers. Doing design packages for existing models used to take three months in AutoCAD but now takes only two months in EPLAN. And for new products, what took up to six months in AutoCAD is being done in three and a half in EPLAN. Makes current models and new ones faster
Shenji Group Kunming Machine Tools turned to EPLAN Electric P8 when it needed an electrical CAE package that could simplify and standardize processes to accelerate modular designing of its machine tooling systems. Using stored, standardized content like function modules the company created in EPLAN‘s database has accelerated order fulfillment and the design of new variants and products. That, along with EPLAN’s vast automated functionality, has reduced the turnaround time for current products from three months to two and for new products from six months to three and a half. EPLAN also made it possible to create a two-way link between the electrical engineering group and the Windchill PDM that hosts the company’s component database, improving the tracking of component availability and usage. Find out more about Kunming Machine Tools at <link http: english.kmtcl.com.cn>english.kmtcl.com.cn.