A metalworking company from the Swabian town of Hawangen has already been successful on the market for 200 years. With the handover of the baton to the sixth generation, the course has now been set for the future. The new management replaced laborious manual processing steps with efficient plant technology.
Robert Plersch Edelstahltechnik GmbH has a long history: The company was founded in 1819 as a small building fitter’s shop, grew and in the meantime also produced its own products with stoves and ovens for private households and the catering trade. Originally located in Ottobeuren, the company moved to its current location in 1985. In the 1980s, the portfolio was changed to sheet metal working under Robert Plersch. “Since then, we have grown steadily. More and more new technology and automation was added. That was my father’s ‘philosophy’,” summarizes Managing Director Georg Plersch, who is now the sixth generation to run the company. After three years of joint work and intensive training, the company was handed over from father to son at the end of 2019/beginning of 2020.
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Deburring should be automated
Right at the start of his new job, the industrial engineer with a degree in mechanical engineering had a complex task to master. Investments should be made. All departments should work at a technically similar high level. Looking at the individual production areas in the company, things looked very different before the current investment. In the field of sheet metal processing, the latest equipment from Trumpf was available. Production was carried out in three shifts on five lines. This resulted in a very large throughput of sheet metal parts, steel and stainless steel parts, and aluminum parts. Then came the next work step with deburring. And in this area, a lot of manual work was still done.
“It didn’t fit together. In one area we are fully automated in a three-shift system and then manual work follows. We didn’t just lack the number of employees in the deburring area. It is also simply a question of motivation. In addition, customer requirements have become increasingly stringent in recent years,” says Georg Plersch, looking back.
The plant technology therefore had to be adapted to the changed production requirements. “On the one hand, we wanted to process the high volume of sheet metal parts as efficiently as possible and implement the increased requirements for deburring, such as deburring on both sides. On the other hand, the employees were to be relieved, because manual deburring is quite strenuous,” says Plersch, describing the key data. So when looking for new plant technology, the focus was on throughput times, quality and automation.
And so the plant concepts of various manufacturers were looked at and tested with a view to the company’s own production requirements. That Lissmac was also contacted was obvious. On the one hand, there was already a Lissmac system for deburring and rounding steel sheets with an existing SBM-L1500, and they were satisfied with the technology. On the other hand, Lissmac is also a Plersch customer, because the Bad Wurzach-based machine builder obtains sheet metal components for its own machine production from Plersch. So they have known each other for many years, work together as partners and appreciate each other’s competencies.
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Higher quality in less time
In 2017, there were initial discussions about the planned investment. At the end of 2018, the experts from Lissmac were then on site in Hawangen at Plersch to look at the production processes and propose a plant concept. The processes and also individual manufacturing steps of the parts and assemblies were thoroughly scrutinized.
“One thing was clear: the material flow had to be optimized and, in this context, short ‘lay times’ of the parts and short delivery times for the customers had to be realized. We also had to respond to the topic of ‘high quality in less time’, which is becoming more and more important,” says the managing director, summarizing a few basic requirements for the new plant technology.
Alexander Bochtler supervised the project from the beginning on the Lissmac side. Looking back, he says, “There were so many different requirements that had to be covered: many small parts, many large parts, or even different surface requirements. This would not have been feasible with one plant.” So the Area Sales Manager Metal Processing at Lissmac Maschinenbau GmbH presented several machines from the Lissmac portfolio, each of which is particularly suitable for individual applications. A detailed deburring concept was created for this purpose. This concept showed exactly which Lissmac system would be suitable for which parts and part requirements from the Plersch portfolio.
Once the deburring concept was available, the decision-makers from Plersch traveled to Lissmac’s demonstration center to put the proposed system technology through its paces. “Of course, we had a few surprises in the trunk in addition to the normal parts that we manufacture. For example, parts that are quite challenging to machine,” smiles Georg Plersch today. These were parts that were very time-consuming and labor-intensive to process. Here, the new plant technology should achieve a significant improvement with high quality. “The deburring bottleneck should definitely be eliminated in our company,” says Plersch.
He continues: “In our business, maximum flexibility in parts processing is required. This is what customers expect from us. We also pass this requirement on to the machine manufacturer.”
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Detailed deburring concept convinced
In the end, Plersch decided in March 2019 on a machine package consisting of a total of three lines. Specifically, the SBM – L 2000 G1S2 grinding and deburring machine was purchased purely for stainless steel and aluminum operations. On this line, Plersch now processes formats from 150 mm x 50 mm to 1700 mm x 2500 mm. This unit deburrs the inner and outer contours on both sides. The manual pre-processing of these components that was previously necessary is completely eliminated with the new system, and the parts are finished in a single pass.
The SBM – XS 300 G1E1 is now used for double-sided machining of vacuum-capable small parts, especially for components with batch sizes of 5000 pieces per month, as well as for other small parts to bypass vibratory grinding and thus significantly reduce the throughput time of these parts.
With the acquisition of the third Lissmac system, a single-sided SMD 545 RRR with a working width of 1350 mm, it is now possible to realize the highest quality surface grinding. This plant was specially designed for stainless steel operation. Appropriate use was also proposed for inventory machines that were still in use at that time. And the new equipment could be installed as early as the end of 2019.
Greater flexibility and more capacity options
Plersch’s main focus is to respond flexibly to customer requirements. The company is broadly positioned both in terms of part geometry and materials. Steel, stainless steel and aluminum are processed and work is carried out for all sectors, from automotive and mechanical engineering to medical technology and energy technology. The mini component for the electrical industry is therefore machined in exactly the same way as the six-meter assembly – from quantity 1 to several tens of thousands of units.
With the new plant technology from Lissmac, greater flexibility in order processing is now possible. For example, process times could be significantly reduced for laser punched parts that subsequently have to be deburred. The edge rounding of parts that are subsequently powder coated and must therefore be burr-free in order to ensure optimum paint adhesion is now also significantly easier and, above all, process-reliable.
Logistical response to the new technology has also been made: The processing of steel and stainless steel must be physically separated so that there is no contamination. For this purpose, the internal logistics were adjusted accordingly. Likewise for the processes that take place on the SMD 545, i.e. for the grinding of surfaces.
Supposedly, 2019 has been a busy year for Plersch. The investment in the Lissmac equipment package was extensive. In addition, a new production hall has created additional space capacity for existing production. And last but not least, the handover of the management from Robert Plersch to Georg Plersch marked another milestone in the company’s history. “We wanted to set an example and show that we are setting the course for the future together,” explains Georg Plersch.
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Adherence to delivery dates can be reliably ensured
After the investment, it is now important for Plersch that support is ensured, that a contact person is quickly on hand when needed, and that spare parts are also quickly available. It’s about the overall concept, not just the pure investment.
This is also important for Alexander Bochtler: “It was a great collaboration, characterized by exchange and dialog. We were able to design efficient processes. But we don’t just sell machines, we also sell solutions with a view to time and machine life.”
At Plersch in Hawangen, sustainable and attractive workplaces have also been created as a result of investments in new plant technology, and the ergonomics have been designed as optimally as possible for the employees. And what are Georg Plersch’s wishes for the coming years? “Of course, healthy growth for our company and the opportunity to do quality work. But also more calm from the outside. When it comes to difficult issues such as Corona, the energy crisis or the shortage of skilled workers, I would basically like to see more support for SMEs from our politicians,” he demands.
Annedore Bose-Munde
Web:
www.lissmac.com
