Manufacturing Technology

Marposs has announced the availability of its data management software, C-THRU4.0, designed to collect and process data from metal forming equipment, such as stamping presses and cold forming machines – equipped with Brankamp devices or T1 terminals. 

Marposs’ C-THRU4.0 software enables a direct connection between a production level process monitoring system or T1 terminal and production control with an overarching ERP system to deliver machine, operating, order, maintenance, quality and process data in ‘real time’ to all departments of the company. The data collected can be used to reduce set-up and downtimes, optimise cycle times, increase machine utilisation, as well as document and evaluate process data, all leading to enhanced productivity and profitability. 

The direct interconnection with process monitoring provides the production planning with well founded and detailed information, which is not available to conventional production control systems. This interconnection supports automation of workflows, automated report generation, identification of stop reasons, minimisation of set-up times and optimal planning of intervals for orders or maintenance. Production costs and quality are always transparent and traceable through the statistical recording and evaluation of performance indicators. 

“Prior to this software we had to review data manually,” reports Joe Bortolameolli, product specialist at Brankamp. “With C-THRU4.0, the machine monitoring information is available in ‘real time’ through the company network, providing a transparent connection between machine, process and production.”

To initiate C-THRU4.0, data collected from the monitoring processes is coordinated with customers’ cost and resource information to provide a dashboard that meets customers’ needs. Any changes coming in from the customer side can be fed back to the forming machine. This interconnectivity and data flow supports the move toward the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and Industry 4.0. 

Digitise and evaluate force curves with TrendViewer

For customers in the metal forming industry, Marposs has also developed the TrendViewer software to provide them with the capability of downstream evaluation of their force curves in the forming tool. Each stroke from each stage can be viewed without gaps in time-lapse and special areas of the curve can be evaluated separately. This provides the possibility to determine the tool wear of a rolling die for the first time by looking at the first half revolution of the screw.

“Nowadays, process monitoring is an integral part of the digitalisation strategy in metal forming technology. Uniform industry standards such as OPC-UA or MQTT enable us to work together with the customer on the implementation of the digital factory,” explains Marposs.

The monitoring devices of the Marposs Brankamp product line represent an important source of data and a means of communication for connecting the machines to the higher level management system. When analysing the stored process data, new algorithms are used to gain knowledge about the process, the machine condition and the quality of the products. The interaction between the analysis of the process data on the one hand and the production data on the other is an essential step in performing preventive maintenance, increasing tool life and achieving reproducible processes.

“The specific observation of curve sub-areas creates completely new analysis possibilities, as this data can be sent to higher level data analysis software systems by such methods as MQTT. This information, made available for the first time, enables a complete analysis of the individual processes and offers conclusions about process fluctuations, wear or other abnormalities,” explains Marposs.