A Productive Combination

While you continually read that many companies are going overseas to outsource products, one company is bringing business back to into the U.S. Scott Tudury and Associates purchased Flathead Power of Sweden, and brought it to the U.S. Flathead Power (FHP) (Morgan City, LA) manufactures new engines and replacement parts for earlier model V-Twin motorcycles. The Flathead and Knucklehead engines are their specialty.

Tudury also has interest in Apex CNC, a machine shop, in Morgan City, LA with partner Stacy Kidder. Apex CNC was granted the primary shop privilege to machine all of the parts for FHP upon its arrival in the U.S.

Big Problems--Blind Sided

Venturing to IMTS in 2002, the company searched for help, inquiring with numerous companies to try to get solid models of their products outsourced. Tudury visited different companies that showed instant scans of a car door or your hand. "They scanned images of my own hand which showed up on the computer screen within seconds. I thought I had found the services needed; I thought perhaps this company could provide scanning," says Tudury. He asked the salesman to perform a scan back at his office on a coffee cup, burn the file in different file formats to a CD and send the cup and the CD to his attention so that he could then view and verify the file in comparison to the physical model.

After receiving the cup and data, Tudury proceeded to try numerous ways to use the file. However, although the graphical image showed up in their GibbsCAM software, the geometry from the model could not be extracted or utilized. After numerous phone conversations, both companies agreed that this file information was better suited for inspection comparison to previously created solid models.

Tudury continued to look for other companies who were capable of his requirements. "One company quoted me unbelievable prices to scan simple, palm-of-the-hand parts for more than $3,000. I asked one of the gentlemen to please justify the price when it only took 30 seconds to scan? He never answered. In a comparison, I told the service provider I charged $100 per hour for my CNC machines and asked did this job take 30 hours of work for his company or was his equipment more expensive? His diversionary tactics to this issue were superb." While Tudury didn't mind paying for a service, he did not want to get the shaft. Having more than 50 parts he wanted digitized, this company's pricing put the services out of reach. The future did not look optimistic.

Multiple Solutions

To perform the scans, Tudury needed a digitizing apparatus, such as a CMM, digitizing arm or laser scanner, depending on the type of products needed to scan. Since Tudury had set a maximum budget of $40,000 for this project, the lasers were out of reach and the CMM posed size restrictions as the larger they get the more costly they become.

After reviewing his options, Tudury chose the Romer/CimCore Stinger 2 digitizing arm from RevWare (Raleigh, NC). RevWare software representatives demonstrated the arm on location and it appeared to be the solution he had searched for. This arm offered the precision level which fit well into his product line. The one final factor in the purchase was the hot swap of the probes, which allows the user to change probes while digitizing without re-calibrating each different probe size. The arm also allowed Tudury to add another service to his business. "The Stinger is a portable unit," says Tudury, "It comes with a heavy duty travel case, which, in turn, allowed me to offer scanning offsite."

Tudury chose the RevWorks digitizing software from RevWare. The display, editing and management of features created with RevWorks all take place within the familiar SolidWorks interface. This tight integration means that he could collect data from his parts needed and the data automatically appears in the assembly or part document, ready for immediate use with history.

Upon completing the model in Solidworks, any measurement verification of the part can be confirmed. Upon verification, any modifications can be performed as this is a true solid. An additional add-in to the Solidworks platform is the direct transfer to GibbsCam (Moorpark, CA). The simulation graphics are superb and allow Tudury to preview the machining operations on the PC before it goes to the machine. This graphical representation minimizes machine/fixture crashes.

Moving Forward

Application-wise, Tudury uses the digitizer much more on standard jobs. Many job shop parts come in to reproduce or modify without prints. He can digitize a complex bolt pattern or ellipse in a flash and save as a solid model to his server. The machinist on the floor can open the file, extract geometry and be cutting metal in minutes.

With the combination of the software packages and digitizing arm, APEX CNC has been able to move forward in a timely manner. Production has doubled in the last year and they expect the same growth in the coming year.

"I don't wish my previous position on anyone. It was wonderful to be able to find the tools to reduce the time element we all must battle," says Tudury.