Customer Collaboration Leads to Performance Success

An improved design eliminated previous production anomalies. Effective communication resulted in increased production rates.

Background:

Kenwood’s status as a household name in over 80 different countries worldwide has earned Kenwood the reputation as one of Britain’s top domestic appliance manufacturers. In July 2005, Kenwood Limited and plastic moulding specialists
Hilton Engineering joined forces with Aylesbury Automation Ltd to look at the potential for a ‘‘next generation’’ assembly machine that would eradicate previous production inefficiencies experienced with the assembly operation
for components from Kenwood’s water filter range.

The Problem:

The most pressing problem that needed to be addressed was the insecure attachment of two of the filter components; the material filter strip and the plastic filter lid. The time and distance between attaching the components and
ultra-sonically welding the components together posed a risk to the assembled product. The transgression between attachment and welding exposed the two parts to the open air and inertia from the process that at times caused the components to become detached and misalign, resulting in high levels of rejection at the final assembly stage of the process.

Separation of components consequently had negative effect on the whole assembly system, creating a 2-3% component failure rate and slowing the complete production process.

The Solution :

Aylesbury Automation’s dedicated sales, design and engineering teams respond to their customer’s problems by providing specific and effective solutions, drawing on over 40 years of experience and design expertise.

Aylesbury Automation’s team focused their skills and knowledge to design and construct an automatic rotary indexing machine that utilised a technique that secured and welded the components at the same station, eliminating any risk of component detachment.

Added adjustments of UV light technology combined with a built-in camera allowed for detailed quality checks, and an extra set of grippers were added to reduce discrepancies in tape tension that had previously resulted in unusable filter material components.

Benefits:

Careful consideration of Kenwood’s previous assembly problems opened the door to providing an assembly system that could maximise production potential; Aylesbury
Automation’s AA6 automatic rotary indexing machine now provides Kenwood with a cost-effective, reliable and durable investment that has substantially increased assembly production, reduced rejection rates and significantly improved the complete process.

An improved design eliminated previous production anomalies. Effective communication resulted in increased production rates.

Aylesbury Automation has a long and distinguished history in supplying Special Purpose Machines to international manufacturing companies. The business is active across a broad industrial spectrum including food, electronics, automotive, packaging, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, the proprietary self pierce riveting system and a complete range of parts handling, feeding and automation products and systems.

Aylesbury Automation is accredited to ISO 9001:2008 and Investors in People.

For further information on Special Purpose Machines, feed systems, advice and customer services, contact:
Sales Department
Aylesbury Automation Limited
Unit 2 Farmbrough Close
Stocklake Park
Aylesbury
Buckinghamshire
HP20 1DQ

Telephone: +44 (0) 1296 314300
Fax: +44 (0) 1296 482424
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