Working at full throttle for the American dream
When LMT Kieninger received an enquiry about a complete tool package for crankcase machining, the special tool experts had to work flat out: they had three days to submit an offer and just four weeks to deliver tools after receiving the order.
They are not only a symbol of the American dream of freedom and independence, but also one of the world’s best known brands. We are talking about motorcycles made by a US manufacturer. Before the proud owner can swing onto the saddle, however, a great deal of precision work has to be done. The specialists at LMT Kieninger have been supporting this effort for some time and tools from Lahr have been used in the US motorcycle factories for many years. This recently opened the door for an order from a components supplier producing the crankcases for a new model. Kieninger is supplying the Minnesota company with a total of 25 special tools for complex drilling and milling work. The decisive factor in this success story was Kieninger’s swift response to the contractor’s request for an offer from LMT sales in the USA.
“Our customer had submitted a tender for the contract to manufacture the crankcases. These components had previously been made by another company and were now to be contracted out to a different supplier – at a lower cost, but naturally at the same quality,” Scott Shippell, sales engineer at LMT USA, explains the initial situation. The company has long been an LMT customer and uses various tools from Onsrud, Fette and Bilz. “In addition to our good contacts with the customer, what opened the door for us on this contract was the fact that Kieninger already works for the motorcycle manufacturer. The contractor was also no longer 100% satisfied with the service of its previous supplier of special tools and was prepared to give us a chance,” praises Shippell the successful teamwork. Interestingly, while the motorcycles tend to be associated with leisurely cruising along country roads, everything associated with this order had to move extremely fast.
Swift submission
It was an opportunity that Kieninger knew it had to take. “Customers normally expect us to make a binding offer in a period of one to two weeks,” explains Thilo Nietzschmann of the in-house technical sales team at Kieninger. “We had just three working days.” And the offer covered 25 special tools. All in all, including the associated cutting inserts and tool clamps, 62 individual items had to be costed. Nietzschmann’s calculations were able to benefit from Kieninger’s many years of experience in special tool design for numerous customers in the automotive industry. “In addition to the technical and commercial factors, a feel for the complexity of the overall project plays an important role in putting together this kind of offer. Additionally, we knew that we had to match competitors from the United States in price terms because of the relatively strong euro compared to the dollar.” The customer was won over by Kieninger’s offer, but the time pressure remained.
Four weeks to the first delivery
One of motorcycle manufacturer’s requirements was that the first crankcase prototype had to be delivered within six weeks.The Kieninger tool package was supposed to cover the complete semi-finishing of the two aluminium casing covers – above all, the drilling and milling operations. The goal was to produce the component with as few clampings as possible. That reduces unproductive ancillary times, but also means that many different machining steps have to be integrated in individual tools. “Our sales, design and production units had to work together perfectly to meet this tight deadline,” explains Nietzschmann. It was a challenge that Sibylle Kolb, head of manufacturing, and Timo Pässler, head of production and planning, and their teams were happy to accept.
One of motorcycle manufacturer’s requirements was that the first crankcase prototype had to be delivered within six weeks. The Kieninger tool package was supposed to cover the complete semi-finishing of the two aluminium casing covers – above all, the drilling and milling operations. The goal was to produce the component with as few clampings as possible. That reduces unproductive ancillary times, but also means that many different machining steps have to be integrated in individual tools. “Our sales, design and production units had to work together perfectly to meet this tight deadline,” explains Nietzschmann. It was a challenge that Sibylle Kolb, head of manufacturing, and Timo Pässler, head of production and planning, and their teams were happy to accept.
Complete tool package and service from LMT
The complete package also includes drilling and milling tools by the LMT companies Fette and Onsrud as well as tool clampings by Bilz. The technological highlights of the tool package are special tools for reverse milling of internal surfaces of the crankcase. Here, the tool is inserted into the component through the drilled hole. The internal surfaces of the case are subsequently machined with blades on the back of the tool without having to turn or reclamp the component. Another special feature is the fact that all the tools are fitted with special blades also produced by Kieninger. “These guarantee our customers consistent high quality because the edges are specially designed for the respective processing steps,” explains Thilo Nietzschmann. “An additional advantage is that the colleagues of LMT USA take over the whole on-site assistance. This ensures short reaction periods for maintenance and service as well as the supply of replacement parts.” This is clearly a convincing feature, as Scott Shippell underlines: We’re currently engaged in talks on solutions we could offer for the finishing of the case covers.”