Quick Die Change Systems is a lean manufacturing technology designed to reduce equipment downtime from hours to minutes or even seconds by optimizing the mold change process.
Distinguish between internal and external operations
Internal operations need to be stopped to complete (e.g., mold disassembly).
While external jobs can be prepared while the equipment is running (e.g., mold presetting).
Externalization of internal operations
Standardized tooling and pre-positioning of mold parameters allow converting the externalization of operations that would otherwise require shutdown operations into external preparations.
Eliminate adjustments and waste
Reduce commissioning time through tool standardization, automated clamping devices (e.g. hydraulic clamps) and parallel operation.
Typical system components include a mold transfer arm, a clamp, a mold lifter, a gas-hydraulic power unit and a control system.
Which can be quickly clamped and released by hydraulic or pneumatic technology.
The relationship between the die casting process and the need for mold change
The die casting process mainly includes the stages of melting, injection, cooling, demolding and dressing.
High-frequency mold change requirements
Multi-variety, low-volume orders (such as auto parts) need to change molds frequently.
Large-scale mold challenges
Integrated die casting technology makes molds weigh hundreds of tons, and traditional mold changes are time-consuming and dangerous.
Costly downtime
Downtime per hour can cost tens of thousands of dollars, especially in the production of high-precision automotive structural parts.
Specific application scenarios of SMED in die-casting
Large-scale mold change
For example, the 16000T die-casting unit jointly developed by Guangdong Hongtu and LK Group adopts an intelligent mold locking structure.
And a quick mold change system to support the production of larger-size structural parts, and the mold change efficiency is increased by 80%.
Multi-channel energy connection
Stäubli has developed a multi-way quick coupling that can connect high-temperature oil, hydraulic.
And other pipelines in less than 1 second, solving the complexity of large mold circuits.
Multi-variety low-volume production
A die-casting workshop shortened the 280-ton mold change time from 143 minutes to less than 30 minutes through SMED, realizing fast delivery of small orders.
AGV and robot integration
Fuwei Machinery’s intelligent mold change system combined with AGV handling (maximum load of 500 tons) realizes automatic mold storage and transportation.
Cloud management
LK-NET cloud die-casting system monitors the mold change process in real time and optimizes parameter adjustment.
Data on the impact of SMED on die casting production efficiency
Time efficiency
Mold change time can be reduced by 70%-90%, for example, company B reduced the mold change time from 59.46 minutes to 32.39 minutes through a standardized process.
Extreme case
One study reduced mold change time from 49 minutes to 552 seconds with SMED, reducing downtime by 81.2%.
Economic benefits
Enterprises increase production efficiency by about 30%, and the annual cost savings can reach hundreds of millions of yuan (for example, an enterprise saves IDR 360 million per year.
Inventory turnover rate increases: reduce work-in-process backlog and reduce capital occupation.
Quality & Safety
The first article pass rate is improved, and the error rate in the adjustment process is reduced.
The automatic clamping device reduces the risk of manual operation and reduces the accident rate.
Specific application scenarios of QDC in aluminum alloy die-casting
Auto parts production
After the introduction of QDC in an automobile die-casting factory.
The number of daily mold changes increased from 4 to more than 6 times, and the production efficiency increased by 30%.
For example, the production of engine blocks realizes the rapid switching of different types of molds through standardized mold interfaces.
And at the same time ensures that the dimensional accuracy is stable at level 4 (the traditional process is level 6-7).
Consumer Electronics Enclosure Manufacturing
In response to the diverse needs of mobile phone/tablet enclosures, QDC compresses the time for mold replacement and debugging from weeks to hours.
The mold shifting trolley and roller guide work together to improve the transportation and positioning efficiency of the 15-ton mold by 60%.
Medium-sized enterprise
Under the trend of order fragmentation, a medium-sized enterprise uses QDC to process 8 different molds in a single day, increase the inventory turnover rate by 40%, and reduce sluggish materials by 25%.
