TRUMPF (Farmington, CT) introduces Remote Operations Support, a new service for automated laser cutting machine customers in the United States. The service connects experts in Germany with U.S.-based customers operating TruLaser Center machinery.
The TruLaser Center automates the laser cutting process from loading of sheet metal to laser cutting and then part removal and sorting. The Remote Operations Support service was created to assist customers with this automated laser cutting technology.
“Many fabricators run the TruLaser Center during night shifts with the goal of arriving in the morning to a stack of finished and sorted laser-cut parts,” explains TruServices Director Christine Benz. “But what if a machine stops while no one is onsite? Or, what happens if an operator is out sick or on vacation? This is where the Remote Operations Support can intervene and help if needed.”
Small errors can cause big problems for fabricators, particularly when machines run unattended, and can result in lost production time. The new Operation Support service increases nighttime production capability and reduces the need for additional onsite staff.
“It can be hard for manufacturers to find enough qualified employees to monitor the night shift, and delays in detecting and restarting a stopped machine could reduce overall efficiency,” adds Benz. “Fortunately, we have TRUMPF experts who are wide-awake at that time and available to provide remote service support.”
With Remote Operations Support, a team of TRUMPF experts in Neukirch, Germany remotely monitors TruLaser Center machinery in the United States. In addition to observing the process, the team can intervene and resolve errors to keep the laser cutting machine producing parts.
The average processing time to remotely resolve a TruLaser Center machine standstill is estimated at less than fifteen minutes. In addition, the experts at TRUMPF have found that more than fifty percent of machine downtimes can be resolved remotely.