Page 18 - MetalForming January 2014

Software for Manufacturing
Software Enhancements Take Cutting
and Punching to New Productivity Heights
UK-based Radan Software (with U.S. operations in Forest Lake, MN) has launched Radan 2014, following a successful Beta program. The latest software version incor- porates a host of new and enhanced functionality including 3D workflow improvements; safety measures
to prevent tipping on flat-bed lasers; advances in com- mon cutting on punches; and sup- port for cluster and asymmetric wheel tools. Says product manager Olaf Körner:
“Simulation
and time calculation have improved considerably, by being moved away from NC ver- ification to the area where sequences are defined, whether a defined sequence is used automatically, manually or interactively. Users now have access to far more infor- mation about the
tools, the machine
and the possible
accelerations.”
Enhancements
to 3D workflow
dramatically
reduce the time
taken to move
parts to the nest,
including the elim-
ination of several
manual steps required—including unfolding the model, saving as a part and adding the right quantity to the schedule. Now, the software automatically unfolds and adds all parts to the nest area. This reduces the number of mouse clicks for single parts from around 26
down to just three
or four.
Further, sup-
port for cluster
tools allows the
user to simply add
them to the mas-
ter tool file; Radan
automatically
ensures the best
arrangements of
cluster tools to punch a specific pattern. “Automatic tooling recognizes the geom- etry and applies the right tool or combination of tools to the punch pattern,” says Körner. Radan 14 also features similar enhancements for asymmetric wheel tools, as they are becoming more popular in offering alternative strategies to secondary operations for cutting and forming.
Radan 2014 adopts the same common cutting strategy for punch presses as that
used for profiling machines. It allows for automatic creation of common cut nests, so the user can choose, for example, how many parts form a common cut island, reducing the sheet’s instability. Tagging for common cut parts also has been improved.
Radan: 800/875-7232; www.radan.com
Reduce Hours Wasted Converting Complex BOM Data into Production Requirements
Exact JobBoss, Minneapolis, MN, has released JobBoss BOM Import, which automates the complex and time con- suming process of entering bill-of-mate- rial (BOM) data into production require- ments. The software captures data from
a single or multi-level BOM structure and imports it into JobBoss to create quotes and jobs. In addition, assemblies and materials listed in the BOM that are not entered into JobBOSS can be auto- matically created to ensure the materi- al structure is in place for the quote or order.
“JobBoss customers identified a need to reduce the significant number of hours required to manually enter pro- duction data related to a BOM,” says sen- ior product manager Sue Irby, and to reduce the number of errors that occur during the process.
The result: an automated import process that eliminates the need to manually enter BOM data as production requirements. Work that typically can take as long as a week of engineering and staff time now takes only minutes. And, the automation reduces the down- stream consequences of having expen- sive, inaccurate requirements on the shop floor.
16 MetalForming/January 2014
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