Digitalisation is fuelling consumer desires for product customisations. Consequently, demand for mass-personalised precision components with a quick turnaround is in higher demand.
Responding to this, on Stand C195 at Southern Manufacturing & Electronics 2020, Broanmain Plastics launch its new precision-moulding manufacturing facility that caters to branded, customised precision components used in the automotive, aerospace, electronics and FMCG sectors.
To repeatedly achieve a better surface finish on parts featuring intricate 2D and 3D geometries, Broanmain recently invested in state-of-the-art vertical CNC milling technology, now installed at its Dorking manufacturing facility. At Southern Manufacturing, visitors will be able to see and handle real examples of customised industrial devices engineered and made for blue chip multinationals, including one of the world’s largest suppliers of life sciences instruments.
To help its customer differentiate, Broanmain’s contemporary milling facility manufactures intricate parts from a range of materials, including polymer to copper, aluminium and other metals. It also enables Broanmain to repair and prototype customers’ mould tools in-house.
Another new addition to Broanmain’s tool shop is a ZNC spark eroder system. This enables the dedicated CNC machinist team to make precise burns, shapes and forms into hardened and conductive materials that couldn’t be accomplished using a manual or CNC milling machine.
Operations Director Jo Davis comments: “For OEMs seeking bespoke moulded and fabricated parts all managed through a single supplier, Broanmain has the flexibility, tools, production and assembly resources to undertake manufacturing and prototype projects of all shapes and sizes. We also project manage tooling commissions. This expertise helps to de-risk projects, especially in the early development phase.”
It’s why Specac choose Broanmain. As well as overseeing the mould tool development for the company’s high performance spectrometer accessory, Broanmain moulds and customises the bespoke part used globally in chemometric analysis instruments. Featuring seven individual components, which are assembled into a single part, engineering precision is critical emphasises Specac’s Strategic Buyer Anthony Gomme. Broanmain also worked closely with ACT to source a special paint finish sourced from the U.S. Once applied, this paint finish differentiates the component from others on the market.
Having named the injection moulder their New Supplier of the Year in 2019, Anthony comments: “Broanmain’s responsiveness, the ease of working with a single supplier, their tooling knowledge and general ‘get-the-job-done’ attitude makes a real difference. The company’s willingness to invest in new technology to support future engineering projects is testament.”
By scaling up its precision business, Broanmain is assisting customers like Specac to make further productivity gains and manage inventory more efficiently. Rather than placing bulk orders, Specac, for example, orders 100 precision parts a month from Broanmain, all of which are finished individually on the company’s new vertical mill.
In the last 12 months Broanmain also added eight further machines to its injection moulding fleet. Higher tonnage machines are utilised to mass-produce larger components weighing up to 3kg. The company also reports an unprecedented rise in demand for compression moulding. Jo attributes this to the reduction in UK moulders offering both injection and compression moulding. “As this is an older technology, many suppliers are simply not training new staff in this field. As a result, there are fewer moulders with the capacity or resources to meet customers’ delivery demands. To address this shortage Broanmain has not only increased the capacity of our compression moulding department, but we are focused on developing more team members to support this growth.”
REACH compliant Trudec tiles, manufactured by Broanmain, will be on display for the first time at the show. Safe, hygienic, sustainable and resilient, the versatile interlocking floor tile system enables factories to personalise their flooring and add branding. Meeting COSHH workspace requirements, the floor tiles are available in multiple colours and textures to delineate work zones and walkways.
To illustrate design and personalised branding possibilities, the company will also give away a prototype keyring that’s tampo printed on the curve and into the recess.
Whatever your design challenge or plastic moulding question, the Broanmain production experts have a solution. Test their knowledge at Southern Manufacturing & Electronics, Stand C195, Farnborough, 11-13 February 2020.
