WINTER 2016

52 THE DISTRIBUTOR’S

52 THE DISTRIBUTOR’S LINK Del Williams Del Williams is a technical writer based in Torrance, California. He writes about health, business, technology, and educational issues, and has an M.A. in English from C.S.U. Dominguez Hills. ELIMINATING DEFECTIVE FASTENERS WITH HIGHER RESOLUTION, 3D INSPECTION EQUIPMENT As Manufacturers look to lightweight materials for improved fuel economy, the associated fastening problems necessitate zero defects through 100% inspection. From automotive, trucking, and heavy equipment to aerospace, agriculture, and high-volume appliance and electronics, manufacturers looking to reduce weight (or for cost savings) have turned to lightweight materials like aluminum, plastics, zinc and magnesium. The associated fastening issues require zero defects from fastener manufacturers as production speed and quality depends on them. While fastener manufacturers have long relied on sorting to remove defects before they enter production, the fact is that cold heading, moving, and inscribing metal with threads is not entirely predictable. Each piece must be inspected for visual imperfections like burrs, scratches, thread damage or head cracks to dimensional measurement such as thread parameters, lengths, diameters, tapers, radii, straightness, perpendicularity, recess depth, and head protrusion. With today’s high-volume, auto-feed systems and pass-through parts, fasteners require more integrity than ever. To maximize production uptime, critical part safety, enhance brand, as well as prevent potential rework, recall, or liability, manufacturers expect fasteners today to have zero defects despite the use of lightweight materials on the mating hole/application. Accordingly, the fastener industry is increasingly relying on higher resolution, 3D inspection of billions of fasteners. Gauging, sorting, and cylindrical part inspection systems incorporating laser, vision, and eddy TECHNICAL ARTICLE current for dimensional measurement and determining metallurgical defects are now used for high-speed inspection of fasteners ranging from bolts, screws, studs, and cylindrical parts to nuts, washers, fittings, and bushings. Challenging Lightweight Materials While automotive manufacturers have long required zero defects from suppliers, the introduction of lightweight materials, such as aluminum body panels, engines, and manifolds in companies from Ford and GM to Audi and Jaguar, has made this a particular challenge when the fasteners are still steel. “With the switch to aluminum bodies, such as in the Ford F-150, you can’t weld like with traditional steel,” says Mike Nygaard, President of General Inspection, a developer of high-speed measuring and sorting fastener inspection systems. “Instead, there’s billions of selfpiercing rivets (SPRs) used, and their dimensions, bore size, and other attributes must be exact with no obstructions. It’s critical to ensure not only that steel fasteners don’t damage the aluminum or lightweight material they’re inserted in, but also that they’re flush, fastened properly and not loose.” According to Nygaard, in high-speed automotive production lines relying on automatic torquing systems, even a few fasteners that fail to meet dimensional specs out of a million used per hour can cause zero uptime, if they jam and require troubleshooting to get production going again. The wrong sized pitch diameters on threads, burrs on the thread, or similar issues can trigger auto-torque failure, stopping thread insertion. CONTINUED ON PAGE 130

DACO PRECISION 8565 Hwy. 45, PO Box 435, Kewaskum, WI 53040 TEL 262-626-6591 FAX 262-626-2602 EMAIL sales@daco-precision.com WEB www.daco-precision.com COMMUNITY MINDED, CUSTOMER FOCUSED by Stan Lockhart It comes as no surprise that a company like DACO Precision is a leader in their community for noble causes, one of which is their local chapter of United Way. A few years ago, you may remember, DACO donated two of their wire EDM tooling machines, to two local high schools to help create interest in the manufacturing environment while trying to develop the next generation of tool and die makers. Everyone in manufacturing today knows how hard it is to hire and train these workers that are so vital to a strong manufacturing base in this country. And, while we all see players in the NFL and other professional sports promoting the many great causes of the United Way, here in the town of Kewaskum, Wisconsin, the owners of DACO and its employees are dedicating their time and resources to raising money in the community by auctioning off various gifts and donations from generous vendors, workers, suppliers and other individuals. Last year in 2014, DACO was one of only four other companies in their county to receive 3-separate United Way awards. Randy BUSINESS FOCUS ARTICLE THE DISTRIBUTOR’S LINK 53 Weber, president of DACO credits the strong leadership of Carla Kachellek, their office manager, for orchestrating all the efforts necessary each year to pull off this remarkable feat. For those customers that have worked with Carla at one point or another over the last eighteen years of her time at DACO, they have witnessed and benefitted from her unselfish attitude that is so evident in the way she handles her daily customer service related activities. And, if that is not enough, Carla and her sister operate a dog rescue organization caring for and placing homeless dogs with adoptive families. Not one to search out the spotlight, she will be embarrassed by all the accolades. But, the real winners are all those that benefit from the work and dedication of the entire group at DACO Precision. DACO manufactures special washers, custom stampings and assemblies at their 64,000 square foot facility in Kewaskum, Wisconsin, and is dedicated to working with key distributor partners for Vendor Managed Inventory programs. They are community minded and customer centered in all facets of their work and personal lives! DACO PRECISION