Zoller Automation Days Highlighted Cutting Tool Process 

In early August, Zoller Inc. welcomed manufacturing professionals from throughout the industry to its North American headquarters in Ann Arbour, Michigan, for Automation Days. Customers and industry leaders emphasised Zoller’s solutions for automating cutting tool management and establishing more resilient, dependable processes in the face of a labour shortage. “We need to automate because there is a labour shortage in the market,” says Alexander Zoller, President of Zoller Inc. “The goal is to produce more parts in a shorter amount of time at a lower cost and higher quality.” This message was reinforced by Automation Days speakers, including Peter Cockburn, chief engineer – manufacturing innovation at Bell, a Fort Worth, Texas-based manufacturer of commercial and military vertical lift aircraft. Bell incorporates Zoller automation technology into its manufacturing facilities in order to standardise and optimise toolroom procedures. “The biggest challenge that we have as a manufacturing company is talent — obtaining talent, training talent, and retaining talent,” Cockburn adds. “Automation helps with that so we can run as needed 24/7 and utilise our skilled workforce in better locations.”

Automation Days showcased Zoller’s automation solutions, including complete tool management software and the new RoboBox system, which automatically pulls, assembles, heat-shrinks, and measures tools to within 10 microns of accuracy.  The RoboSet 2 was also highlighted, which automates tool measuring and inspection by cleaning, examining, laser marking, and loading tools autonomously. Automation Days featured a panel discussion on measures to attract young people into manufacturing in addition to displays and talks. Putting cutting-edge technology in the hands of students is one method to accomplish this, according to guest speaker Christopher Townsend, adviser for Eagle Manufacturing, a student-run firm based at Brown County High School in Nashville, Indiana, that incorporates Zoller hardware and software into its curriculum.

“We’re trying to expose students to as much industry-standard technology as we can and give them the opportunity to dive into it, learn more about it, and understand how that’s used in the industry and how that can make a business more profitable,” Townsend says. During Automation Days, Zoller also announced the introduction of its “Toolroom of the Year” competition, which strives to uncover North America’s most connected, high-tech toolroom. The winner of the competition will be announced at IMTS 2024 and will get a trip to Zoller’s Smart Factory in Pleidelsheim, Germany. More information, including judging criteria and entry procedures, will be made available soon. After Automation Days, Zoller is gearing up for a road show of its automation solutions. Next year, Zoller will hold RoboBox demos at partner sites and Zoller locations across the United States and Canada to provide customers with a firsthand look at this technology. More details regarding these events will be released soon.