Application Note: Workholding - Tombstone

Hanus was already familiar with their products and had previous experience with AME. Dietmar Goellner, CEO of AME and Alvin Goellner, Workholding Group Product Manager along with Jim Park, AME's representative in Wichita, visited Drew at the Wichita facility.

Bombardier was running 240 different parts through a cell comprised of four horizontal, 4-axes machines with a 28-pallet system and one vertical, 5-axes machine with an 8-pallet system.

AME's team of experts demonstrated the advantages of sub-plates with hardened precision bushings and hardened threaded inserts on a two-inch grid system. Because Drew needed to change parts quickly from one set-up to the next, it was shown that grid tombstones and plates along with modular components, would allow him to locate and align very accurately and quickly on a 2-inch precision grid system.

Drew purchased several full-grid tombstones to be used with their palletized system along with sub-plates, components and precision dowel screws, which can be used for locating fixture plates onto tombstones or their pallets for quick changeover.

Bombardier's pallets were shipped to AME where they incorporated bushings and threaded inserts along with locating and mounting holes. A two-inch grid system was integrated into their pallets and all was inspected with AME's CMM machine, one of the largest in the industry. Calibration blocks were added to check the probe for repeatability of the machines. These blocks show when and where adjustments are needed to hold .0002 accuracy. A rotary axes check is also done on the 4th axes rotary table to ensure accuracy.