Case Study: Beamcut Systems
How BC25 Robotic Automation improved tolerances, cycle times and production flow at NIC Global.
Posted: April 3, 2024
NIC Global, with its manufacturing facility in Gallatin, Tennessee, specializes in sheet metal fabrication and manufacturing. They support heavy duty trucking and transportation, the automotive and medical industry, as well as power distribution for North America’s electrical infrastructure. Meeting quality and cost expectations, while improving cycle times and production flow, is an ongoing goal. It’s also what customers expect in challenging times, and what sets NIC Global apart.
As NIC Global’s sheet metal and manufacturing capabilities grew to incorporate structural steel fabrication, the company found that hand-held tool operation was no longer a viable option. Robotic automation was necessary. Since FANUC Robotics was already an integral part of their manufacturing process, when Beamcut Systems recommended the BC25 6-axis structural steel profile cutting machine solution, there was already a comfort level.
Beamcut Systems BC25 integrates FANUC Robotics and Hypertherm high-definition plasma. It’s also a user-friendly, versatile, robotic 3D CNC cell and platform for cutting metal parts and profiles for virtually any structural steel shape and metal type in the industry. Along with a totally automated in-feed and out-feed system on a smaller footprint, manufacturers and steel fabricators can expect exceptional support, before, during and after installation.
According to Troy Wood, NIC Vice-President of Midwest Operations, “Automotive manufacturing is all about finding the right solution at the right speed, and with the right quality level. The BC25 delivered on all our requirements for tight tolerances, superior edge quality, dimensional stability, repeatability, and fast cycle times.” Wood added, “Beamcut Systems support has also been a perfect match. They even identified an alteration that we could easily incorporate to improve our fabrication process downstream.”
Beamcut Systems is part of the Machitech Automation Group and a leading manufacturer of robotic cutting systems. Machitech is a leading manufacturer throughout North America and Europe of custom CNC plasma tables, pipe cutting systems, and more.