Customer Case Studies

Our company primarily designs, manufactures, and sells die-casting molds and related jigs. We have also made aggressive capital investments, such as expanding our CAD/CAM system and introducing a 3D CAD system, and in 2007 we established a new production base in Thailand.

Currently, our Thailand factory employs 41 staff members, including Japanese expatriates. While the business mix varies slightly from year to year, approximately 80% of our work is automotive-related parts. However, the domestic automotive market in Thailand is saturated, and this, combined with the cautious lending stance of financial institutions due to the economic downturn, has exacerbated the sluggish growth of automobile sales. Furthermore, the increasing number of manufacturers producing simple molds has intensified price competition. These changes in the market environment have had a significant impact on our company.

We are focused on differentiating ourselves from our competitors to avoid getting caught up in price wars. As part of this, we are working in the field of highly challenging mold manufacturing, which requires technical expertise due to its complex shapes and mechanisms. We also closely share information with our headquarters in Japan and utilize our accumulated know-how. We have established a competitive advantage by making optimal proposals tailored to our customers' needs.

However, these efforts have also revealed challenges. For example, whenever EDM (Electrical Discharge Machining) staff tried to understand the overall design data or had a question like, "What should the electrode orientation be?", they had to visit a CAM staff member to check the 3D data. This inefficient process resulted in lost time.

The biggest benefit is that the EDM department can now complete all work within the department. This eliminates the need to interrupt work to check 3D data, and I feel that we've roughly halved our work hours. Naturally, this also reduced the burden on CAM staff who handled inquiries, resulting in a significant improvement in work efficiency throughout the factory.

We were also concerned that it would take a long time for local staff to learn how to operate the system, but these fears proved unfounded. Thanks to the dispatch of trainers and an intuitive interface, they were able to learn in a short amount of time. This also resulted in unexpected benefits, such as reduced training costs and rapid implementation, which has led to smoother operations on site.

Electrodes used in EDM are made of a variety of materials, including copper and carbon, so it is necessary to use them appropriately. Therefore, we introduced an ATC (Automatic Tool Changer) that can automatically change electrodes, significantly improving processing efficiency and enabling longer operation times.

However, as conditions change depending on the amount of processing, EDM adjustments are required each time. To efficiently carry out this process, it is essential to create an environment that can utilize 3D data. By utilizing "3DTascalX," we have achieved efficiency that combines precision and speed. We are the only mold manufacturer in Thailand that has introduced ATC for EDM, and this is a differentiating factor.