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CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT | ||||
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RETROFITS SAVE FABRICATOR TIME AND MONEY Sarka Conveyors & Automation and parent company, Sarka Sheet Metal & Fab Inc in Tiffin, Ohio are custom fabricators serving companies in the automotive, manufacturing, agriculture, mining, and HVAC industries. The company designs, builds and automates a broad range of material handling and conveyor systems that transport, count and separate parts or materials for customers like Bridgestone APM, Dana Holding Corporation, Cooper Tire, and Whirlpool Appliance. Sarka began converting to plasma cutting technology in the early 1990s. Plasma inevitably replaced their shear breaks, punch presses and oxyfuel torches because it is easier to use and its significantly faster. The fact that plasma can cut and gouge most metals, including the mild steel, stainless steel, copper, and bronze that Sarka uses to fabricate its machines also helped. Today 99 percent of Sarka’s metal cutting is performed with Hypertherm’s HT2000 plasma system. They first learned about the HT2000 from their local distributor and eventually purchased one after seeing a demonstration during a visit to their table manufacturer. At the time of purchase, Sarka’s HT2000 was integrated with other cutting table components including a computer numerical control made by another manufacturer. Over time, this CNC began to fail and frequently stopped working. Owner Todd Sarka remarked, “Due to the age of our cutting table, certain components were not working properly and the maintenance costs were getting out of control. We had lots of down time and my guys had to work overtime just to finish jobs. I looked at getting a laser, but I couldn’t justify the cost because the HT2000 does everything we need already.” Sarka contacted the same local distributor that had assisted them with the original table installation and asked for help. Since the HT2000 power supply was still working fine, their distributor suggested that Sarka simply replace their aging CNC. The distributor recommended Hypertherm’s EDGE Pro CNC given that reliability and ease-of-use were at the top of Sarka’s priority list. After experiencing so much down time in their shop, the EDGE Pro CNC gave Sarka the ability to get their operation back up and moving quickly. This was due to the straightforwardness of the EDGE Pro’s system controls, which allowed both new and seasoned operators to start cutting metal almost immediately. In addition to clear system controls, other benefits appealed to Sarka - including the EDGE Pro’s built-in network and USB ports used to load nests and software updates directly into the system, and the built-in help function that assists operators by troubleshooting cut quality issues and maintaining maximum table performance. As the problem surrounding Sarka’s controller started to resolve, conversations then began to focus on Sarka’s HT2000 cutting torch. Sarka wanted longer consumable life and learned they could get it by replacing their torch with a HyPro2000 retrofit torch. Not only did Sarka see a 75 percent increase in consumable life, but the company’s operators learned that consumable change outs were much easier—and faster, thanks to a quick disconnect feature that allows for seamless torch realignment. Operators now keep a number of torch heads pre-loaded with consumables so they can switch cutting amperages effortlessly. On top of longer consumable life and easy change outs, the HyPro2000 torch increased cut speeds by 50 percent over the standard HT2000 torch. Sarka now enjoys greater productivity and significantly lower operating costs due to faster cut speeds. “Once we had the cutting table up and running, I knew it wasn’t leaving my shop. Frankly, I find money and time are the same and we have saved both. Nowadays, we don’t stay late to finish jobs and we have been able to take on more business,” Sarka says. “We’re getting faster, smoother cuts so we don’t have to grind anymore. Consumable costs have gone way down with the HyPro2000 torch. I’d say they have been reduced by at least 50 percent, or even better! We’re very glad that we chose to do these upgrades. I couldn’t be happier.” 
The team at Sarka Sheet Metal & Fab |
