Projects

I first began working with Cube 10 years ago, whilst at a former company based in Coventry producing tooling and low volume production parts for a supercar OEM. Fast forward to January 2019 and now working for SAC & Co. Engineering Design Ltd, I was looking to place a pack of tooling for a specific project. Cube was the natural choice to ask for a quote as I had been impressed the first time, I had confidence in Cube and knew that our existing relationship would become stronger.

The project included cast iron press draw tooling for very high spec vehicle which we initially approached a number of suppliers to quote. Once our team had created and simulated the tool designs and we needed to outsource the tooling manufacture, tool try out and pressing to follow, Cubes capacity (14 CNC machines, 2 try out presses upto 1,000T and laser scanning for component verification) meant they were the natural choice for a turnkey solution.

The team at Cube are very experienced and experts in their field, this gave us great confidence. With a project under very tight time constraints and critical path, we need to trust that the supplier will deliver on time. The team delivered on the commitment from the management team manufacturing a quality product within the time compressed time frames. With regular updates from our dedicated project manager there was no requirement for us to “stand over the supplier to make sure that they’re doing what they say they would”.

The project was very intense, with moving targets and manufacturing issues, typical on a project of this type. Neil and the team kept us informed throughout, we had complete transparency so there were no hidden surprises & I was kept up to date of planned changes or if more work was involved. This is an important factor to me when managing the budget for the whole project such as this.

We have a positive relationship with the team at Cube, who are always proactive and going the extra mile, giving recommendations and ability to flex with the project, always thinking on their feet about solutions.

Cube are a strong, capable trustworthy partner that helped us to achieve delivery of the project.

We have other potential future projects coming up and look forward to continuing our working relationship with Cube

Trevor Freund

SAC Design

We started working with Cube four years ago, their former employee came to work at Ricor and recommended Cube as a tool maker that would be able to meet our requirements. There are few tool makers that are capable of looking after manufacturing tools of a certain size. Cube’s capacity through their large try out facility and 1000 tonnes press, means that they can trial our tooling before we put it into production.

Often our tools are sourced from the Far East and are sometimes not at the standard or quality expected. By having the try out facility at Cube it means that we can rigorously test the tools, to make any improvements needed before integrating them into our production process. The team at Cube are extremely reliable, they always deliver to project timelines and are realistic with their commitments.

By working with Cube, we are able to minimise risk and impact through interruptions to our production process. Neil Clifton MD at Cube is our main point of contact. We have a very good working relationship with Neil, working collaboratively on projects and sometimes on joint customer opportunities.

The team at Cube are extremely reliable, open and honest, we have a great deal of confidence in them. We would have no hesitation in recommending Cube Precision Engineering.

Matthew Clarke, Engineering Director
Ricor Ltd

TS Converting Equipment Ltd work with Cube because of our capability, quality and capacity….

‘We started working with Cube Precision Engineering three years ago after finding them through a google search for the type of machining that we required.

We already had a contract for batch working but we just weren’t getting the capacity that we needed within our normal supply chain.

Cube, using CNC, were able to machine our frames and deliver a superior finish to the components. The quality of their work has been exceptional, they have effective procedures for scheduling and sourcing material as well as being ISO accredited which isn’t as common as it should be for engineering companies.

The team at Cube understand the impact to our production if they have a quality issue and they will always liaise with us to find a solution.  They show genuine concern for their relationship with our business.

For us the decision to use and continue to use Cube has been based on their reliability, quality and capacity. Cube are not the cheapest option but the value they deliver in terms of reliability, quality and capacity far exceed the difference in investment.

We have confidence that if we place an order with Cube we won’t have a capacity or capability issue as they will always have enough machines to take over the production should one breakdown or there be an internal issue. We don’t have that safety net with many other suppliers.

We view our relationship with Cube as long term, just in the last year we have increased our spend with Cube by 40% (2016-2017) reflecting the confidence that we have in them as a supplier.

We would recommend Cube without hesitation.’

Jo Way – Procurement Manager

Overview of project – We were commissioned by our customer to manufacture a press tool and laser fixture in order to produce a pressing for a silencer part off an aerospace jet engine. The tool suite consisted of two press tools and one laser fixture.

Problems client had – Tools made by another supplier for a very similar part were producing non-conforming parts due to spring back of the material when the part was pressed. They also had to use two different laser fixtures to trim the component because the clamps were getting in the way of trimming the part in one operation on the existing similar part laser fixture, thus resulting in quality issues with accuracy of the trimmed component.

How Cube helped / skills covered – When designing the press tools, we had the pressing operation simulated on a computer to calculate the spring back on the pressed component. After receiving the results from the simulation, the tool was designed and manufactured to over bend the part in certain areas so that the pressing would spring back to within drawing tolerance. The laser fixture was designed so that the component could be cut from one side on one fixture and the use of clamps was eradicated by using magnets and a steel clamping ring. The fixture was also designed so that similar parts could be cut on the fixture by changing a part on the fixture that the component was located on to suit other versions of the silencer.

Outcomes – The new press tool worked first time and the part came off the tool within tolerance, which the customer was delighted with. The laser fixture was also a success as it meant the part could be cut in one operation, thus improving the accuracy of the part and the time it took to cut the part.

 Overview of project – We were commissioned by our customer to manufacture a suite of tools to produce thrust reverser blankets for a new aerospace engine. The tool suite consisted of press tools, assembly / weld fixtures and inspection fixtures for each part.

Problems client had – Having made a suite of tools for a different engine a few years earlier, which are still in use, our customer requested that we looked for a more efficient way of manufacturing the assembly tools. The assembly tools were previously manufactured from an epoxy GRP layup which had to be made from a master model.  Even though this had stood the test of time, it was difficult to modify, expensive and time consuming to manufacture.

How Cube helped / skills covered – After discussing different ideas with our customer, we decided to manufacture the new assembly tools from a Polyurethane tooling board as we knew this material would not only withstand the manufacturing process, but also make the tools easier to modify. By manufacturing the tools this way, there was no longer the need for a costly master model.

Outcomes – The new tools were produced much quicker than the previous GRP tooling and at a cheaper price due to the fact that the master model and the GRP layup process were eliminated. The new tools are much easier and cheaper to modify which benefits our customer as we are currently modifying the tools in a short lead time.

Overview of project – Our client required an AS9100 Rev D CNC machinist to manufacture a number of parts for a large defence contract they had won on a 5-year basis. The 37 parts per vehicle require multi axis machining and range from 300mm x 300mm up to 2,500mm and are required monthly in batches of 5.

Problems client had – Fining capacity in one location with correct approvals and a variety of machine sizes, coupled with the experience and ability to undertake First Article Inspection and an organized delivery schedule.

How Cube helped / skills covered – We helped by implementing a new production management system that we designed in-house so that we could have full traceability, tracking the lifecycle of the process through to the delivery.

Outcomes – A commitment to continuous improvement through the use of machine optimization, implementation of jigs and fixtures.

Overview of project – Our customer invested in three new press lines to improve productivity. The new press lines offer the customers faster production speeds, quicker die changes and automatic die loading facilities. We were tasked with migrating tooling from the old press lines to the new ones. This involved re-design of the tooling to fit the new presses including, new electrical circuits, machining clearance for the new transfer mechanism, upgrading parking stops and adding cast and mild steel plates, where appropriate to satisfy the shut heights of the new presses.

In all 120 dies have been adapted and delivered on time.

Problems client had – Old machinery and technology did not meet current and predicted production demands. Breakdowns and sourcing replacement parts was expensive and time consuming a contingency plan to run dies in other press lines was the solution.

How Cube helped / skills covered – Using the full project management resource from design, manufacture, tryout, machining and inspection. Now our customer is doing production runs in between our adaptions so they don’t have to build bank stock which in turn saves them time and money.

Outcomes – We have 100% right first time success rate. Our customer is now able to insource parts more cost effectively and can mitigate the risks with any future plans.

Overview of project –The client manufactures dies in South Korea for a UK based automotive OEM. While commissioning the tools in the UK, several engineering changes to the parts were implemented. On the OEM’s recommendation, The South Korean toolmaker asked us to support them in the implementation of the changes. With a 24hr production facility we were able to work around the schedules of The OEM supplying them with round the clock support, without the need to send the dies back to Korea.

Problems client had – The time and cost to send dies back to the mother toolmaker was prohibitive to commissioning the tools at the OEM. This allowed our client to support TheOEM, while hitting their time and delivery for the updated tooling.

How Cube helped / skills covered – A 24-hour facility and reactive supply chain, with on-site design helped in reacting immediately to the requirement of both the OEM and the Client.

Outcomes – A new partnership between the South Korean manufacturer and Cube has allowed us to recommend then to other OEM and Tier 1 suppliers in the UK who they are now working with, using Cube to commission locally when home line commissioning is required.

Overview of project – We were commissioned by our customer to manufacture 4 off 4m multi stage transfer tools, for commissioning in Spain and Poland. The customer was working with a new type of material to reduce weight and increase strength in their component. The difficulty of the project was working with a new material to form highly complex parts. Throughout the project we were faced with many development issues which were not apparent on the pre-manufacture simulation. To overcome these problems, we conducted off line research and development which ran concurrently with the tooling manufacture. Once solved, the dies were commissioned and bought off by our staff on site at various European locations.

Problems client had – The main problem the client had was getting conforming parts when we were running at the required SPM due to the toughness of the material.

How Cube helped / skills covered – We were able to solve the problem no-one else in the business had come across before by developing offline from the tooling and having our team work closely with the customer, the problem was solved in time for serial production.

Outcomes – Increased experience in new, higher tensile materials when used on complex components.