In order to monitor and improve the quality in press shops through digitalisation, ifm and the Schuler Group have now concluded a cooperation agreement. Their aim is to offer customers more transparency and increase efficiency in sheet metal forming.
Sheet metal forming presses are among the most important machines in all industries in which sheet metal is processed. The Schuler Group has 180 years of experience in forming technology and is the world’s market leader. Using digital solutions such as Track & Trace, Visual Die Protection or DigiSim®, the company offers numerous tools that support digitalisation in press shops, ifm SmartStamp expands this offering with a software tool that detects tilting, eccentricity and the resulting tilting moment on forming presses within milliseconds.
“If the ram is tilted too far, the press guides are subjected to excessive strain and will be damaged in the long term,” says Christoph Schneider, Vice President Product Management Applications at ifm. The tool protects the press from excessive wear and damage, and helps to improve availability. SmartStamp is seamlessly integrated into the moneo IIoT platform – and now also into the Metris platform from ANDRITZ, Schuler’s parent company. “Thanks to combination with the data from our cloud-based Digital Solutions, customers benefit from interoperability and consequently even higher transparency in the press shop,” emphasises Rohitashwa Pant, Chief Digital Officer of the Schuler Group.
The cooperation agreement now signed provides for collaboration in sales. Customers can only benefit from the use of ifm’s SmartStamp and Schuler’s Digital Solutions. It is immaterial which system customers use when they start to digitalise. They can expand their digitalisation solution with the other system at any time. “In this way we can offer all customers the optimum solution for press shop digitalisation,” says Florian Siebert, Senior Manager Systems and IIoT at ifm.
About the ifm group of companies
Measuring, controlling and evaluating – when it comes to pioneering automation and digitalisation technology, the ifm group is the ideal partner. Since its foundation in 1969, ifm has developed, produced and sold sensors, controllers, software and systems for industrial automation and for SAP-based solutions for supply chain management and shop floor integration worldwide. As one of the pioneers of Industry 4.0, ifm develops and implements consistent solutions to digitalise the entire value chain “from sensor to ERP”. Today, the second-generation family-run ifm group of companies has more than 9,000 employees and is one of the worldwide market leaders. The group combines the internationality and innovative strength of a growing group of companies with the flexibility and close customer contact of a medium-sized company.
About the Schuler Group
Schuler offers customised cutting-edge technology in all areas of forming – from the networked press to press shop planning. In addition to presses, Schuler’s products include automation, dies, process know-how and service for the entire metalworking industry. The ANDRITZ Metris platform brings together Schuler’s digital solutions for networking forming technology, and is continuously being developed to further improve line productivity and availability. For battery production in gigafactories, Schuler provides equipment and services in the process steps of cell assembly and formation. Schuler’s customers include automotive manufacturers and suppliers, as well as companies in the forging, household appliance and electrical industries. Presses from the Schuler Group mint coins for more than 180 countries. Founded in 1839 at the headquarters in Göppingen, Germany, Schuler has approx. 5,000 employees at production sites in Europe, China and the Americas, as well as service companies in more than 40 countries. The company is part of the international technology group ANDRITZ.
