MACHINEMETRICS

PREDICTIVE
A Case Study Interview with BC Machining

CLIENT

PRIM A RY INDUSTRIE S SERV ED

Healthcare, Defense,
Transportation, Power Tools

INTERV IE W EE S PRIM A RY EQUIPMENT

Bob Merrill, Owner
Tim Merrill, Shop Floor Manager CNC Swiss Lathes
Mike Driskell, Manufacturing Engineer

DOME STIC PRODUC TION FACILITIE S

Brasstown, NC

By Graham Immerman, VP of Marketing, MachineMetrics

MACHINEMETRICS PREDICTIVE | A CASE STUDY INTERVIEW WITH BC MACHINING

About BC Machining

FOUNDED IN 2007, BC MACHINING

SPECIALIZES IN MANUFACTURING
FABRICATED METAL PRODUCTS.

They offer aluminum machining services to clients in diverse

industrial niches including healthcare, defense, transportation,
and power tools manufacturing.

BC Machining maintains contracts with medium-scale

businesses as well as Fortune 500 enterprises for the
production of a wide array of machined components. On its
shop floor, BC Machining makes use of computer numerical
control (CNC) machines and digital technology.

Located in North Carolina, the company plans to expand its

operations by utilizing technology, such as data collection,
machine learning, and edge computing, to optimize their use
of any new equipment they purchase.

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MACHINEMETRICS PREDICTIVE | A CASE STUDY INTERVIEW WITH BC MACHINING

The Problem

An image of a “good” part (top) and a “bad part” (second from top). Below these are two endmills: the first is new, while the bottom is
broken. For BC Machine, when the endmill breaks (like the bottom one), the slot does not get cut and the part becomes scrap.

What is your role at BC Machining? Why were you trying to prevent scrap parts
and stoppages on your machines?
Tim: I’m Tim Merrill, I manage the shop floor, as
well as the employees, and complete most of the Tim: As a shop, every bit of scrap we produce is a
setups out on the shop floor as well. detriment to us, so we are always looking to reduce our
scrap rate. MachineMetrics helps us to track it. We can
Mike: I’m Mike Driskell. I’m the manufacturing not only see that our scrap is being tracked, but we also
engineer for BC machining, and I do all the CNC have insight into which operator tracked it. With this
programming for our machines as well as keep up data in hand, we know which operator is responsible
with tooling inventory to ensure information on the for which scrap, so we can determine if we have a
shop floor is correct. problem operator or we have a problem process.

Our Star machines, which are our Swiss turn machines,

Bob: I’m Bob Merrill, owner of BC Machining.
had a problem where they would break a tool and they
We produce a range of metal parts for a variety of
would continue to run because they’re an automated
clients in healthcare, defense, transportation, and
process. MachineMetrics was able to do a predictive
power tools manufacturing.
tool breakage for us, which has eliminated all scrap
coming off of the machine. Before, it would take the
operator to walk over to it on his own accord and
visually verify that the tool hadn’t failed. Now, we’re in a
situation where 100% of the time the tool detection has
caught the tool on its first failure.

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MACHINEMETRICS PREDICTIVE | A CASE STUDY INTERVIEW WITH BC MACHINING

The Solution

l o w f r e q u e n c y d ata h i g h f r e q u e n c y d ata
The value of MachineMetrics High Frequency data collection MachineMetrics’ groundbreaking sensorless high-frequency
cannot be understated: low frequency under-sampling removes data collection capabilities delivers unprecedented visibility and
critical artifacts from the load signature, and when analyzed fidelity into the health and condition of the machine, enabling
over time, patterns indicating failures become obfuscated. diagnoses and pattern recognitions that were once impossible.

INSTALLATION INITIAL INSTALL RESULTS

What was the installation process like? What has the shop been like after the initial
installation of MachineMetrics? (the original
Bob: In five minutes, we plugged everything in and we deployment, not predictive)
were able to communicate with the machine. Same
with the tablets. They basically come ready—you just Tim: [Prior] to using MachineMetrics, we didn’t have
plug it in, set up your wifi protocol, and it’s all good. It a reliable way to monitor what was happening at
was good to go right from the beginning. So very, very the machines. Since implementing MachineMetrics,
simple…Very easy and very quick. it’s been extremely easy to source the information
that we’re looking for related to the machines. Our
Was MachineMetrics easy to install? process for relaying it to our operators and catching
issues improved by about 90%. Now that we have
Bob: Once the cable was into the Focas, we didn’t MachineMetrics implemented, the information is
have any problems at all. In terms of setting the presented to you—you don’t have to go hunt for it.
control up, MachineMetrics sent directions on
what we needed to change in the control in order to
communicate with the Focas. And it went superb—
I mean, no problem at all, not one.

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MACHINEMETRICS PREDICTIVE | A CASE STUDY INTERVIEW WITH BC MACHINING

The Results

MachineMetrics was able to identify the signals on BC Over time, a predictable pattern emerged, indicating with 99%
Machinery’s Star SR-20s before catastrophic tool failures accuracy when a machine tool would be likely to fail.
ocurred. Parts made during these elevated load periods were
scrapped, costing BC Machining time and money.

to find the bad ones, and then you have to go into the
What impact has MachineMetrics Predictive
machine and change the tool out and get it running
had on your day to day from both a cost
again. We even had some instances in the past where
savings and an operations perspective?
we’d have a breakage right after we put a new tool in.
So, there’s times where you’d have to change that out
Tim: Since we’ve started using the predictive tool and do that whole process throughout an entire hour.
break technology, we have seen our scrap rate
reduced considerably. Our operators don’t have to go Now that we’re using the predictive tool breakage
over and tend to the machine. They only need to go technology, you get a notification on the screens or at
to the machine when we’ve had a downtime reason, the machine or on your phone that says, “The end mill is
which they’ll see on our MachineMetrics screen or broken.” So, you go over there and you spend about five
from the andon light at the machine. It’s made it so minutes replacing the end mill and the machine’s back
our operators can spend much more time at other up and running. You might’ve lost a total of seven to ten
machines, focusing on producing parts rather than minutes. And the operator’s back at the other machine
checking on machines to see if they are producing keeping production running.
defects. So, it’s had a drastic impact on our shop
floor and where our operators need to be and where Were there any unintended side effects as a
their attention needs to be focused. result of installing MachineMetrics Predictive?

Mike: Before we were using the predictive tool Tim: One of the unintended consequences that we’ve
technology, our operators would have to walk to the seen from using the predictive tool failure method is
machine at least once an hour and make sure the that before, when our tool would fail, it would continue
[created parts] were good. In the past, when you’d have to produce scrap parts and they’d be mixed in with
a broken tool, you’d walk over there and be annoyed our good parts. Since we batched them out several
because now you have to sort through all the parts

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MACHINEMETRICS PREDICTIVE | A CASE STUDY INTERVIEW WITH BC MACHINING

MachineMetrics Operator View tablets were installed at the machines as annotation tools for when issues occurred. Operators used these
to identify that there was indeed a tool failure, enabling MachineMetrics Predictive software to match the data streams being received from
the machines to what was actually happening in situations.

“Since we’ve started using the predictive tool What time savings has MachineMetrics
break technology, we have seen our scrap Predictive created for BC Machining?
rate reduced considerably. Our operators
don’t have to go over and tend to the machine.
Mike: Since using the MachineMetrics’ predictive tool
They only need to go to the machine when
we’ve had a downtime reason, which they’ll breakage technology, our time savings at our Swiss
see on our MachineMetrics screen or from turn machines has been monumental, to say the least.
the andon light at the machine.” Previously, we would potentially lose a third of our shift’s
worth of parts, and then spend 30 minutes to an hour
BOB MERRILL , Owner, BC Machining sorting through parts to identify the scrap. Now, we’re
not wasting any time sorting through parts to find a
good or a bad part, and we’re not losing any time when
hundred at a time, we would have to manually go
the machine is running and not making good parts. So,
through all of those parts to identify the good parts
for the most part, when our machines are running, we’re
from the bad. Now that we don’t have bad parts being
being profitable because we’re not making bad parts.
mixed in with our good parts, it has 100% eliminated
our need to sort due to tool failures.
How accurate is MachineMetrics Predictive
In regards to tool breakage, how much time in predicting tool failure?
was lost before MachineMetrics Predictive?
Tim: I feel like it’s near 100% of the time. During
the testing period we worked out some of the false
Tim: Previously, on a worst case scenario tool
positives, but that’s about it. These machines run in
breakage, we would get two to three hours worth of
the background, and I don’t want to say I ignore them,
the machine running while producing scrap parts. We
but I tend to ignore them unless there’s an issue. I feel
also now have the opportunity to allow the machine
it works extremely, extremely well. I would put near a
to run when we leave. We run three shifts now, so
hundred percent number on that.
we don’t use that much, but [now we can leave] with
confidence, knowing we’re not going to continually
produce bad parts. If we do start to produce bad
parts, the machine is going to automatically stop.

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THE METRICS
“Previously, we would often lose a third of our shift’s
worth of parts, not to mention spending at least an hour
sorting through parts to identify the scrap. Since using
the MachineMetrics’ predictive tool breakage technology,
that waste has been eliminated. The savings at our Swiss
turn machines has been monumental to say the least.”
—mik e d r i sk el l , Manufacturing Engineer

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