TPT July 2019

AR T I C L E

Kasto Maschinenbau GmbH & Co KG

The smar t future of metalworking: efficient sawing and storage in the Industry 4.0 era By Kasto Maschinenbau GmbH & Co KG, Germany

All process-relevant data is recorded and analysed, enabling users to optimise their entire value chain in a decentralised, autonomous and demand-oriented manner. The route from raw material to the finished product becomes shorter, more flexible, resource-saving and cost-efficient – and it starts with storage. Today’s metalworking companies are increasingly relying on fully automated storage systems for long goods, instead of the previously widespread floor and cantilever arm storage methods. These automated software-controlled systems have significantly higher storage density, fast access times and maximum stock transparency. In addition, sawing technology – often the first processing station after goods have been removed from storage – is being increasingly carried out with no manpower. Sawing machines can be seamlessly connected to the raw material warehouse and supplied with the required materials using manipulators and conveyor technology.

Digitalisation and networking are rapidly gaining ground in metalworking, and the same trend is also taking place in storage and sawing technologies. Manual and mutually isolated processes are increasingly giving way to a continuously controlled, intelligent material flow, in which all the components involved communicate autonomously with each other. At Kasto, this topic has long since ceased to be simply a dream of the future, because the sawing and storage technology manufacturer already has numerous solutions in its portfolio that make metalworking more efficient, more flexible and more cost-efficient in today’s Industry 4.0 era. Industry 4.0 One solution is the digitalisation and networking of production and logistics processes – also known as Industry 4.0. In modern metalworking, machines, plants, goods and load carriers are connected via the Internet of Things and can com- municate with each other. Intelligent sensor systems provide up-to-date status information in real time. Kasto Maschinenbau GmbH & Co KG, based in Achern, Germany, specialises in sawing and storage technology for bar stock. The company manufactures and sells metal-cutting saws and semi-automatic and automatic storage systems for bar stock and sheet metal. It is also a manufacturer of automatic handling systems for metal bars, sheet metal and pre-cut parts, as well as the corresponding software. One of Europe’s oldest family-owned companies, Kasto celebrates its 175 th anniversary this year. In the course of its history it has registered 170 patents, delivered more than 140,000 sawing machines to all parts of the world and installed more than 1,900 automatic storage facilities.

The digitalisation and networking of production and logistics processes is gaining ground in metalworking

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JULY 2019