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Worth the Weight - Pulsed MIG Comes of Age
- Millermatic 350P pulsed MIG all-in-one welders increase productivity by 16 percent and reduce scrap by 20 percent for leading barbell manufacturer
- Millermatic 350P makes it easier to achieve high weld quality and weld bead appearance
- Eliminates the need to apply anti-spatter
- Work flow is improved because product does not need to cool before removing anti-spatter material
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Customer Testimonial
“One of the key things we were able to do the first time we tried the 350P was to produce a beautiful, flat, nice smooth weld without stress risers in it….We always had very high standards, but production and efficiency is completely different. It’s much easier and quicker to achieve the same result.”
— Winter Douglas, Manufacturing Engineer, Iron Grip
Application
- Manufacturing welded dumbbells and barbells
Key Business Issue
- Improving welding productivity to keep up with customer demand.
- Increasing weld quality to eliminate chance for stress risers, and decreasing scrap rate.
- Increasing operator efficiency.
Challenge
- Overcoming the limits of short circuit process and eliminating the spatter problems associated with it.
Previous System & Process
- Non-pulse MIG systems and a complicated pulsed MIG system that was difficult to use and failed to offer the advantages of pulsed MIG welding.
New Solution
- Millermatic 350P all-in-one pulsed MIG welder with its built-pulsed MIG programs and easy-to-use operator interface.
Results
- "What we're looking for is a nice flat, even, smooth weld that grabs to both sides and looks seamless," Douglas says. Anything less will lead to the part being scrapped. Since switching to the Millermatic 350P scrap rates have decreased by 20 percent.
- "When the first pulsed MIG machines came out, they were so complicated that a lot of welders shied away from using them," says Mike Cunningham of Cameron Welding Supply. "You had to set the pulse width, the frequency, the background current–the average welder really couldn't use it." Iron Grip was able to make production quality welds within 2 hours of plugging in the Millermatic 350P.
- "Previously, we averaged 168 dumbbells per shift. At our best, we hit 180 a day. Now we average 206 per shift. The actual increase in productivity is 16.5 percent, and we reduced the scrap rate by 20 percent. The people and material were the same. Only the welding units are different."
—Winter Douglas, Manufacturing Engineer, Iron Grip - Assuming an hourly rate of $20, saving 16.5 percent on 16 hours of machine time per day translates into a savings of $52.80 per day. At that rate, each Millermatic 350P paid for itself in 77 work days, or about 4 months. This does not take into consideration the 20 percent savings in scrap, or Douglas' increased peace-of-mind.
- "Now I really have peace-of-mind and I don't have to worry about whether or not the operators are doing what they're supposed to do or if the weld is a little hot or the weld is a little cold, or if I have one that might crack rather than bend when it drops. After the first day, we haven't had anything other than minor adjustments.
—Winter Douglas, Manufacturing Engineer, Iron Grip
