Addition of Kongsberg X20 boosts productivity & diversity at Diametric

Removing production bottlenecks

“We knew there was a need for new technology because the cut shop has always been a bit of a bottleneck for production,” explained Graham. “Understanding the capacity of what we can actually put through has been a revelation.

“Whenever you get a new piece of equipment there’s always the anticipation of how it will fit into the existing workflow process, but once the engineer had been in to deliver the training, the machine has not stopped!”

Graham has been with Diametric for 21 years, joining in a sales role and progressing through the business before successfully leading an MBO to become managing director in 2016. “Previously there hadn’t been much investment in the manufacturing plant, so when we bought the company that was something we were keen to do,” he said Graham. “Technology has moved on so far and fast that when we did come to invest, we’ve seen a massive improvement and very quick ROI.

“It’s totally exceeded expectations, and really opened our eyes to the possibilities.”

Efficient and speedy

“The instant advantage we saw was the minimal setup time required, particularly for repeat orders, where you can recall the programming,” explained Graham. “Then there’s the accelerated running time. Because you can index cut on the X20, where the only limitation is the sheet size, we can also look at a larger yield on the sheet without worrying about registration issues.

“Previously we’d have had to do a lower yield cut because we had to be conscious of the fact the cut needed to be accurate across the whole sheet. But with Kongsberg automation, we can maximize our materials.”

After introducing the cutting table, Diametric was able to pass on cost savings to customers.

“We’re also bringing costs down for customers because we can get the job through the department at a faster rate, as well as cutting more products from one sheet,” he said. “Pre-Covid, we ran an extensive secret shopper exercise and discovered that our setup costs and tooling were proving an issue. Now we’ve brought the Kongsberg in, we’ve eliminated a lot of those costs.

“We’re already passing those savings on to our customers,
which has opened the door to some without the same
budget as large international brands, but now with
the option of good quality branding on their products.”

Flexibility and diversity

Graham said the versatility of the Kongsberg X20 had enabled Diametric to move into different fields.

“Traditionally we work predominantly with plastics – materials like 80-micron vinyl and polycarbonates - but the Kongsberg allows us to use a greater selection of materials and also look at routing our products,” he said.

“Our client base sees us as an innovative company. So, for a lot of the product designers, if they are working on a project and they want to add something special for the customer, it’s our phone that tends to ring to look for a solution.

Now, we can take on a wider variety of materials to further support our customers.”

“We have a remarkably diverse client base, so we are also
looking to meet their needs in terms of packaging,
protective inserts, and any other requirements we identify.
With investment in this innovative technology,
we are confident we can grow our business further.”