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Showcasing Innovation at Multotec: Impact blocks
This safety innovation was developed by Dr. Amanda Jonker, Senior Ceramist - Ceramic Technology and Process Control, Wear Linings.
Problem statement:
MWL produce extruded impact blocks by manufacturing ceramic bricks through an extrusion process. This process preforms the bricks to rough sizes.
The lead time for these blocks is very long due to an unavoidable slow-drying process. Thereafter, finishing, or final sizing of the bricks, is completed manually with templates, cutting, and sanding.
This process is labour intensive and subject to inaccuracies and human error. To maximise production efficiency and productivity, innovations are key in making the process faster and more reliable.
To meet these customer demand, manufacturers have developed several innovative methods to produce high quality products faster, using jigs and fixtures.
A jig is a tool that is used to accurately repeat the same fabrication action, consistently. It is a device that holds a piece of work and guides the tool operating on it, thus jigs allow users to drill holes and remove material precisely.
The jig provides an accurate, repeatable, and interchangeable manufacturing process. It reduces required production time and eliminates human error. This makes the process much easier for manufacturers because they don't need to set-up their machines every time a new piece is produced.
Description of innovation:
With the assistance of Johan Groenewald, we developed a jig for the shaping of pulping chute wave generator impact blocks. The rough-sized extruded blocks are placed on a plastic jig, which has a base set to the required side-angles. The jig also includes stopper blocks (suggested by Anthonie Thiart), which are set to the required total item width. Thus, the brick can be sanded to the correct width and side angles without the requirement of measuring them individually or the use of templates.
Type of innovation:
The results are accurate production of the impact blocks with a significant reduction in errors, time, and material waste.