From vernier caliper and hunches to 3D scanning and facts

Ammeraal Beltech Modular uses 3D scanning for quality control of parts and tools

Ammeraal Beltech Modular A/S is a world leading manufacturer of modular plastic belts and chains for internal transportation. The company's products apply to a wide range of industries including the automotive, cardboard and food industry.

For a long time, Ammeraal Beltech Modular has used vernier caliper for quality control and part verification, but has now upgraded the manual and conventional measuring tool to a fully automatic 3D scanner from Carl Zeiss GOM Metrology.

Today, the company uses 3D scanning to digitize and verify all its tools and parts.

Using the previous measurement methods at Ammeraal Beltech Modular, it was not possible to do measurement and quality control of tools. This means that the company has tested different cycle times, temperatures, and pressure to correst potential defects of the part.

To get the tool approved, Ammeraal Beltech Modular had to do up to six loops of test casting. An expensive process both in labor time and material waste.

We are now at a stage where we don't need to make test molds for all tools before they are approved.
After having scanned many of them, we know that the tool can be used directly in production if the measurements are green and thereby within the tolerances. - Bjarke Nordtorp Jørgensen, Quality Manager

When Bjarke joined Ammeraal Beltech Modular, he realized that the quality department did what was possible with vernier calipers and micrometer screw gauges. However, there was a lack of understanding of the parameters that could influence the measurement.

Furthermore, the tolerances were defined without validation from the production, which made it difficult for the company to live up to its own standards.

These challenges made Ammeraal Beltech Modular look for new metrology equipment, which could accommodate the company’s needs for quality control of tools and parts.

The choice of metrology system ended with ATOS ScanBox 4105, which is an automates 3D scanner solution from Carl Zeiss GOM Metrology. This system is well-suited for quality control of part series and perform fast measurement with high repeatability.

At Ammeraal Beltech Modular, the 3D scanner is used to document that all tools and parts comply with the specifications. In addition, the system is used to check for wear and defects, which could not be detected with previous methods of measurement.

Earlier, it took one year to make a tool ready for production, but within the first six months with the 3D scanner, we had approved three tools.

When Ammeraal Beltech Modular first invested in the 3D metrology system, the technology was met with skepticism by the toolmaking department. They believed that the system’s only purpose was to document their mistakes.

Today, however, the 3D scanner is seen as an interesting tool, which paves the way for new opportunities. Furthermore, the company has expanded its knowledge of its own tools.

By using 3D scanning, Ammeraal Beltech Modular has achieved several advantages and results across the organization.

The lead time of developing tools is shortened up to 600%

The approval of tools takes less than a minute based on scanned data

The process of test molding can be skipped

The processing time for approval of parts is reduced up to 83.33%

The communication among departments is improved

With the opportunities of 3D scanning and the obtained results, break even of the ATOS ScanBox 4105 was achieved in just six months.

3D scanning

3D scanning is a technology, which can create a digital 3D model of a physical part. The technology is primarily used for reverse engineering or quality control and part measurement.