One small weld fixture company that has been practicing and implementing constant improvements through processes and training is Rentapen Inc., located in Waukesha, Wisconsin.
“In today’s environment of global competition, manufacturers have to get their products into production as soon as possible. This requires those involved in tooling up the factory to work efficiently and reduce the snags that can hold up initial production dates. said Susan Straley, President at Rentapen Inc.
“Weld Engineering Managers and Manufacturing Engineering Managers need weld fixtures that are reliable and reduce costs and arrive on time,” said Straley.
A process in which Rentapen has embraced to save manufacturers time and money in the design process, is known as The Zero Defect Engineering Process™. The Zero Defect Engineering Process™ was developed for internal use at Rentapen to increase efficiency and reduce errors.
The process involves using software enhancements that automate parts of the design and detail process. Rentapen’s design team checks and back checks all the drawings, runs interference checks on every design, and updates the customer on the status of the project and sends them images of the progress.
“The constant and periodic checking in with the customer ensures that we don’t spend a lot of the effort moving forward on a design that isn’t what the customer had in mind. Doing engineering for others requires excellent communication between you and the customer and among team members,” said Straley.
The Zero Defect Engineering Process™ is a system that helps Rentapen’s engineers and CAD Drafters produce designs fast and accurate.
Rentapen uses Pro/E for designing weld fixtures. They have customized Pro/E 3D Design for designing the machines used to manufacture the customer’s product. “That was the start of our Zero Defect Engineering Process™,” said Straley. “Pro/E out of the box is clunky to use for machine design. We customized it to make it easier and faster for our team to use.”
Software, step by step processes, checking and back checking– all these steps have helped reduce errors and reduce costs in the machine designing process.
Rentapen has been helping John Deere with machine designs for over 17 years. Rentapen’s expertise is used by companies to create weld fixtures with manual or robotic welding, pneumatic, hydraulic, or manual clamping and table top or trunnion mounting.
Rentapen’s design engineers have designed hundreds of large and small weld fixtures, making Rentapen the weld fixture specialists. Their team includes a range in talent, education and experience.
Rentapen can design a manual or robotic welding fixtures based on their customers’ needs. Rentapen can serve any industry including; automotive, agricultural, or any industry requiring weld jigs.
