The growth of Gateshead-based Impress Group has been achieved by diversifying the sectors that it operates in, providing a 24/7 service, and working hand-in-hand with customers to ensure that components and assemblies are supplied on time and to the highest level of quality.
It has also been supported by investment in manufacturing technology — something that started right from the early days of the business.
The group, which comprises five businesses, provides a diverse range of services — pressings, laser profiling, high-volume turned parts, coded welding and general sub-contract machining. The business started with a metal pressing and fabrication operation — Impress North East Ltd — in 1997.
Impress director Jason Young says: “We are fortunate in that we work across many different sectors, and that has given us a consistent level of business. Based in the North East, there is always a tendency to look at heavier industries — the oil and gas sector in particular — but we have resisted that. While we still count those businesses among our customers, we aren’t heavily reliant on them.”
Mr Young says that one of the catalysts for the growth of Impress was its decision to invest in an XYZ ProtoTrak bed mill (
www.xyzmachinetools.com) at an early stage of the company’s development.
The machine was bought as a tool-room mill to provide support for Impress’s press brakes and forming machines, but its ease of use and versatility clearly offered much greater potential, resulting in the group’s first foray into sub-contract machining.
This quickly led to further investment in XYZ machines with the first vertical machining centre, which was purchased in 2000 and is still used on a daily basis.
This was soon followed by a MiniMill 560 and a 710 VMC. A 1020 VMC soon followed, as did additional bed mills and a ProTurn lathe. “All these machines have proved to be excellent workhorses; and when we have had to call on support — for service, updates in training or applications work — it has always been excellent.”
Pushing the limits
When Impress had an increase in demand for light alloy/aluminium components, the company needed to run its existing machines at their maximum spindle speed of 8,000rev/min for extended periods.
Initially, it looked at simply adding another VMC 1020, but with the optional 12,000rev/min spindle fitted. However, discussions with local XYZ salesman Greg Hall changed their minds, as Mr Young explains. “When we detailed our predicament, Mr Hall suggested that we consider the new XYZ 1060 HS high-speed VMC. We realised that the specification of this machine ticked all of our boxes; as standard, it offered a 12,000rev/min spindle and feed rates up to 43m/min.
“Moreover, with through-spindle coolant as standard, we can fully use the machine’s capability on the light-alloy materials we are cutting, allowing us to reduce cycle times and improve tool life. Also of benefit is the large Z-axis travel of 620mm, which will allow us to target larger components — and give us the capacity to machine welded fabrications.”
Impress also makes full use of the Renishaw probing on the 1060 VMC — also featured on the 710 and 1020 VMC machines — to dramatically cut set-up times. This means that parts do not have to be accurately located on the machine table; the probes and the Siemens 840D ShopMill control work in tandem to create any offsets that may be required.
The 1060 HS, which was installed in January this year, is already having an impact on productivity.
“As soon as the machine arrived we were loading a lot of new work on it; and while we haven’t sat down and quantified anything yet, our experience tells us that the extra performance gained by the higher spindle speeds and traverse rates will provide significant cycle-time savings.
“The investment we have made in machines has ensured that we remain at the forefront of providing the production capabilities demanded by our customers, who require anything from a one-off to batches in the thousands.”