‘Green production’ with minimum quantity lubrication

Working closely together, from left: Rachmad Basuki (engineering department head, Nusametal), Andi Gunanto (COO, Nusametal), Markus Beerhalter (global project engineer, Mapal, Germany), Dicky Pratama (sales engineer, Mapal Indonesia), and Dicky Abdurakhmat (national sales manager, Mapal Indonesia). All pictures courtesy of Mapal

Founded in 1976, Astra Otoparts is one of Indonesia’s biggest automotive suppliers, with customers that are primarily among the numerous automotive and motorcycle manufacturers from Japan, South Korea and Europe. The group comprises 54 manufacturing and trading companies in total, one being Astra Otoparts’ Nusametal division, which manufactures components that start as aluminium die castings, go through machining and end up as the finished product.

Pictured left: At the official signing of the distribution partnership, from left: Walter Divisi (CEO DropsA), Claudio Gabos (CSO Mapal), and Dicky Abdurakhmat (sales manager at Mapal Indonesia)

Like many companies in the country, Astra Otoparts is faced with growing requirements for environmental action as the government pushes industrial companies — particularly in the automotive industry — towards ‘greener’ production. However, stricter environmental requirements were not the only cause for concern for Astra Otoparts’ Nusametal division when considering the future of production; like Astra Otoparts’ headquarters, this plant is also located in North Jakarta, one of the island nation’s most densely populated areas.

Although the company is growing, the demand for more efficient processes with better quality and increased production capacity with existing machinery remains a challenge, and the reason that Astra Otoparts called in the global tooling specialist Mapal.

Mapal Indonesia, the company’s subsidiary, was founded in Jakarta in 2014 and now provides its services at three further locations on Java. Clients are primarily from the automotive sector, with scooter manufacturers a major focus in Indonesia. The company often assists machine manufacturers in projects for Japan and India; and solutions developed in tandem with automotive specialists in Jakarta have also been carried over to production facilities in Taiwan, Vietnam, and Thailand.

Pictured right: A PCD NeoMill-Diamond Power face-milling cutter for finishing sealing surfaces

It was at a seminar that Astra Otoparts’ Nusametal division became aware of the MQL technology. Mapal was presenting the use of PCD tools with MQL, which the company said promised a huge improvement in aluminium machining, adding that besides the known environmental advantages of MQL machining, it results in better surface finishes — particularly during the precision machining of aluminium alloys compared with machining using conventional cooling lubrication with emulsion.

Mapal said: “The reasons for this are the better lubricating effect of the MQL media and the absence of small particles that a conventional cooling lubrication system cannot filter out. For a few years now MQL, has enjoyed a boom in the industry, based on the spirit of resource protection and energy efficiency. Moreover, Mapal offers almost all its tools in versions for MQL and labels them with a green mark. Aspects of these ‘green’ tools include modification of the cooling channels to ensure optimum supply of the MQL liquid to the tools’ cutting edges and guide surfaces.”

Switching to MQL
At Astra Otoparts’ Nusametal division, the potential of the technology for the company’s own production was recognised immediately, namely that it would: cut coolant costs; increase productivity; reduce the consumption of water; improve conditions on the shopfloor; and lower energy consumption, which helps reduce the company’s own carbon footprint. Nusametal’s interest culminated in a joint project with Mapal Indonesia aimed at re-tooling existing machinery to MQL. The MQL equipment manufacturer DropsA was also involved, but because it had no presence in Indonesia, Mapal Indonesia took over the import and installation of the MQL equipment.

Up until this point, the Mapal team in Jakarta had no experience whatsoever with MQL. Andreas Wasisto, Mapal Indonesia’s managing director, said: “We knew this would be a challenge, as we first had to get to know the device, and acquire knowledge on its installation, use, and repair.” Gaining this knowledge saw employees of Nusametal and Mapal Indonesia getting to grips with the technology at DropsA in Frickenhausen (Germany) and Milan (Italy).

Pictured left: A finish machining tool with a diameter of 32mm and PCD cutting edges for finishing a bore with a P7 tolerance

Frank Müller, DropsA’s sales director, highlights a fruitful collaboration and good relationship between the two companies, saying: “Mapal is a very good partner for us, because the tool manufacturer is very close to the client and the experts there contributed a great deal of know-how. Connecting the 1-channel MQL systems to the existing Fanuc Robodrill BT30 machines proved relatively straightforward; and while chip removal, chip cleaning, MQL device placement, maintenance, and the use of appropriate lubricants all needed to be taken into account, this was achieved in close collaboration between Mapal Indonesia, Nusametal, and its sister firm Astra Otoparts Division Winteq.”

The pilot crankcase covers project was a success. Astra Otoparts’ Nusametal division initially used the re-tooled machines to manufacture crankcase covers for scooters made by a Japanese manufacturer. Every day, the company produces around 11,000 of these aluminium components on a total of 24 machines configured in six production lines. The Mapal tools used for pre-machining and fine machining are each equipped with several PCD cutting edges. Face-milling cutters with exchangeable PCD inserts and PCD-tipped form cutters are also used, while the drills and forming taps used are made from solid carbide.

Fruitful collaboration
Rachmad Basuki, engineering department head at Astra Otoparts’ Nusametal division, said: “The collaboration between engineers from Astra Otoparts’ Nusametal division and Mapal Indonesia has played a pivotal role in enhancing tool design and driving internal improvements. This partnership has boosted overall production performance and highlighted the power of cross-functional engineering synergy. Indeed, the advanced technologies and innovative solutions introduced through this collaboration have become a catalyst for further improvements across the production area, improvements that include layout optimisation, automation initiatives, and the development of jigs and fixtures.

Moreover, the use of PCD tools with MQL has led to faster machining times and the higher outputs that improve daily production volumes considerably. “That said, even more benefits of the switch to MQL were evident in production. For example: the workspace stays much cleaner; components are dry after machining, which means the laborious washing process can be omitted; and longer tool life with the associated reduced machine downtimes contribute to higher productivity and reduced tool costs.”

Mr Willy concluded: “Currently, 24 of our 150 machines operate with the MQL system, and this number is set to expand annually. The excellent collaboration between Mapal Indonesia and our engineers was highly effective, combining MQL technology and PCD cutting tools on the BT30 CNC machine. This has significantly increased productivity and reduced production costs, enhancing our company's competitive advantage.”