ROAD TO
Press brake operator Jason Pham, left, gets the low-down on the TruBend 5170 machine’s
capabilities from Trumpf’s Colin Brown.
TOP MACHINERY
MAKES ALL THE ARCHITECTURAL
DIFFERENCE AT METAL CONCEPTS
You don’t get top-end bespoke jobs such as
making the façade for the Christchurch Library
unless you’re an engineering firm that is doing
things right in its speciality area; the design and
manufacture of architectural elements on local
and international fronts.
And, according to Gary Thomson, operations
manager at Metal Concepts, it’s the ability
“to take an architect’s conceptual render and
engineer and manufacture a solution to meet
their requirements,” that sets Metal Concepts
apart, taking a brief and returning a cost-effective,
practical solution that often includes the
installation.
Gary says the company has a dedicated focus
of employing and retaining good staff – vital
to meet the extreme quality control when a
company takes a project from idea, through
design and manufacture, onto the install – but
he adds that Metal Concepts relies on its
systems and processes to provide a consistent
output.
“The challenge for us is that a significant
amount of our work are one-off projects. We
see them once, and we only get to deal with
them once. We have to get it right first time,”
says Gary, explaining that without second
chances the ship must be tight.
“Up front,” says Gary, “we engage customers
through our estimating team. Then proposals
are made to customers and financial estimates.
It (the project) then goes into operational,
details, design and manufacturing teams which
involve both in-house processes and sub-contracted
functions (powder coating, anodising,
galvanising etc), and then through the system
it flows into our on-site projects team (who
manage all the complexities associated with the
installation and the site).”
ABOUT METAL CONCEPTS
In 2006, as leaders in respective and complimentary
fields, Architectural Systems and
PSM Industries merged to create Metal
Concepts.
Architectural Systems brought international
knowledge and experience of architectural
metalwork, ceilings and cladding systems
with design and supply services, while PSM
provided the complimentary experience
and capabilities with hands-on fabrication
of a wide range of materials with existing
clients in retail and supermarket sectors.
Since then, Metal Concepts has grown and
expanded into a specialist metal design
and fabrication business, incorporating
some of the latest technology in material
processing with robotic welding, CNC
press brake and automated CNC turrent
punch, enabling efficient manufacturing of
client products.
The team of about 35 - comprising
specialists in a number of fields including
designers, estimators, quantity surveyors,
project managers, fabricators and site
installation - has an active focus on
working within the construction and architectural
markets to deliver value engineered
solutions.
With such drastically different projects consistently
on the books – from mesh ceiling
at Britomart to balustrades at the Auckland
International Airport, or an Ombrae façade in
Darling Harbour, Sydney - Metal Concepts
has to have machinery that is versatile and
exceptional at what they do. A quick walk
through the Onehunga-facility and you can see
that Trumpf is preferred.
“Part of systems and processes is also being
able to tap into the opportunities that technologies
can provide us. It allows us to create
products to a high degree of accuracy.”
Enter Trumpf.
Perforated metals are made in house on the
latest automated Trumpf TruPunch 3000 S11
CNC turrent punch, while the Trumpf TruBend
5170 press brake is also run from TruTops
Boost offline programming software.
The TruPunch is run ‘lights-on, lights-off’,
without a need for an operator, running a
minimum of 16 hours a day.
But the TruBend replaced a smaller Trumpf
machine: “We saw the value in matching our
bending capabilities around our punching
capabilities,” further explaining that now both
machines can handle 3800x1500mm metal
sheets, not only increasing productivity but also
efficiency and flexibility.
The parts make a very impressive whole at
Metal Concepts. The company has secured
itself a point-of-different through its unique
approaches to diverse and complex projects.
It is out-of-box thinking, every time, at Metal
Concepts. And the right machines help.
34 March 2018