With an excellent reputation for quality work, but somewhat held back by its tired production set-up, TaylorMade by Stanton took the plunge with a new CNC drill which has proved a revelation for the Gloucester business – John Legg paid them a visit.
Based in Longhope, Gloucester, TaylorMade by Stanton is a highly reputed manufacturer of high quality bespoke interiors and kitchen, bedroom and home office furniture. Since June 2000, the company’s designs have always composed of top quality materials, appliances and worktops in order to give its customers a true tailor-made service with quality at the forefront and an attention to detail that is second-to-none.
The company’s showroom is impressive and features a choice of fully-built designs which demonstrate the company’s dexterous capabilities to the full – from clean and classic upscale Shaker option through curving counters and statement lacquered cabinetry styles to cool, urban contemporary chic – it’s clear partners Jeremy Stanton and Tom Hancock know their onions.
However, despite initial investment in the business running only to mainly used machinery – much of which is still functioning as intended – TaylorMade has built a healthy business based on delivering a quality product.
To achieve such a prime finish with very simple machines, the workshop team laboured with countless jigs and manual bench work and drilling operations which was naturally time-consuming and occasionally lacked the precision needed, which in turn led to re-workings in order to pass muster.
To help the business achieve a greater efficiency, partners Jeremy and Tom researched the market for a solution, and found it in the shape of a compact AES Sirius 950M CNC drilling machine, which had at the time of my visit, already helped their process significantly.
AES’ recently introduced Sirius CNC point-to-point boring machine is a well-made, heavy duty machine weighing almost 1.5 tons – this heft comes in handy with the X and Y axis able to move at speeds of up to 70m/min. Even the largest panels are loaded and move through the machine with ease thanks to the air floatation tables which are firmly held for positioning by the pneumatic gripper.
The machine has a generous 950mm working width and is equipped with ten vertical drills drilling from below to ensure the working surface and all holes are kept dust-free. It also has the benefit of increased accuracy as the drilling depth will always be correct, despite any tolerances in the thickness of the work piece.
The machine also comes equipped with horizontal drilling to all four sides and a grooving saw in the X axis, making it an ideal all-rounder
The machine has a large industrial-based, 17in colour, windows-based PC with both USB and remote file transfer.
With the addition of the optional router head, various tasks can be easily resolved such as grooving for solid backs on carcasses, routing out for cable management, pipes or skirtings, shaping for corner units and so on.
The further option of the automatic tool changer improves efficiency where multiple tools are needed and expands the possibilities yet further.
The J & C O’Meara supplied product was set up by its regional agent Southampton-based Sawtec. Regarding the installation of the Sirius, Tom reports that it went very well, overcoming an initial hard-drive issue very professionally.
After the commissioning and initial training, Tom described the Sirius as a revelation: “After training, even when we getting used to it, we got up to speed quite quickly and were making all types semi-finished furniture parts pretty much straight away. It has also allowed us to do things which would have otherwise have been a real head-scratcher. To be honest, I never knew machines like this, at this price, actually existed. It’s brilliant!”
In terms of design potential the addition of the Sirius is a positive move. Tom quickly realised how the AES Sirius drill is helping the company become more consistently efficient from a production perspective, and also how it has enabled Jeremy’s designs to be more sophisticated when the need arises.
In conclusion, with such a modest investment, the AES Sirius 950M CNC point-to-point boring machine is proving transformational for TaylorMade by Stanton, so much so, the partners are already talking of further investment very soon.
01704 893109
www.ukwoodworkingmachinery.co.uk
