CUSTOMER STORY – ZHENGZHOU HENGDA INTELLIGENT CONTROL TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD. is expected to reach nearly 2,000. Lot sizes range from one to no more than ten parts in most cases. This clearly shows that the mining industry needs efficient and flexible production lines. Zhengzhou Hengda has proactively grasped this trend and achieved significant growth through its forward-looking strategy. The company has always focused on the ongoing development of its products. This goes hand in hand with the optimization of manufacturing processes, i. e. the search for ever more advanced machining solutions. “In 2010, we were impressed with the NH 5000 DCG hori- zontal machining center from DMG MORI,” recalls Wang Haipeng, head of machining at Zhengzhou Hengda. “The machine’s box-in- box design ensures high rigidity and reliabil- ity.” A perfect solution, Wang Haipeng thinks: “We bought two NH 5000 DCGs and signifi- cantly advanced our manufacturing.” Automated manufacturing: Convinced by facts Due to the outstanding performance of both NH 5000 DCGs, Zhengzhou Hengda repeat- edly chose DMG MORI when expanding its production capacity. Soon, the topic of auto- mation through linear pallet pools (LPP) came to the fore. At that time, Zhengzhou Hengda was not convinced about automa- tion. The fear was that with a higher degree of automation of the machines, the need for maintenance would also increase. To ensure continuous operation of the new machine tools, Wang Haipeng – who was still a main- tenance engineer at the time – was assigned to this task as an operations engineer. “DMG MORI provided factual information that completely changed our understanding of automation,” Wang Haipeng recounts. “After the initial changeover, both plants were running very reliably and efficiently.” Intelligent production layout with linear pallet pools By the end of 2023, 14 NH horizontal series machines will be installed and automated with linear pallet pools (LPP). Initially, DMG MORI automated six models in 2018 using an LPP with 48 pallet posi- tions and three setup stations. The existing two machines were integrated as well. This was followed in 2020 by another LPP with 48 pallet positions and two setup stations. Here, four automated NH 5000 DCGs were put into operation. The satisfaction with these solutions is reflected in the latest investment. “In 2022, we purchased another four NH 5000 DCGs with LPP, which will be installed at the end of 2023,” says the man- agement of Zhengzhou Hengda. The inten- sive cooperation with DMG MORI has sus- tainably strengthened trust. Wang Haipeng adds. “When it comes to orders for major projects, especially in the area of research & development, we can rely 100 percent on machines supplied by DMG MORI.” Production of small batches in many variants According to the management of Zheng- zhou Hengda, the new production layout has definitely proven itself. They describe it in detail: “Hengda has connected R & D and production through the MES system, installed additional inline inspection equipment and retrofitted pallets, fixtures and other equip- ment for standardization.” In this way, Zheng- zhou Hengda achieved the optimal result in terms of both the software and hardware. As a result, flexible product changeover is now possible, while small series of many variants can also be manufactured productively. The management comments, “Today, manufac- turing one part for ten products is just as effi- cient as machining ten parts for one product.” Customer-oriented cooperation Zhengzhou Hengda is satisfied with what DMG MORI has accomplished in recent years. The management has been impressed by the customer-oriented consulting and on-time implementation of the projects. Even more important, they said, was the handling of individual requirements: “In particular, the integration of existing machines into a new LPP and the associated change in the pro- duction layout were a major challenge that DMG MORI mastered perfectly.” DMG MORI worked out a detailed plan for the moderniza- tion of the production line. “During the adap- tation and commissioning, which took almost 20 days, almost all machines remained in normal operation, so production capacity was not affected.” Zhengzhou Hengda has had an equally good experience in the area of maintenance. With DMG MORI into the future Zhengzhou Hengda intends to maintain the good cooperation with DMG MORI into the future. This is because the investments in R&D activities as well as the expansion of the product range will continue in order to further advance future-oriented projects in mining. Intelligent mines and digital twins are just two examples of this progress. DMG MORI will remain an important player in this development as a reliable partner in the field of machine tool technology. « Zhengzhou Hengda Intelligent Control Technology Co., Ltd. is a leading supplier in the mining machinery industry. ZHENGZHOU HENGDA FACTS + Founded in 1999 + Subsidiary of Zhengzhou Coal Mining Machinery (Group) Co., Ltd. + Leading supplier in the mining machinery industry + Specializes in the development, production and sales of key components for intelligent control systems in coal mining Zhengzhou Hengda Intelligent Control Technology Co., Ltd. No. 167, 9th Street Econ-Tech Development Zone Zhengzhou, China www.zmj.com TECHNOLOGY EXCELLENCE 71