A day in the life of RCBI
RCBI assists manufacturers and entrepreneurs so they can compete at – or above – full capacity.
Since it began serving manufacturers almost 20 years ago, the Robert C. Byrd Institute for Advanced Flexible Manufacturing, or RCBI as it is better known, has provided access to the latest technologies. As an essential component of this access, RCBI provides technical expertise, workforce development courses and technical skills training, as well as programming assistance and setups, so manufacturers of all sizes can properly use the technologies to fulfill contract requirements.
These specialized services – and others – are available 24/7 at RCBI. They are particularly advantageous in opening new market opportunities. RCBI helps manufacturers stay ahead of the technology curve and remain globally competitive.
Let’s look at a Day in the Life of RCBI ...
A student is learning the foundations of welding in an evening welding class at United Technical Center in Clarksburg. To address the shortage of welders and enhance the pool of skilled workers available to industry, RCBI offers hands-on welding classes.
Welding students are shown honing their skills. Charlotte Weber, RCBI Director and CEO, says, “Because of the identified shortage of welders – not just here in West Virginia but nationwide – RCBI is continuing to work to prepare individuals so they are positioned to earn state welding certification and join the workforce.”
Learning new – and reinforcing existing – CNC skill sets is an ongoing career-enhancing effort at RCBI. Eddie Webb, Senior Manufacturing Engineer & Site Manager (at right), assists Rick Davis of Innovative Tooling Solutions with a setup to run the Haas TL-3 CNC Lathe. The newer Haas Toolroom, an example of the type of high-tech equipment available for leased use at RCBI, offers a functional range from manual operation to full CNC. The lathe also offers a proprietary conversational programming feature that makes it more useful for manufacturers, as well the ability to focus on smaller runs and the production of prototype parts.
With a focus on manufacturing software that includes AutoCAD, AutoDesk Inventor, Mastercam, Featurecam and SolidWorks, RCBI covers design, modeling, programming and machining software that is used every day in industry. With instruction from Bernie Wilson, Senior Machinist Technology Instructor, CNC Machinist & Technical Trainer, (at left) workers and future employees learn the skills they need to understand – and produce – the drawings required to manufacture quality components for Department of Defense suppliers, mining equipment makers and other industrial sectors.
With the advantage of the Amada Pulsar 1212XL 2000-watt Laser Cutter’s compact “footprint,” even manufacturers with compact facilities can place this technology on their shop floors and take advantage of a high-production machine.
The laser produces short-run sheet metal parts and reduces both valuable lead and production times, which increases productivity to new levels. Mark Jenkins of Star Technologies is shown cutting inconel brackets for the aerospace industry.
“We recognize the crucial nature of making time-saving, high-tech production equipment available to our smaller manufacturers so they can maintain or perhaps even expand their output; this helps boost their bottom lines,” Weber said. “The specialized technologies we offer daily access to are particularly helpful in opening new marketing opportunities. Our goal is to help manufacturers stay in business, thrive and diversify.”
With Ed Black, Associate Manager & Instructor in the RCBI Machinist Technology Program, watching her technique, student-machinist Judy Cassell inspects a metal part as she finishes making the cut on a manual milling center. Nearly 300 individuals have completed their coursework in this “teaching factory of the future” and entered the workforce, earning family-supporting wages with good benefits, including health care. Because it has earned certification from the National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS) and has a proven track record, the RCBI Machinist Technology Program is exactly the type of training program that can serve as a model training resource for organizations that wish to incorporate an Associate degree option with industry-recognized credentialing.
Paul Beatty, Senior Manufacturing Engineer & Site Manager, uses a micrometer to “mike,” or measure, the threads of a mild-steel test piece that a client has produced in the Cincinnati Machine Hawk CNC Turning Center. Because tighter tolerances are so increasingly important, RCBI’s staff expertise in setup and operation as well as inspection is a critical element in producing superior components so manufacturers remain recognized as quality suppliers to the Department of Defense and commercial markets.
The close-up (at left) shows the cutting head of the Amada Laser at work. Manufacturers regularly lease time on the cutter to machine metals as hard as inconel and exotic as titanium in vastly decreased time-frames than other types of production equipment permit.
Brian Brown, Senior Manufacturing Engineer & Site Manager, removes a finished part from the sub-spindle of the Mazak Integrex Mark 3 Multitasking Machine after the machining process. The Integrex offers both milling and turning with fewer setups, plus its dual spindle and lower turret offer “done-in-one” machining of back sides of parts that can be automatically transferred to the second spindle with no operator involvement.
By offering affordable lease rates and expert advice on running specialized equipment such as the Star Swiss Type CNC Lathe, RCBI allows manufacturers to expand their product line and increase marketing capacities and sales. The “Swiss Turn,” as it is more commonly called, is capable of producing a complex turned and milled part from a single setup. Its spindling feature allows it to work simultaneously on the front and back of the part at any given time, minimizing cycle times, as it produces sophisticated stainless steel parts, according to RCBI’s Steve Parsons, a Production Engineer, who is shown examining a finished part.
The vacuum bagging process is under way, combining various composite-material components prior to the curing process. Following the hand lay-up bonding stage of composite parts and molds, the bagging procedure is essential for achieving the proper cure that results from compressing the separate layers of composite-components. RCBI’s intensive diversification efforts in the composites arena have introduced the West Virginia manufacturing base to composites manufacturing – the manufacturing of the future.
Basic manufacturing equipment such as the manual turret mill, foreground, and lathes and drill presses are seen in RCBI’s hands-on machinist laboratory, a home base for West Virginia’s only nationally certified Machinist Technology Program. The demand is clear: RCBI’s graduates enjoy more than a 90 percent employment rate in industry. And RCBI’s successful program is the only one in West Virginia that couples national machinist certification with the option of earning a two-year Associate degree, all in just over a year.
Erica Cheetham, Director of Quality Services, assists during a live simulation that takes participants from traditional batch and que scheduling to lean flow based on pull at the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. plant in Clarksburg, W.Va. Quality management is a vital necessity driven by competitive market forces. RCBI helps manufacturers develop and implement documented quality systems to ensure that they remain effective, sought-after and environmentally conscious suppliers. The strong schedule of specialized, quality-focused courses can be developed for multiple companies to attend together or customized to meet a particular company’s needs.
Using precision measurement technology in conjunction with 3D printing and Direct Digital Manufacturing processes available at RCBI, manufacturers and entrepreneurs can produce more complex products, resulting in new market opportunities.
With access to the FARO arm, RCBI offers an easy solution to reverse engineering that fits right in manufacturers’ hands. Chris Figgatt, Manufacturing Specialist/Technical Trainer (at left), assists Percy Eagan of Kanawha Electric & Machine Co. with measurements as he acquires data points on his part. The technology quickly allows you to turn an actual part into an exact digital replica, from which you can produce additional ones. This is especially important when accurate or complete manufacturing drawings of a part aren’t available.
The latest digital scanning and reverse engineering tool on the market is also in use at RCBI. The Handyscan 3D Digital Laser Scanner (below) is self-positioning and requires neither a Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) nor FARO arm to act as an external tracking device. The technology offers advantages that help improve design cycles, manufacturing processes and quality control analysis. Because it is self-positioning and truly portable, it can perform work anywhere: from RCBI to a shop floor or even a quick, in-the-field assessment.
Arley Carpenter, Director of Manufacturing Services, and Chris Figgatt, Manufacturing Specialist/Technical Trainer (above), examine a cooling fan blade for an electrical motor made of a lightweight and rigid ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) thermoplastic material in the Fortus 900mc 3D production system at RCBI. The Fortus technology by Stratasys is capable of direct digital manufacturing and functional rapid prototyping. A key attribute of this particular fabrication system is its build envelope’s large production-size capacity along with its use of production-grade thermoplastics, an ideal material for conceptual models and functional prototypes of manufacturing tools and end-use components.
A close-up of the controls and measurement probe of the Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) available at RCBI. Widely used in the manufacturing sector, the CMM allows accurate measurements to determine physical geometric characteristics of complex components such as motor blocks, cylinder heads, etc. It may be manually controlled by an operator, or automatically by Direct Computer Control (DCC). A function of the automatic setup allows a larger quantity of parts to be inspected at a faster rate than by using more conventional manual methods.
Arley Carpenter, Director of Manufacturing Services, is shown in RCBI’s interactive distance learning classroom that provides live communications between two or more points anywhere in the world.
RCBI’s technical training courses offer expert instruction at affordable rates. Training at RCBI, like its other service offerings, is available 24/7, 365 days a year to meet the needs of industry. Courses can either be geared so they are open to a number of different manufacturers at the same time or customized for an individual manufacturer’s needs. RCBI’s customized training can occur at any of our Advanced Manufacturing Technology Centers across West Virginia or on-site at your location – whichever best suits your needs.
