NOAH MAUCK
Coaster Project
Lessons Learned
In this project, I learned about the importance of automation in modern manufacturing. Milling the complex geometry of the coaster by hand would take a novice machinist upwards of 20 hours. What can be done in 20 hours can be done in 30 minutes with the use of a CNC mill. With a high demand of manufactured parts in every single industry, automation is necessary to keep up with the demand. Another benefit is the price per manufactured unit will ultimately decrease.
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My advice for future students is to become accustomed with the CNC mill. Not only is it important for your HAAS examination, but it is also important in real world industry. The more skills you have, the more of a prospect you will be to future employers.
Cost Estimation
The cost breakdown for each of the machined parts are shown below:
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Aluminum Bar (6061) - $5.35
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Labor - $12
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$24/hr average machinist pay​
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30 minutes of labor spent machining, sanding, and finishing
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This results in a total estimated cost of $17.35.
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If I were to make 10,000 coasters, this would take around 200 days and cost $173,500.
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If we ignore labor costs, these 10,000 coasters would cost $83,500 and take 200 days to produce. Each coaster would be then worth around $8.35. Because this system is already largely automated, this is based on the assumption we use a robot to load and unload the machine, costing $6/hr.
Coaster Manufacturing - Automation
The coaster project is almost completely automated already. The only thing the operator has to do is cut the stock to size and load the part. The CNC mill then makes the part the same way every time. To further automate this process, a robot can be utilized to cut the stock, load it into the machine, and unload it after its completed.