CASE STUDY.

November 2019

Cost savings is always important to any business. In addition, machining operations seek ways to improve processes and operational performance. In a particular case, Ashburn was brought in to evaluate existing processes and performance and make recommendations on improvements that would protect their production and performance while reducing cost.

THE CHALLENGE

A major Oilfield Services and Product manufacturer was seeking cost reduction and process improvement for a machining operation using 5/8” insert drills that are run 6 days out of the week. The customer drilled 100 pieces per day and tooling cost for one machine was calculated to be $5,200 per month. Ashburn Chemical Technologies was brought in to evaluate this process and give a recommendation.

RECOMMENDED SOLUTION

Ashburn’s technical specialist suggested testing of APEX 8500 Semi-Synthetic Coolant in order to increase lubricity and tool life.

Test results showed that the cutting tool lasted 340% longer, and had to be replaced less often. In total, tooling costs were decreased from $5,200 to $1,508 per month.

THE RESULTS

The change to APEX 8500 Semi-Synthetic coolant ultimately saved $44,304 in annual tooling costs for this operation.

RESULT DATA

Materials Machined: 316 Stainless