newsletter of general bearing corporation an iso/ts 16949 ... · 30205 gbc news_wtr2012_r2.indd...
TRANSCRIPT
WHAT’S INSIDE…
Engineering Test Lab Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Brazil SA SAE Conference – GBC Participation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Design Challenge: Outer Race Rotation Testing . . . . .3
Demand Management . . . . . . . . . . .4
Noteworthy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
gBC FOCUS: COmmeRCIaL VeHICLe maRKet
General Bearing is the market
leader in wheel end tapered
roller bearings for the truck and
trailer industries. For over two
decades we have grown our
business by providing a high
quality product at a competitive
price while making customer
service our top priority. We have
adapted to the changing needs
of our customers by developing
a line of premium stand bearings
for use in hub packages that offer
advanced performance to the
truck industry. We have expanded
our geographic base, growing
our business in South America,
Europe and Asia. We have begun
work on the next expansion of our
product offering by developing
product for axles; specifi cally,
differential side bearings and tandem
axle through shaft bearings.
There are four separate shafts in a
typical tandem rear axle differential,
each supported by two bearings.
As depicted in the diagram, they are:
1 – Through Shaft, 2 – Differential
Case, 3 – Input Shaft, and 4 – Pinion
(a.k.a. Head and Tail bearings). At
this time, based on our Engineering
expertise, manufacturing capabilities,
and experience with the applications,
we are pursuing the Through
Shaft and Differential Side bearing
applications. We currently have
product on test at two major axle
manufacturers. Although we are not
pursuing the Input Shaft or Pinion
(Head and Tail) positions at this time,
long term we will develop products
for these applications, as well.
Pursuing these new applications
is a natural evolution of our
Commercial Vehicle business. The
size range of the product meets our
existing capabilities, we understand
the technology and have the tools
necessary to succeed, and the
customer base already knows us
as a proven supplier of high quality
product.
1
GENERAL BEARING IS THE LEADER IN THE LOW-COST, HIGH QUALITY SUPPLY OF PRECISION BEARING PRODUCTS.
BY PROVIDING THIS VALUE, WE HELP OUR CUSTOMERS REMAIN COMPETITIVE IN THE GLOBAL MARKETPLACE.
Newsletter ofGeneral Bearing CorporationAn ISO/TS 16949 Certifi ed CompanyVol. 16, No. 2 Spring 2013
engIneeRIng teSt LaB eXPanSIOn
2
General Bearing Corporation
recently unveiled its new
Engineering Test lab expansion and
Engineering Analysis lab at the West
Nyack Headquarters.
The test lab was built with many
features including sound insulating
walls, energy effi cient lighting, outside
air ventilation, separate devoted
access ways for tooling storage
and equipment
delivery, a
vibration isolated
fl oor slab, and
24 hour video
surveillance of all
test equipment.
Just outside
the test area is
the viewing area
otherwise known
as the “Technol-
ogy hallway”. Two
large windows
allow for viewing
of tests in progress.
A bank of monitors
show test status in real time as test
data and other pertinent information
is collected. Just below the monitors
is a display case showing off many of
General Bearing’s successful designs.
Posters in the hallway explain the lat-
est Engineering technology employed
by GBC design engineers and at our
manufacturing plants.
General Bearing Corporation’s new
Dimension 3D printer is also located
in the Technology hallway. The
printer has been a great aid in tooling
design for the Engineering Test Lab.
(See “Outer Race Rotation Testing,”
page 3).
Along with the new facility, the Test
area has had many new equipment
upgrades. New Labview software has
been employed throughout. A test
stand has been completely retrofi tted
with a new variable speed AC drive,
one servo drive, oil cooling, vibration
monitoring and torque measuring
capabilities.
A General Bearing designed ex-
terior drive system has been
added to the GBC Environ-
mental chamber to test for
bearing torque under
varying temperatures.
The QA lab expansion
added more room for the
well outfi tted lab, both for
the existing equipment and
future additions. Also, a
brand new HVAC system
was installed to improve
the lab’s ability to maintain
a constant temperature
and humidity.
The Engineering
Analysis lab features the
latest in microscope technology.
Bearings that have gone through
testing can be fully disassembled and
examined.
For more photographs and
details, please visit our web site at
www.generalbearing.com.
gBC PaRtICIPateS In tHe BRaZIL S.a. Sae COnFeRenCe
DESIGN CHALLENGE:
OUteR RaCe ROtatIOn teStIng
3
GBC participated in the 2012 SAE
Brazil International Suspension
and Trailer Conference in Caxias Do
Sul, Brazil. This conference brings
together all the major heavy duty
truck and trailer manufacturers and
suppliers in Brazil. GBC was honored
to be invited for the fi rst time.
The GBC exhibition booth was
set up to promote the General
Bearing and Hyatt brands. Individual
conferences were held with interested
customers to emphasize GBC
engineering, sales, and manufacturing
processes.
Enrique Negus, South American Re-
gional Sales Manager, and Rick
Janssens, OEM Sales Manager,
were impressed with the high
level of interest in our products
and current applications. Rick
commented, “It was a great
opportunity to, both meet
potential new customers, and
reinforce relationships with our
current customers.” Brazilian
trucks and trailers are built on
many of the same engineering
standards used in North Ameri-
ca. Current commercial vehicle
customers in Brazil include Suspensys,
Randon, ZF, Agnale and MAN.
General Bearing Engineering
recently developed a new test
method for an outer ring rotation
application in a transmission.
Using the 3D modeling program
AutoCAD Inventor, the Engineering
team quickly went from concept to
design. Our customer was able to
review and understand the design and
granted a quick approval.
As the design phase neared
completion, the major components of
the tooling were printed on the GBC
Dimension SST 1200es 3D printer
and could be functionally
checked for form and
interaction with other
components. Some slight
tweaks came out of the
design review and hard
tooling was ordered.
The design features the
test bearing mounted on a stationary
shaft with the entire bearing mounted
within the load bearing. This allows the
test bearing outer race to rotate with
the load bearing’s inner race.
The stationary shaft will
be fi tted with thermocouple
probes that will detect
temperatures at the inner
ring surface.
The test setup features
materials and tolerances
to match the customer’s
application. In this case, the
shaft is aluminum which has a
higher coeffi cient of thermal expansion
than steel. The effects from that will be
studied allowing for both application
analysis and bearing design validation
in the same test.
For more photographs and
details, please visit our web site at
www.generalbearing.com.
marCelo KUVer, SUSPenSYS
CommerCial manager (leFT), anD
enriQUe negUS, regional SaleS
manager (rigHT)
GENERAL BEARING CORPORATION44 High Street, West Nyack, New York 10994 Tel: 845-358-6000 Fax: 845-358-6277 www.generalbearing.com
Donald Paoli, Senior Demand Manager, is a key member of General Bearing Corporation’s Sales
& Operations Planning (S&OP) team, the central process that General Bearing utilizes to run its op-erations.
It is Don’s responsibility to run the Demand Meet-ing during which he presents monthly updates to the current company forecast. To be successful, Don is constantly talking with all members of the Sales and Marketing team, analyzing data from customers and outside forecasting sources, and balancing all of the input to produce a plan by which the rest of the company can operate. Don has also taken on many other ancillary responsibilities, such as leading our new part introduction meet-ings and representing sales during internal process meetings.
Don’s long career with General Bearing Corporation started in 1975. During the late 70’s Don held key management positions in Inventory Control, Custom-er Service and Advertising. In 1979, he was promoted to Director of Purchasing where for the next 20 years he would work extensively with our worldwide suppliers.
Don’s vast experience and attention to detail make him a valuable resource for the company and a mentor for his coworkers.
Don earned his BA at Iona College and his Masters in Finance at Long Island University. He is a long time resident of Rockland County, NY, where he lives with his wife Mary and family.
DonalD Paoli, Senior DemanD
manager
4
DemanD management
General Bearing’s Demand Managers, Don Paoli and Jim Gifford, are re-
sponsible for maintaining an 18-month sales forecast for each of the products that we sell, and for balancing actual demand against that forecast as orders are placed by our customers. Our abil-ity to produce an accurate forecast over the planning horizon, and to properly adjust when the real world challenges us, is essential for maintaining our excel-lent On-Time delivery performance with customers. The result is that General Bearing consistently scores 100% on customer issued scorecards, and 99% on our own more challenging internal measurements.
As their main tool, the Demand Manag-ers use Demand Solutions Forecast Management soft-ware. This robust forecasting suite allows us to gener-ate a base statistical forecast, document assumptions about the current sales en-vironment, and to track manual changes as we react to information we receive from many sources. The resulting final forecast is then uploaded to the com-pany’s ERP system where it is used to plan our operational activities.
We have enhanced the forecast reporting capabilities of our ERP sys-tem so that all members of our Sales & Operations Planning team have the necessary information they need to keep the company functioning at a high level. An example of these extensions is the system’s capability to hold monthly snapshots of the forecast and detail MRP data so that product planning per-formance can be measured at various time fences. To be successful we believe we must be able to have accurate sales forecasts and manufacturing plans sev-eral months before we must actually ex-
ecute them. Our snapshot system allows us to measure these long-range planning capabilities and confidently set the proper inventory level for each of our products.
Not only do we measure our own ca-pabilities, but we also track the forecasts that our customers provide us and com-pare them to actual results. We feel that it is essential to understand the accuracy of this data so that we can properly weigh its influence in building the next revision to our sales forecast. We routinely produce Customer Report Cards to share these findings with our customer partners with the goal of gaining efficiencies in the over-all process and thereby improving our
valuable business relationships.The company’s excellent order
promising capabilities and commitment to always having inventory available for an unforeseen surge in the marketplace ensures that we are able to support our customer’s dynamic needs. While the primary role of analyzing data is performed by our Demand Managers, the complete process of gathering, updating, and analyzing variations in customer demand is a company-wide project including contributions from field sales, customer service, industry managers, and outside forecasting services. The end
result is truly a team effort.