Bystronic assembles its first US fiber laser cutter - Aerospace Manufacturing and Design

Oct 22, 2024

Posted by Eric Brothers, Editor - Manufacturing Group

Bystronic Inc. – a worldwide supplier of high-quality press brakes, lasers cutting systems, automation, and software for the economical processing of sheet metal and tubes – achieved a major milestone in the U.S. with its first laser cutting machine assembled at its new facility in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. This important milestone strengthens Bystronic’s commitment to its customers and to the North American market by providing locally assembled machinery to reduce overall lead time, installation time, and import costs.

By assembling laser cutting machines in the U.S., Bystronic is further developing its market presence and operations network. The next generation BySmart Fiber 3015 laser cutting machine, now with 8kW and 10kW fiber laser power, is the first machine to be locally produced in the three major market regions of the world: North America, Europe, and Asia, thus strengthening Bystronic’s global product availability and supply chain diversification.

The next generation BySmart Fiber will be shipped virtually fully assembled to most locations within North America. This process will reduce the installation time at the customer’s location by as much as 65%. Also, the machines will be 100% inspected and tested in the U.S. plant before shipment, which ensures that production will be up and running shortly after the installation is complete. Customer delivery lead times will also be reduced significantly.

The current plan is that from this fall 2020, the next generation BySmart Fiber 4020 will also be assembled at the U.S. facility.

Lean manufacturingFrom the very beginning, it was the goal of Bystronic to use the best practices from the manufacturing plants in Switzerland, Germany, and China in this new facility. The assembly area is laid out as a ‘lean flow’ line. Using this concept, the base machine frame starts at one end of the line, is assembled in stages, and the finished machine exits at the end of the line, much in the way cars are assembled. Components and sub-assemblies are brought to the production line in a just-in-time fashion to complete the machine.

Local sourcingBystronic will locally source machine components and sub-assemblies as economically practical. They have already identified suppliers for the mainframe, housing, dust tray, laser source, and other components, and orders have already been placed with these vendors. Many of these vendors are current Bystronic customers and will be using Bystronic machinery to produce the parts.

The newly built Hoffman Estates facility will include a leading-edge Customer Experience Center and the headquarters for the Americas market region. It will serve as the hub for Bystronic U.S. business operations including sales, service, training, spare parts, and the refurbishing of used machinery.

Currently, Bystronic employs approximately 160 employees in the U.S., with a notable increase planned within this year and beyond as more products are added for U.S. assembly. The total area of the new building is 164,894ft2. The total area for machine assembly and parts warehousing is 103,39ft2, the Experience Center is 30,72ft2, and the total office area is 30,780ft2.

Experience Center, Bystronic smart factoryThe vision of the smart factory is now a reality for Bystronic customers. With its new Experience Center near Chicago, Bystronic is now demonstrating the future of sheet metal processing to U.S. customers. Bystronic will be offering customized live demonstrations and displaying its entire range of sheet metal processing solutions: the latest technologies for laser cutting, integrated automation and storage solutions, flexible bending systems, tube and profile processing solutions, a software landscape that covers the entire sheet metal processing chain, and smart services.

Vision becomes realityWhat started as a vision back in 2018, has now come to fruition. The total investment for this project represents approximately $30 million and a firm commitment of the Swiss and globally active Bystronic Group to the North American market.

It’s often said that the best achievements are accomplished by those with a vision of the end result. Bystronic Inc. and Bystronic Manufacturing Americas are well on their way to achieving this initial vision.

A grand opening for the new Experience Center and headquarters for the Americas in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, is scheduled for September 16 & 17, 2020.

Bystronic’s North America headquarters is in Elgin, Illinois. Offices are also located in Toronto, Canada and Monterrey, Mexico.

Bystronic Inc.

Bystronic Inc. production line at the Hoffman Estates facility. Photo: Bystronic Inc.