Industry Today - Are you into it?
New Users - Register click here
THIRD DIMENSION ENJOYS SUCCESSFUL CONTROL SHOW
Third Dimension, manufacturers of the market leading handheld precision metrology tool GapGun, experienced a highly successful Control Show in Stuttgart, Germany from May 3 - May 6 2011, with enquiries up 25 per cent on the previous year and significant interest in the launch of their new robot operated measurement technology, GapGun Robot +.
Posted via Industry Today. Are you into it? Follow us on Twitter @IndustryToday
As Head of Sales John Kane reports, it wasn't so much the increase in sheer volume of sales enquiries that has filled them with optimism, but the quality of those enquiries. "There is no doubt that in comparison to previous years there were many more enquiries and a large proportion of these came directly from key decision makers in important target audiences. We are highly optimistic that a significant number of these will be directly translated into sales. Suffice to say, we are very pleased with the show indeed."
John believes that the launch of the GapGun Robot + attracted many people to the stand. "We chose to launch this at Control because, more than any other show, it seems perfectly targeted for the product. GapGun Robot + has been created to provide the ultimate precision inspection tool that not only saves manufacturers huge amounts of time, but also provides a detailed audit trail of every component it measures, guaranteeing product quality.
"The quest for manufacturing precision was the defining factor in establishing GapGun," adds John. "This new development provides manufacturers with in-process dimensional measurement data and also feeds information back enabling them to refine their manufacturing processes," he explains.
The product has been created in partnership with a leading aerospace engine manufacturer, who expressed an interest in the technology to check the edges of engine blades. "Clearly this is a vital element of the manufacture of aero engines and dimensional control is absolutely critical," says John. "In the manufacturing process the blades are now polished by a robot and automatically measured by GapGun Robot+. If the product passes the check it is accepted.
"In their quest for precision, the manufacturer was happy to work in close consultation with us on the development of the product. Significant amounts of the time constructing aero engines comes in component inspection. The fact that this technology saves so much time and ensures only acceptable parts are passed convinces us that we will see this type of metrology assisted manufacturing process becoming ever more commonplace."
In addition to launching the GapGun Robot +, Third Dimension also used the show to make annual awards to its Distributor of the year, won by US distributor Accurex Measurement, and GapGun engineer of the year, which was won by CJ Lo of Supertooling in China.
Ends
Notes for Editors:
High quality image available on request
THIRD DIMENSION
Third Dimension is now one of the leading names in aeronautical manufacturing metrology, but the company was founded by Tim Monks almost by accident in the early 1990s.
Tim completed a PhD in electronics and started working, as a contractor, with an internationally renowned engineering technology firm. It was during this time that he began developing an electronic metrology device which had been specified by Volvo and it was this that provided the kernel of the idea behind Third Dimension.
"I was determined to set up my own business right from the start and I was convinced that the hand-held metrology device had significant commercial potential for precision manufacturing in the aeronautical and automotive sectors," says Tim.
Tim negotiated the rights to the product and set about creating Third Dimension. The company started operating as a one-man band from Tim's home, but he very quickly brought in some staff and started working on two other products. "The engineering of precision metrology had really caught my imagination and, in parallel with developing the main product, which we had by then christened GapGun, we set about creating two other technologies, Volscan, which measured air freight, and MTS, which measured aircraft wing deflections in wind tunnels."
The decisive departure from promising cottage industry to internationally recognised industry leader came about with the appointment of some senior members of staff. "I'm an engineer and whilst I was happy to grow the business up to the £1 million turnover mark, I knew that beyond this I really need to bring in professional and experienced commercial specialists to provide the solid foundations the business required for growth," says Tim.
Those individuals are non Executive Director Martin Coulthard and Finance Director Mike Dawes. "Quite simply, this company would not have flourished in the way that it has if I had not hired in Martin and Mike," says Tim. "Whilst we have a very talented product development team, and we have design and engineering capabilities far beyond our competitors, it is their acumen that has enabled us to punch above our weight and make such great inroads in our key markets."
Under the guidance of Martin and Mike, Third Dimension focused their resources almost entirely on the GapGun product and set about developing it to become internationally respected as among the best products in its market anywhere in the world. As a result the sales ledger soon started to look like a who's who of aeronautical and automotive manufacturing, and the client sheet today includes such names as Airbus, Jaguar Land Rover and Lockheed.
The organic growth afforded by the sales has seen Third Dimension rapidly develop as a business, with the result that in 2011 the company will move into new premises at Filton and it is predicted that turnover will double in the next three years.
So, what of the future? "The company will continue to develop GapGun and will continue to make ever greater inroads on the aeronautical and automotive manufacturing sectors, but we are also looking to expand into the wind power manufacturing sector and to explore the vast potential of consumer electronics manufacturing. We are also developing new associated technologies, that we are very excited about, and will be looking to launch these within the next few months," concludes Tim.
Precision engineering has been dependent on physical measurement devices since the advent of time. In many industries Vernier callipers and the feeler gauge remain kings. They are simple to use, tried and trusted. However, when engineer Dr Tim Monks was invited to consider a modern solution that could prove more accurate, and would crucially save time and money and would provide an excellent return on investment, he came up with a technology that would leave the tried and trusted methods firmly in the 20th century.
"The old technologies had stood the test of time because they are cheap and simple to use," says Tim. "However, in the modern manufacturing world, companies want more. Manual callipers and gauges are always open to interpretation and manufacturers these days are far more vulnerable to the risk of not being able to prove the efficacy of their work."
GAPGUN
GapGun is a calibrated electronic geometry system. It uses a laser and a camera to create a triangulated co-ordinate system, making it incredibly accurate and very fast to operate. It is comfortable, light and extremely easy to use and crucially provides manufacturers with an auditable trail that removes risk by proving the quality of manufacture.
The origins of the product lie in the earliest stages of Tim's career, when he was invited to come up with a metrology solution for an international automotive manufacturer whilst working as a consultant engineer with a renowned engineering technology company. Tim came up with the concept of combining a laser and a camera in a handheld metrology device, but the client decided not to pursue the project. Tim felt that it was too good a concept to shelve and so he applied for, and received, permission to take the concept on himself. 12 years later GapGun is the most dominant hand-held optical measurement product in precision engineering for the aerospace and automotive manufacturing industries.
"The product has developed almost out of recognition in that time, in terms of both hardware and software, but the fundamental concept remains the same," says Tim. The use of optical triangulation technology enables us to measure not just gaps, but shapes and forms incredibly accurately. We provide a full auditable trail of every single product that is measured and we save huge amounts of time and money that help to provide our clients with a return on investment that is typically less than a year."
"We are completely dedicated to this technology and we are working on exciting new developments that will make it even more simple to use and will provide even greater savings on time and money, which we expect to release later in the year," says Tim.
In the meantime the product is making ever wider inroads into its prime target markets in the aerospace and automotive manufacturing sectors, where established clients include the likes of Airbus, Lockheed and Jaguar Land Rover. Looking to the future, Third Dimension is starting to investigate the possible use of GapGun in the wind power manufacturing and the consumer electronics sectors, which the company believes present further significant opportunities.
Contact Information
Malcolm Cupis
Shipham Communications Ltd
8 Haweswater Close
Bridgeyate
Bristol
BS30 5XS
BACK TO TOP