Cutting and bending larger steel plates

Time is money, especially in ports where the unloading and loading of ships must be done at lightning speed. It's right up VIGAN's alley, the world leader in this niche market. The entire process, from concept and engineering to production and pre-assembly, takes place in Nivelles to keep the lines of communication particularly short. Recently, the Phoenix 6020 fiber laser cutting machine and CADMAN software have become the heart of the sheet metal department. An investment that allowed the company to work more efficiently with larger steel plates.

It takes five days to "relieve" colossal ocean-going vessels of their bulk cargoes. Converted into trucks, that amounts to a long line of 42 kilometers. VIGAN has made it its calling card to design, build and install on-site facilities that achieve the highest possible efficiency here. Managing director Nicolas Dechamps says: "Each machine is perfectly tailored to the customer. Understanding well what he wants is the key to every project. We then translate those wishes into a concrete installation. The fact that we are the only player combining engineering and production on one site is an incredible asset. It means we can always provide quick feedback for a perfect result." 

This is done from Nivelles, where the company and its 80 employees have about 12,000 m² of business space at their disposal. 

A second strong trump card that VIGAN has held since the 1980s is that it is part of the Van De Wiele Group. "That gives us the backing of a powerful group of 5,000 employees," Dechamps said.

Thinking

99% of the installations delivered by VIGAN are destined for overseas. Over the past decade, VIGAN rushed ahead with double-digit growth, kicking off as the world leader in its niche market. And it has the ambition to maintain this position. To this end, significant investments have been made in recent years, including in the sheet metal working department. Dechamps: "The two laser cutting machines with CO2 source that we had were due for replacement. Instead of replacing them with what are now state-of-the-art
is, we started thinking how we could create more opportunities for ourselves." 

The result was the switch to laser cutting machines that can cut larger sheet metal parts. "That is, we can now work in larger pieces, which means less welding, resulting in a more aesthetic and functional result. To avoid the handling of such large plates by our people, we immediately coupled a fully automatic plate warehouse with it." 

Full flow integrated

VIGAN ultimately chose LVD's Phoenix 6020. A laser cutting machine that has more capacity than VIGAN needs today, but is future proof to anticipate further growth. 

Bigger cutting also means bigger bending. The order was therefore supplemented by two Easy-Form 320/40 folding benches of 4 meters that can fold in tandem up to 8 meters synchronized. Dechamps: "Our machines are 'too' important to us. When we need them, they have to be there. That's why it was important to work with a reliable partner." 

That it became LVD speaks volumes not only about the capabilities of the Phoenix 6020 and the Easy-Form 320/40, but also about the CADMAN software that VIGAN ordered with it. "This way we integrate the entire flow of our sheet metal processing department. From the unfolding of the drawing to the automatic generation of the nesting and bending program, as well as scheduling. In terms of software, LVD was clearly ahead of other sheet metalworking machine manufacturers," Dechamps emphasizes.

Top shelf service

2.5 years later, the revamped sheet metal processing department is running at full capacity. "The additional capabilities and the gains in reliability and speed mean that we can speak of a successful investment," Dechamps summarizes the key benefits. "LVD proved itself in that process as a partner that takes responsibility when something doesn't go 100% to our satisfaction. That's what we look for in partners. Even now LVD is still helping us think through how we can use the full potential of the software to get even more efficiency out of our machines. Soon we will visit another of their customers who is already further along in this than we are. That too is service," Dechamps concludes.