Why tool life is usually guessed
In most plants, tools are changed when the operator thinks it is time, or when parts start going out of size. Some tools are thrown away with life left in them. Others run past their life and cause rejections, poor finish or breakage. Tool stock lives in a register that never quite matches the cupboard.
Tool life from actual production
TnG tool management is part of the Machine Monitoring System. Because the system already knows which part is running on which machine and how many pieces were produced, it counts tool life from real production, for each tool assigned to that part and machine.
- Life monitoring: target versus actual life for the tools assigned to each part and machine.
- Insert edge history: edge usage and completed tool records retained for production review.
- Actionable status: near-life, life-reached and records needing supervisor review are highlighted.
Tool stock control
- Tool catalogue and stock: available quantity for every tool and insert.
- Issue, return and transfer: every movement recorded as a transaction.
- Trustworthy balances: stock balances follow the issue and return history, rather than being typed in, so they cannot drift away from what really happened.
Better decisions on tooling
With actual tool life recorded against the part, machine and shift, you can compare tool performance, plan replacement before a tool fails, and prepare stock for the next jobs. Tool life data sits in the same production record as OEE, breakdowns and quality, so a tooling problem is visible in context.
Tool management is available as a module of TnG Machine Monitoring.
