Haimer Group has acquired a 25% stake in WinTool AG and formed a partnership with the TCM Group. This partnership grants HAIMER global distribution rights to WinTool and Toolbase. Prior to this acquisition, Haimer thoroughly tested WinTool and Toolbase in its own production facilities, validating their effectiveness in a short period.
HAIMER, a medium-sized company, is not just a manufacturer; it’s an innovator, designing and producing cutting-edge, high-precision products for metal cutting and various industrial sectors, including automotive, aerospace, energy, rail, and general machining. With a workforce of approximately 800 employees worldwide, HAIMER’s primary production hub in Igenhausen boasts 500 skilled workers, operating with state-of-the-art machinery and a high degree of automation.
HAIMER’s commitment to excellence is evident in its staff – experienced, dynamic, and highly qualified individuals dedicated to upholding the brand’s renowned quality. As an active apprenticeship company, HAIMER nurtures the future workforce, with nearly 50 apprentices benefiting from hands-on training. As the leading force in European tool holding technology, HAIMER understands the importance of staying ahead. Investing between 8 and 10% of its revenue annually in research and development ensures that their products remain technologically superior.
Going forward, TCM will rely on HAIMER as a key supplier for tool holders, shrinking, balancing, and presetting machines, enhancing their tool management capabilities. Tool management is increasingly crucial in manufacturing, and HAIMER, a global leader in tool holding and presetting, has been providing innovative solutions for years, ensuring high efficiency with their machines. At EMO 2023, HAIMER announced a significant advancement, now offering a comprehensive digital range alongside its hardware products for machine tools.
This includes WinTool software, an independent tool management system, and Toolbase, a smart tool dispensing system with software and hardware components. To achieve this, HAIMER formed a competence partnership with the TCM Group, including WinTool AG and Achterberg GmbH, renowned developers and producers of WinTool and Toolbase solutions. This partnership, solidified by a 25% shareholding in WinTool AG and global distribution agreements, allows HAIMER to provide both product lines to its worldwide distribution partners and customers.
Markus Temmel, CEO of TCM, expressed excitement about the new partnership, highlighting the seamless integration of HAIMER and TCM Group’s product portfolios and their shared commitment to customer needs. Temmel believes this partnership will lead to more robust overall solutions and strengthen their market position. Andreas Haimer, President of the HAIMER Group, announced a strategic partnership with TCM and an investment in WinTool, aligning with their strategy to offer customers a comprehensive system for digitization and automation of tool room management.
This includes user-friendly products and intuitive software solutions to enhance shopfloor productivity. The introduction of WinTool and Toolbase in their own production facility with over 200 CNC machines was completed in just four months. Positive feedback at EMO 2023 and a strong partnership with TCM have driven their decision to expand further with WinTool and TCM.
Innovative manufacturing company HAIMER rigorously tests new products in-house before market launch. With production capabilities of up to 4,000 tool holders daily at their Igenhausen and Motzenhofen plants, they also manufacture 3D sensors, shrinking, balancing, and presetting machines. This self-reliance drives their commitment to optimizing tool management.
Under the guidance of Andreas Haimer, the company swiftly implemented WinTool software and Toolbase dispensing system, seamlessly integrating them with HAIMER devices. Stefan Echle, Head of Product Management, spearheaded the project, coordinating suppliers, IT, tool room, and production. They digitally replicated 10,000 items, including tools, spare parts, and C items, in a centralized WinTool database, and digitized application know-how for each job.
HAIMER’s adoption of WinTool and Toolbase extends to their large vertical lift cabinet systems, enhancing decentralized supply network for production consumables. This streamlined approach ensures efficient operations and easy access to vital information. Stefan Echle praises the practical design of the software, noting its simplicity without unnecessary features. He highlights its user-friendliness for production and tool room employees.
WinTool, a tool and data management software, facilitates the organization and utilization of tool, master, and operating equipment data, along with CNC machine programs. Echle mentions that users can start with basic functions, such as inputting cutting tools and tool holders, gradually expanding to other data. WinTool offers an open database for easy import of existing data from other systems, including 2D and 3D data from manufacturers’ websites.
In a recent statement, Stefan Echle highlighted the efficiency of WinTool, a software system that offers an overview of available tools and their locations, helping users optimize their tool stock based on consumption. Echle emphasized that storing tool life information in WinTool is essential for maximizing cutting tool usage in machining. He also noted that assembling complete tools in 3D is easier in WinTool compared to CAM systems.
WinTool provides 25 direct interfaces to common CAD/CAM systems, making it ideal for companies like HAIMER that use multiple systems. Thimo Rotter, Area Sales Manager at WinTool, emphasized that WinTool serves as a central data hub for all tool information and integrates with CAM, ERP, Toolbase, and other software systems. This integration allows users to access uniform and relevant data anytime, anywhere.
WinTool also functions as a library for working materials and CNC data, offering benefits such as shorter programming and set-up times, reduced tool inventory, integrated documentation, and increased productivity. HAIMER plans to expand its use of WinTool gradually to further enhance its operations. Innovative tool management just got smarter with the introduction of the Toolbase dispensing system, a user-friendly software-supported solution.
According to Stefan Echle, the integration of Toolbase software into existing dispensing cabinets has yielded impressive results. This system streamlines processes, eliminating the need for manual tool searches and ongoing stock checks. It also helps in managing consumption requirements more efficiently. Stefan Echle emphasizes the compatibility of Toolbase with WinTool, a well-established interface. However, Toolbase can also be seamlessly integrated with other tool management systems or used independently for basic needs.
He suggests that for small and medium-sized enterprises, pairing a HAIMER Microset tool presetter with a Toolbase dispensing cabinet can significantly enhance operational efficiency. This combination simplifies management processes and automates warehousing tasks, making operations leaner and more effective. In a recent development, HAIMER’s Plant Manager, Manfred Mayr, shared the positive impact of the Toolbase software on their operations.
The software, designed for efficient tool and consumable management, allows easy access and search functionality through barcode, RFID, or manual input. This streamlined approach has led to immediate gains in time and process reliability. By providing accurate consumption data, the software enhances transparency and facilitates more efficient warehouse management, leading to reduced storage costs.
According to Mayr, the investment in WinTool and Toolbase is expected to pay off within six to 12 months. The user-friendly interface and intuitive operation have impressed Mayr, enabling machine operators at the Motzenhofen plant to procure consumables for over 120 CNC machines easily. Automatic tool ordering ensures optimal stock levels, allowing the team to focus on producing around 4,000 tool holders daily.
Managing Director Andreas Haimer highlights the significance of WinTool and Toolbase in CNC machining digitization. He emphasizes their benefits in their production and the valuable experience they gain, which they share with customers. Haimer believes that tool management, particularly with their analog and digital products, will become increasingly important with rising automation. He notes that their systems are modular, allowing companies to choose the right entry point for their production digitization.
Going forward, all HAIMER Microset tool presetters will be supplemented with WinTool as a standard feature. This integration enables the creation of a digital twin of a complete tool in just minutes, facilitating simulations without complications. HAIMER has already created master data for its cutting tools and tool holders, including parameters, STEP, and DXF files compliant with DIN 4000 and ISO 13399. This data is downloadable from the HAIMER website and Tooltracer platform.
