Custom Specimen Cutter Case Study

In one of our most recent projects, a customer of ours requested that our team come up with a solution to automate a custom specimen cutter for one of their processes.  Part of their requirement for this project was to combine the aspects of a manual and automatic specimen cutter. We had a team of safety experts assess and gather data for our engineering department. Below is an example of the equipment they were using.

With our company’s 42 years of experience along with feedback from the customer’s managers and operators, we created a unique design with ergonomics and production efficiency in mind that also exceeded all safety standards and regulations.  Our engineering team then generated detailed sketches and drawings (3D included) and sent them to the customer for approval prior to the fabrication of the new equipment.

The custom specimen cutter that we designed is mounted on a steel square tubing frame with a 1″  thick steel plate. To ensure maximum protection to the operator, we surrounded the point of operation with custom aluminum with 1/4″ polycarbonate to provide maximum visibility. For easy portability inside their plant we designed the equipment to sit on 4 locking casting wheels. The custom specimen cutter itself has specially designed grips and clamps that allow the operator to adjust the jaws manually to apply pressure to the specimens and hold them in place with the jaws. Once the specimen is held in place with the jaws, the operator can then remove themselves from the point of operation, close the interlocked guards and automatically cut the specimen.

To further safeguard the operator, we installed a set of Feather Touch palm buttons, these buttons not only force the operator to use both hands to start the machine but also come equipped with an Emergency Stop Button and two selector switches. One is used to turn on and off a task light for better visibility into the point of operation. The second switch is to open and close the jaws of the specimen cutter; this was an ergonomic solution to prevent long term injury to the operator.

After the fabrication process is complete, the equipment goes through rigorous testing to make sure everything is working correctly. Once the equipment passes our quality standards it is then that we deliver the equipment to the customer.