AST Technology's CVe Live software monitors an injection molding machine and stores the information in the cloud so molders and OEMs can access the data from anywhere — even from a booth in the Orange County Convention Center's West Hall.
Part of the Progressive Components International Corp. group of companies (Booth W4345), AST Technology is tapped in to four machines scattered throughout the exhibit space. Data from each machine is displayed on a TV screen at the booth, the first time AST Technology has brought this feature to NPE. One monitored machine features sister company Roehr Tool Corp.; the others are located at MGS Mfg. Group (Booth W3902), Sumitomo (Booth W623) and Sodick (Booth W163).
“You could be a tooling manager in Chicago and have visibility of your molds in Mexico and Ohio. It's like the Facebook of molds,” said Progressive President Glenn Starkey.
The CVe Live software has also been upgraded to include customizable preventative maintenance schedules and shift schedules, new charts and graphs, and a built-in data export feature.
Progressive's focus for NPE is on providing “crystal clear” next steps for its customers, Starkey said.
“It does somebody no good if they just pick up a brochure and leave it in their hotel room and we see them then next NPE,” he said.
To that end, booth staff will help customers calculate costs and impacts of, for example, unscheduled mold stoppages, and demonstrate other products and services.
“We're all technical people by background, so we just want to get to work,” Starkey said. “We're technical enthusiasts, tooling enthusiasts, and we love that this show like no other attracts like-minded folks.”
