MR Components is a mid-sized manufacturer of differential and planetary gears in Grigno, Italy, but it is growing – with a significant increase in production capacity and a simultaneous improvement in finished-part quality. Now producing around 80,000 components per month, the credit for the shop‘s progress goes to an embrace of intelligent automation for its EMAG vertical turning machines.
Alessandro Reguzzo, founder and managing director of MR Components, started out in 1995 in a garage, with just one CNC lathe in a garage. As the business grew Reguzzo invested in more machines and a larger shop, and in 2006 MR Components moved into its first wholly owned location, a 2,500 m² manufacturing space. In January 2024, the operation relocated again to new, modern 6,000 m² headquarters.
Today, MR Components has around 50 employees – 40 in production operations and ten assigned to administrative, quality, and technology roles.
"Our two main business areas are the manufacture of components for differential gears and planetary gears,“ the business leader outlined. "The differential gear parts are supplied complete and ready for installation to our customers. The other product line, which is mainly manufactured on EMAG machines, is planetary gear parts. These are supplied to various Italian customers and above all abroad, with German customers being important customers."
The growth of the business has been steady. "In the beginning, we worked with conventional machines, especially horizontal lathes," he recalled. "Automated production then began with simple Taiwanese vertical lathes, which were within our financial means at the time. After a short time, we realized that the use of automated machines was the key to speeding up production.
Running on their own
"The main advantage of these machines is that they run automatically and can, therefore, work unmanned," Reguzzo emphasized. "This distinguishes them fundamentally from conventional lathes.
According to Reguzzo, consistent automation of production has been MR Components‘ success strategy. "The use of automated machines was the key to speeding up production," he said. "The machines run unmanned, allowing us to produce in the evening hours without having to introduce a night shift."
MR Components relies on EMAG machines that are equipped with integrated measuring probes. "This allows us to check all components 100 percent," Reguzzo explained. "The stable design and high quality of the machine components are essential in batch production, in order to stand out from the competition."
"In 2011, we purchased our first two VL 7s from EMAG, which was a game changer for us. Above all, we learned to appreciate the advantages of the integrated measuring probe and the associated, in-process control of all components. The stable design and high quality of the machine components are also essential in batch production, in order to stand out from the competition.
Currently there are a range of EMAG vertical lathes installed for MR Components to address different customers‘production requirements. "In one of our production lines, we work with VL 7 machines, where the operator manually places the workpieces on the automation belt," Reguzzo detailed. "In other production lines, we work with VL 4 machines that are equipped with TrackMotion automation. Here, the automation is very fast and we have greater autonomy, so we can also run the machines in unmanned mode."
There are also other EMAG units too, including VL 4 and VL 6, which are automated with robots – an automated set-up developed to account for the fact that many parts have to undergo distinct process sequences in addition to turning, such as marking, which can be carried out easily and flexibly with a robot.
Unmanned production during the evening hours allows MR Components to increase production time significantly. "We call this time 'free' hours, as it allows us to produce without additional personnel costs," explained Reguzzo. "This is a great advantage, as it is difficult to find staff for the night shift these days."
Investing in the future
MR Components has plans for future investments too. "We are planning to use two VL 8 machines in combination with robots to machine components with a diameter of up to 450 mm," Reguzzo said. "We also want to further develop our gear cutting and assembly technologies in order to be able to offer our customers even more comprehensive solutions."
Along with productivity, product quality has a high priority at MR Components. "Today, all our EMAG machines are equipped with measuring probes so that we can check all components 100 percent," Reguzzo pointed out. "In addition to in-process control, we carry out further quality controls with various measuring devices. We also have a measuring room equipped with two Zeiss and other measuring machines, so that we can always supply our customers with an optimum product. As you can see, quality is our top priority! We currently have a reject rate of just 0.2 percent for 80,000 components, which shows that we are well positioned."
Achieving production totals of up to 80,000 parts per month has not come at the expense of flexibility for MR Components. "We are able to produce batches of 100 to 30,000 components per month," Reguzzo reported. "Our batches vary greatly as we have equipped our company to serve different customers with different requirements. We are flexible enough to handle both small and large orders efficiently and on time."