LISI Automotive has chosen CLOOMA closed loop manufacturing software solution to control its machine tools and make manufacturing autonomous.
“Reduction of the scrap rate by around 95%, reduction of machine setup time by 75%.”
“We estimate a gain of $20,000 per year and per equipped machine,” says Christophe Blaszczyk.
Background
The industrial group LISI was founded in 1777 from the merger of several family-owned companies based in Montbéliard and Belfort in France.
Originally active in the watchmaking industry, LISI has since grown into a global group generating $1.2 billion in revenue in 2021, employing 9,500 people, operating in 13 countries, and managing 42 production sites, including 20 in France.
The LISI Group specializes in assembly solutions for the automotive, aerospace, and medical sectors.
This case focuses on LISI Automotive, which chose CLOOMA’s closed loop manufacturing software to optimize quality, reduce scrap rates, improve the human–machine supervision ratio, and enable production line control with lower technical skill requirements.
LISI Automotive generates $485 million in revenue, employs 3,300 people across 7 countries, and operates 21 production sites, including 7 in France.
The division supplies metal and plastic assembly solutions, including screw fasteners and clip systems, as well as mechanical safety components to automotive manufacturers and suppliers worldwide.
Its products are used in engines and gearboxes, seats, passenger safety systems, hydraulic braking systems, wheels, interior and exterior trim, and body, chassis, axle, steering, and suspension systems.
Drive operational excellence and quality
In 2020, the Melisey site (France), specialized in the production of forged and machined automotive parts, set out to improve both operational efficiency and quality. Hiring technically skilled personnel capable of understanding and adjusting machine tools had also become an increasing challenge.
Finally, the site aimed to reduce its environmental impact through more efficient use of resources.
The goal was to find a solution that could reduce scrap rates, improve human–machine supervision ratios, and enable production line control with limited technical expertise.
The solution also needed to be easy to implement and deploy across the group.
In September 2020, the first discussions began with CLOOMA regarding its closed-loop manufacturing software.
Following these exchanges, Christophe Blaszczyk, Director of the Melisey site, decided to automate the adjustment of machining centers using a closed-loop system.
Empowering autonomous production with CLOOMA
The CLOOMA team supported LISI in implementing the software on an initial machining center.
CLOOMA is compatible with all types of CNC machines és measuring instruments.
At the Melisey site, in France, CLOOMA was interfaced with LISI’s MES, allowing corrections to be sent directly to the multispindle machines.
Implementation proved to be quick, and the software intuitive — impressing the LISI team with its ability to make the manufacturing process autonomous.
Operators are now assisted in collecting quality data.
Regardless of the machine or the complexity of the part being machined, CLOOMA can apply corrections based on the measurement of a single part.
Previously, adjustments required several iterations, consuming multiple parts before reaching the required level.
Now, only one part is needed.
The setup time reduction achieved with CLOOMA is estimated at around 75%.
By January 2021, the scrap rate dropped from 3.5% to less than 0.1%.
The algorithm automatically corrects the machine tool in near real time as soon as deviations occur, resulting in a scrap rate reduction of about 95%.
At the beginning of 2021, the CLOOMA solution was deployed across around twenty CNC machines at the Melisey site — machining centers of various brands and generations.
Deployment was fast and required minimal equipment and investment.
Quick results through a win-win collaboration
“We estimate a gain of $20,000 per year for each equipped machine,” explains Christophe Blaszczyk, “in addition to environmental benefits from reduced scrap and upskilling of our teams. Moreover, the support provided by CLOOMA and the software’s performance have led to excellent acceptance of the solution among operators."
By March 2021, Anne-Delphine Beaulieu, member of the LISI Group Executive Committee and head of Digital Transformation and Industry 4.0, began promoting the solution across the group and facilitating its scale-up.
CLOOMA is now used in several of the group’s entities in France and is being deployed in the United States.
She adds:
"CLOOMA has delivered outstanding results: 75% reduction in setup time és 95% reduction in scrap rate. We were impressed by how easy it was to use and by how quickly it could be deployed, even with limited technical skills.”
The relationship with CLOOMA is a strong one, built on a win-win partnership.
The teams remain in constant contact, exchanging feedback and ideas to support ongoing product development.
In 2021, LISI was a finalist in the BFM Business Grand Prix for Digital Acceleration, in the Industry 4.0 category, with the CLOOMA closed-loop manufacturing project — a remarkable recognition of their success.