Most laser job shop owners will agree that a brake press operator is one of the most expensive people in the jobshop – and is often the hardest to find. With bending being an essential component of most job shops’ processes, having the right brake press (and operator) is a must.
So, if you’ve finally found a qualified brake press operator who is a good fit for the business – the worst thing you can do is take their valuable time with quoting and estimating tasks.
Instead of having a brake press operator (or CAM specialist) prepare quotes, or perform the calculations necessary to generate an accurate and repeatable quote, use a front-end laser cutting quoting software like ToolBox, by Tempus Tools.
Typically, the brake press is situated at the back of the factory because this makes sense with a lot of workflows. So, if a customer service person needs to take a long walk to get input from the brake press operator for every quote, that’s two people’s time consumed in the quote preparation process.
With ToolBox, anyone can prepare a quote lightning fast, meaning qualified staff can perform the tasks they are trained in, and the business can respond to more quotes, win more quotes, be more efficient on the job floor, and drive growth.
The Laser Estimator’s Time-Saving Toolbox
ToolBox generates repeatable, consistent quotes, typically in less than two minutes.
Our data, based on more than 1,000,000 laser-cutting quotes, shows the average number of line items is 5.5, with an average time of 5 minutes per line or 30 minutes per quote.
Using ToolBox as a front-end sales tool, an average quote of 5.5 parts takes just two minutes – that’s 15 times faster, and it’s totally repeatable every time.
ToolBox has a range of other useful features, too, including unfolding 3D parts, secondary processes support, folding, tube, a part library for fast repeat quotes, and more!
Try ToolBox for free for 14 days to see how much time and cost it could save your business.
Start Trial – first 14 days free
Choosing The Right Brake Press
For laser job shops, how do you know which brake press is right for your business?
Every setup is unique, but as a general rule, the first brake press should be as large and flexible as possible. This is likely 3m since most laser beds are 3m long. The tonnage will be determined by the power of your laser because this will determine how thick you can cut.
For your second press, you can optimise its size to accommodate most of your work. In this case, typically, a small 1m 50t press could be enough for about 80% of your work, with the larger press handling the bigger jobs.
Our advice for new players is not to buy two 3m presses unless your work specifically requires it. This will be an added expense and take up more floor space without offering your job shop any additional benefits over the smaller press.
On top of this, with energy prices soaring across the globe, a larger brake press will consume more energy, adding to a jobshop’s costs and environmental footprint.
