In great shape – after only one year

In great shape – after only one year

Csaba Tool Kft. is located in Ajka’s popular industrial area. The paint has only just dried on the workshop walls, as work began merely a year ago. The 500 square metre workshop and the office building form a harmonious unit, filled with functional spaces. Behind its walls, moulding and die casting tools are being made for domestic and ­foreign buyers.

In great shape – after only one year.

Despite being a newly-founded company, only the building and the equipment are new – the management and the employees are well versed in the sector’s expectations. In the SME sector, the way Csaba Tool Kft. has developed, with the aid of Mitsubishi Electric’s ­productive machines, may become a blueprint for success.

Easier machining of large workpieces.

Fresh company, mature business policy

During the conversation, we discussed in detail the establishment of the company. Managing Director Csaba Stallmeiszter and Production Director Endre Kovács are not newcomers to the industry, despite the age of their business. “I’ve been working for almost 40 years, but there is always something to learn,” says Kovács about tool-making. Csaba Tool Kft. was founded on the basis of their already established connections, aided by market demand. The start of the company’s activity was preceded by an investment period. In those months, the buildings were constructed, the machinery was purchased and the partner network was established.

The Mitsubishi Electric machines are operated by two dedicated members of shop staff.

The company is fresh in the area but not inexperienced. Most employees have a long history in the business and the personal relationships make it easier to work together. The managing director sees the secret of success in the team of qualified ­specialists and the extensive network of contacts. “Without good contacts and good professionals, it is not worth setting up a company. Insufficient capital, adequate human resources and relationships cannot really be bought,” he adds.

The key to success.

Tradition and development

The Ajka region has a reputation in Hungary for its tool-making industry. The small and medium-sized companies that grew out of the remains of the former major businesses in the city are currently covering the whole market. Competition among the 10-12 SMEs is still peaceful in terms of market entry, although there is a problem regarding the labour market, because
the shortage of skilled labour in the region has also ­affected the area. “It is very difficult to find a good professional. We were lucky with our existing contacts. The period in which we set up the company was ­turbulent, and major changes took place in the region at the time,” Kovács recalls.

Csaba Tool is capable of manufacturing complex tools for the automotive industry.

So good professionals, good relationships and of course the right equipment are all needed to ­create a thriving business. There is no shortage of ­equipment. There are only brand-new machine tools or ­refurbished tools at the site, all perfectly maintained and well taken care of. To make the tools, high-productivity 5-axis machining centres and Mitsubishi Electric EDM machines are used, ­including an MV2400S wire EDM and an EA28V Advance sinker EDM.

Custom tool manufacturing

The tools made by Csaba Tool Kft. are mainly used in the automotive industry. With the right tool insert, their clients can produce up to a million parts: “Plastic injection moulds can have up to 16 cavities, and you can make a million items with normal use. For aluminium casting tools this number is lower, and most of our ­orders are for tools with 4 cavities, so a smaller number of items can be produced with them.” Csaba explains the nature of their orders. “The tools are designed and made in-house in accordance with customer requirements. We are now working with a 4-strong tool design team, complemented by two senior engineers working on the ­technology design,” Kovács adds. They have two main ­clients, accompanied by a number of smaller-volume buyers. Production takes place in 3 shifts, which are ­supported strongly by Mitsubishi EDMs. “These machines work perfectly even without humans, so they can work in continuous operation on demand,” says Kovács.

Development and expansion.

“EDM machines provide exactly the quality we need for our tools,” says Csaba explaining the ­reason for buying Mitsubishi Electric EDMs. “We chose these machines because their value for money was very high in their category, and more and more people now appreciate the brand. Good experience was a major factor in the decision,” Kovács adds. Reliability, ­accuracy and maintenance ­requirements all turned out to be benefits for the company. Aside from mandatory maintenance, they have only needed the assistance of Hungarian service provider M + E Kft. on one occasion. Due to the continuous work schedule, reliability is of paramount importance, so availability and low maintenance are very important advantages of these machines.

An automotive part and the tool used to produce it

An automotive part and the tool used to produce itThe owners were well aware that EDM is not a cheap manufacturing technology, but it is indispensable in the tool-making industry. “Some surfaces can only be created with this method, so there’s no alternative to this technology. Even if in some cases it would be much faster to mill the part,” says Kovács. In addition, they stress that the Mitsubishi Electric MV2400S is one of the best machines in the wire EDM category, and it is also a cutting-edge machine tool. They are also satisfied with their sinker EDM machine. They can produce all the tool elements they need, as the machine has a large work area and range of ­motion, and the flexibility of the machine ­allows them to work in a variety of ranges. In the plant they also work with copper and graphite electrodes, which are manufactured in-house. According to their experience, the two materials are used for different components, but with graphite electrodes, larger pieces can be machined more easily. The tools at Csaba Tool Kft. can be up to 1,400 x 1,200 mm in size and weigh up to 10 tonnes. Accordingly, the annual number of units also varies. “Every year, we make 50-70 tools, but this depends largely on the size and complexity of the tools,” Csaba explains.

Vision for the future

And what are the prospects for the freshly founded company? “I trust that in 5 to 10 years we will ­expand onto the other side of the road. I do not think that we can expand much in the area of ­tool-making, but we may take on related production tasks,” says Csaba. Kovács adds: “We have many opportunities for development and expansion for the time being, and ­believe in the importance of continuous growth.”

The workshop was finished and production got underway a year ago.

The workshop was finished and production got underway a year ago.The bottleneck to expansion is the aforementioned shortage of skilled workers. Kovács explains that a ­student does not become a professional at school, but only with practical experience, which can take many years. However, in the end they can obtain a confident and experienced workforce. Csaba Tool Kft. is committed to providing professional training, and it plans to receive vocational school students for ­practice in the future, as it has already done so in the very first year of its operation. “We are happy to see students at the company, and if they have the ‘spark’, then we’ll look forward to them later as employees of the company,” says Csaba. The constant growth of the recently established company and its performance in the first business year show good indications of further development. The experience gained so far on Mitsubishi Electric’s EDM machines confirms the widespread impression that the company delivers good value for money, providing reliable and easy-to-use equipment for its customers.

Csaba Tool mainly produces tools for automotive parts.