Machinery supplier offers CAD training specific to the industry to unlock the potential of your CNC saws.

The coronavirus might have marked a step-change in digital connectivity, but it has also highlighted the challenges of getting support for computer-aided design (CAD) software from outside the UK, especially with the travel restrictions. It has not been easy for an engineer to hop over from Italy.

So having an engineer in the UK to deal with enquiries makes life easier. And that is what D Zambelis is now offering to the whole of the stone industry.

Nowadays, five-axes bridgesaws are technologically advanced. But the full capabilities of these machines are often not being used. To make the best use of them they need to be in a fully-automated environment.

In many instances, fabricators are limited to using the basic drawing software that comes with the machine for laying out the work to be performed by that machine alone, which means the work is carried out on the factory floor.

To provide the freedom of being able to produce CAD drawings away from the factory floor for all the machines available, with software specifically designed for the stone industry, is the ideal solution.

Stone machinery, tools and consumables supplier D Zambelis foresaw that many fabricators using CNC saws with five (or more) axes would benefit from having integrated CAD software away from the factory floor, working in an environment that would be similar to programming a CNC workcentre.

D Zambelis was already offering this service as an option to its existing customers who had bought the CNC bridge saws it sells, as well as additional services such as online drawing assistance (correcting errors) and producing project drawings. It is now expanding this offering to the wider stone industry.

Any fabricator using any make of machine that can read CAD data files (such as DXF or DWG) will benefit from the DDX EasyStone or Taglio CAD software that D Zambelis was already offering to its customers.

Furthermore, if the manufacturer of the machine is in a working collaboration with either of these software houses, then the software can be extended to include computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), so the user can execute the machinery operations (ISO codes).

D Zambelis is offering these training packages and services in the UK for both DDX Easystone and Taglio to the whole of the stone industry. The training offered will be tailored to the capabilities of each company’s machines and what it wants to achieve.

Packages can be as simple as training or refresher courses for those who are already familiar with the software, or a complete package of both software and training to whatever skill level required.

D Zambelis is currently having a new building erected at its premises in Essex, primarily to house the machines it sells for demonstration and training purposes. But it will also house a dedicated CAD training centre, although training will still be offered at a customer’s premises if preferred. It depends on the requirements of individual companies and how many of their operators need training.

The training will be tailored to cover aspects of using the Easystone or Taglio software relevant to the individual company, such as drawing vanity and kitchen tops, masonry work, importing pictures and calculating work time and cost for quoting. If a customer owns a digital templater, drawings can be imported directly into the software from that to be worked on.

The different modules available on both Taglio and DDX Easystone allow the programmes to be used by a wide range of companies with different production requirements and skill levels.

Angelica Zambelis, who is running the training, says the number of customers who want to make greater use of the software to increase the productivity of their factories or expand their product ranges is growing, which is why D Zambelis has set up this training facility.

For example, Angelica says she recently had a request for training from someone who wanted to start making shower trays but did not know how to use the program to do that. It did not take Angelica long to teach the customer.

Exactly how long the training takes varies from person to person and depends on the level of use a company wants to make of the program.

Those already familiar with design programmes are more likely to learn quickly because they will understand the principles of the programs.

Customers who buy machines from D Zambelis, such as the Omag and Terzago brands they sell, get pre-installation CAD training and a year of repeat or top-up training – because it is hard to remember everything taught in the initial training. Also, as customers become familiar with their machines they often want to explore their greater potential.

Below: 3DJ from Taglio ensures no machine paths go through the workpiece.