Machine is big, Door is small

[LancoUSA]

We just ordered a new CNC mill A Haas VF-9. We got to looking into the actual size of the machine the other day. Then we looked at the overhead door that it needs to come trhough. The door measures 119 1/2" the machine is 125" minimum width. Has any one ever had this problem? The machine is the smallest we can get. so The actual size of the machine is set. Brick on either side of the door 5 courses up. We asked Haas if they would build the machine and ship it without the fron paneling on it. It was a bit funny.

[YoDoug®]

We sold a 30x16 Okuma mill to a company that has their prototype shop in the basement of their main plant. Our service techs spent a week striping the machine down, removing almost all of the sheet metal so it would fit through their tight hallways into their shop. It was a lot of work to get that machine in there. They even cut the corners off of a few peoples offices and basically re-framed/dry-walled 2 foot x 45 deg chamfered corners.

[Pilot Plant Supervisor]

I was just talking with our Haas salseman and he told me they did exactly that for a customer. The budget only allowed for the base price of the horizontal, so they bought it and had it installed. When the new capital money was released, they purchased the enclosure and had it field installed. Not cost effective, but it worked for them. This discussion came from complaining to the salesman that our EC-1600 leaks like a sieve. He was telling me about the caulking they use in the joints of the sheet metal, saying it is VERY hard to remove. I would keep trying to get Haas to ship it without the front panel, or at least not seal it if you will have to remove it.

[chris m]

I have seen a machine laid on its back before to deal with this, but I don't think that would help very much with that machine. If the machine was only an inch or two too big, you can typically dismount the electrical cabinet and squeeze it against the castings to squeak by (or take the doors off of the cabinet); we have done both. In your case, 6" is a long way to go. Another thing that you have to consider is that your parking lot is unlikely to be exactly perpendicular to the door opening; if the machine is coming through the door on skates, on a forklift, whatever, the higher the machine gets, the "wider" the machine gets because it'll be at a slight angle.

 

Is the exterior wall load bearing? They typically are not. If this is true, you can either have a wider overhead door installed, or have a masonry company temporarily widen the opening and put it back after the machine is in. If you don't want to do that, you'll have to ask your Haas reseller or your rigger / millwright if they'll take delivery for you and strip the sheetmetal off before delivery.

 

C

[LancoUSA]

My company has talked with Haas Sales person about leaving off the fron of the machine. We are waiting for a response back from them.

[Matt Berube at Ferron Mold]

After a quick look at the machine dimensions I have to believe that our rigger could twist that machine through a 119.5" door since the back of the machine is widest at the center and the front of the machine is widest at the ends (keyboard and control panel). I'd print out the machine dimensions and a sketch of the door dimensions and ask the rigger what they think.

[chris m]

Where is Maine are you? How much rigging do you guys have done?

 

We move machines literally three or four times a year; shoot me an email cmoffattATharmonicdriveDOTnet and we'll talk about it.

 

C

[Kevangel]

If you think there will be other machines and maybe ones even bigger, I would put a larger door in.

[High Performance]

I was helping with a shop move once with one of my previous companies. Last machine to go out at the last second (their contract with the building owners had stiff penalties for late move out) got to the door and wouldnt fit through. lol

 

With a crane and riggers and all sorts of machine tool service guys waiting, needless to say it becomes fairly expensive for each passing minute. So we frantically ripped covers and sheet metal off, and also ended up removing the y axis servo motor.

 

But we got it out. lol