Founded in 1998, Shenzhen Hei Chow Precision Tools Co., Ltd. covers comprehensive fields from R&D, design, manufacturing, sales to technical services. The company specialises in producing cutting tools made from welded carbide, solid carbide and super-abrasive diamond. Its main focus is on customising non-standard tools for its customers. Currently, its products are widely used by renowned global manufacturers of automobiles, auto parts, precision mold, precision hardware, IT communication equipment, sanitary equipment and medical device. After over two decades of development, Hei Chow Tools has established itself as an esteemed high-tech enterprise with mature intelligent manufacturing capability in China.
According to YUN Jian, General Manager of Hei Chow Tools, the company owes its achievements to the great opportunities in China’s strong machinery industry, the favourable business environment created by local government, innovative and dedicated staff who create satisfactory products and services to customers, as well as quality suppliers such as ANCA who have long supported and accompanied the development along the way.
At ANCA's fourth Tool of the Year competition in 2021, Hei Chow Tools is the only Chinese company shortlisted for the global final round. Hei Chow Tools has put ANCA’s design software to good use and came up with refreshingly innovative tools. Pat Boland, co-founder of ANCA, said: "The whole process from competition to the judging has attracted much attention from the tooling industry and I was particularly proud to see the large number of Chinese tool manufacturers entering the competition and showcasing their work. Hei Chow Tools certainly made a great impression with its strength.”
A golden partner
As the old saying goes: “Good tools are prerequisites to the success of a job”. The strengths of Hei Chow Tools come partially from its “sharp sword", namely ANCA high precision grinders. In fact, Hei Chow Tools started using ANCA RX7 CNC Tool Grinder as early as 2004, followed by precision grinders including TX7+, MX7, FX7 and FX5. For its Hengrui Plant in Jiashan, Zhejiang province in 2020, Hei Chow Tools once again used TX7+, MX7, FX5 and CPX grinders from ANCA as a result of the long-standing partnership.
“Equipment from ANCA has been instrumental in the development and growth of Hei Chow Tools. During our decade-long collaboration, ANCA has proven to supply wide-ranging products of stable quality, at reasonable prices. The plant is now fully equipped with ANCA products. This is a testament to the trust that Hei Chow Tools has in ANCA and its equipment, technology and service, which guarantees the quality and strength of our own products." said Mr. Yun.
In the booming manufacturing industry in China, Hei Chow Tools is keeping pace with the times and market trends. The company is constantly expanding its customer base, developing different types of tools for varying scenarios, and diversifying its portfolio with better quality to meet the changing customer demand.
"We have a well-developed system that serves the entire sales process. We can tailor our production processes to meet unique customer requirements of cutting tools. Through pre-sales customer communication, we understand customer needs and technical requirements. Then we make detailed analysis of processing methods, materials and schedule. We also manage product design, production process and flow control. After delivery, we offer technical support and product quality tracking to ensure a care-free process for our customers.”
Mr. Yun further explained, "In addition to our plant in Shenzhen and Jiashan, Hei Chow also plans to set up a manufacturing base in Jiangsu, the Yangtze River Delta economic zone, in order to be closer to our customers with our service offer. We are constantly adding new equipment. Of course, we will always choose our strong partner, ANCA."
Industrial beauty
Technology advances help improve quality and capacity. ANCA grinding machines and software offer unlimited potential for the cutting tool industry and continuously drive innovation forward. At the ANCA Tool of the Year 2021 competition, Hei Chow Tools became shortlisted for the global finals with outstanding performance. With extraordinary ideas and creativity, Hei Chow Tools took maximum advantage of the high-performing ANCA equipment and software.
"ANCA equipment is a blend of industrial beauty in its rigidity and flexibility, and I find the machines rather 'beautiful'. It is shown in three aspects: the beauty of shape and colour scheme, the beauty of production efficiency and the beauty of product,” Mr. Yun commented.
Hei Chow Tools purchased ANCA RX7 in 2004 and TX7+ in 2008. The blue-white colour scheme and the log in solid black bring out the calm, mellow elegance of the machine with an outstanding axis system. The fast, flexible, high-performance MX7 launched in recent years has a new colour scheme of dark blue grey and white, giving the machine a serene and mysterious high-tech touch.
The beauty of efficiency is reflected in the configuration of different ANCA machines. For instance, MX7 is equipped with a powerful permanent magnet spindle that provides higher torque at lower RPM, ideal for Hei Chow Tools to efficiently machine large-diameter step tools. The FX5 Linear also has an automatic 2 station wheel changer to meet the versatile needs of Hei Chow Tools.
The beauty of product refers to the highly aesthetic, precise and practical tools made with ANCA machines. ANCA machines offer a wide range of practical functions for tool grinding with 3D simulation technology and iView measuring system. ANCA equipment has become the standard in Hei Chow Tools’ plants in Shenzhen and Jiashan.
Intelligent manufacturing: a sharp sword
From Made in China to Created in China, from China Speed to China Quality, and from Chinese Products to Chinese Brand, this wave of change requires the support of advanced equipment and technology to keep up with the times. As Mr. Yun pointed out: "Intelligent manufacturing transformation and industrial internet of things will be a challenge that manufacturing companies must meet. Production equipment and workplace must be built to the global Industry 4.0 standards. "
According to Mr. Yun, the first step towards Industry 4.0 is data consolidation. Equipment and data interconnectivity allows for intelligent and unified management of hardware. Hei Chow Tools purchased the ANCA equipment management software in 2020 to realise better connectivity. In the manufacturing process, system and operators must work in tandem.
This year, Hei Chow has passed the national smart manufacturing assessment. All equipment, hardware, software and network are linked to achieve human-machine interaction using intelligent manufacturing systems and interfaces. The aim is to improve production efficiency and relieve operators of repetitive workload. The ultimate goal is to achieve Internet of Everything by sharing data of supplier, tool manufacturer and user. Thus, information is turned into action, which brings more convenient functions and development opportunities to tool manufacturers. It also enables companies to switch from post-management to pre-planning, and to move towards production and supply planning through information exchange. Industry 4.0 will upgrade the tooling market in China, and drive the shift from Made in China to “Created in China". In the process, Hei Chow Tools hopes that ANCA will continue to develop and manufacture smart precision equipment to help tool manufacturers realise Industry 4.0 as soon as possible.
ANCA has accompanied Hei Chow Tools in its growth and progress. The commissioning of Shenzhen and Jiashan plants is the result of brilliant efforts by two generations of leadership at Hei Chow Tools. In the future, Hei Chow Tools plans to establish a manufacturing base in Jiangsu, the economic zone of the Yangtze River Delta region. This golden partnership is putting down deeper roots in the Chinese market for a new glorious chapter of success!