Frank Verzahnungstechnik e.K., based in Wehr (Baden-Württemberg), about 30 kilometers east of Basel, is a specialist in the production of high-precision gears for complex drive technology. “With 20 employees, we manufacture transmission components such as gears, pinion shafts, and worm drives for general mechanical engineering,” explains owner Martin Frank. Accordingly, the company serves a wide range of industries — including packaging, hydraulics, robotics and handling systems, cleanroom and vacuum technology, medical technology, and the food industry, to name just a few.

“We start using automation from batch sizes as low as 50,” says Martin Frank. “This allows us to respond very quickly and flexibly, even with relatively small quantities — and to manufacture in a highly cost-effective way. Compared to other contract manufacturers, that’s undoubtedly a clear competitive advantage.”

With the help of automation, Frank Verzahnungstechnik machines workpieces with diameters of up to 200 mm and heights up to 40 mm. For smaller diameters, workpiece heights can reach 80 to 90 mm. According to Martin Frank, the dimensions of the parts change every two to three days, which means the cell must be reconfigured accordingly — though this usually requires only a short amount of time.