Reference · built on requestOperator by FibricProduction & maintenance

Tool Wear

Tracks cutting-tool cycles and spindle load against rated life from machine controllers, and proposes a tool change and crib pick in time.

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About

A tool that runs past its life makes scrap before it breaks. Tool Wear reads the tool number in the spindle, the cycle count, and the spindle load from the machine controller over OPC UA, including machines that model tool data under the OPC UA for Machine Tools companion specification. It reads the rated life you keep per tool and the jobs still planned for the machine in Plex or Fulcrum.

Before the count reaches the rating, it proposes a change timed to the end of the current job, a crib pick of the replacement in Fishbowl Advanced or inFlow Inventory, and a reorder when crib stock will not cover the changes due. A spindle load that climbs above the tool's own earlier runs on the same part brings the change forward.

This is a reference listing. It documents what Fibric would read from Tool Wear and what it could propose, based on the vendor's published interfaces. Fibric builds it under a managed deployment when you request it; selecting it here installs nothing.

Inputs

  • Tool number in the spindle, cycle or part count, and spindle load from the controller over OPC UA subscriptions
  • Tool data as machines expose it under OPC UA for Machine Tools Part 1: Machine Monitoring and Job Management
  • Machine state and current job from MachineMetrics, for machines already monitored there
  • Rated life per tool number and the baseline spindle load per tool and part, kept by you
  • Crib stock per tool part number and location through Fishbowl's GET /api/parts/inventory, or inFlow Inventory and Zoho Inventory
  • Jobs and operations planned on the machine in Plex or Fulcrum, to place the change between jobs

Proposed actions

  • Target capability: propose a tool change at a cycle count short of rated life, timed to the end of the running job, for the supervisor
  • Target capability: propose a crib pick of the replacement tool in the inventory system, moved to the machine's location
  • Target capability: propose a reorder when stock for a tool number falls below the changes due in the window you set
  • Target capability: propose an early change when spindle load on a tool rises above its baseline for the same part
  • Target capability: propose a CMMS work order on a spindle whose load runs high across every tool it carries

Proposed actions are target capabilities. Every action runs propose-first and needs a validated deployment and the appropriate permissions.

What you can build

  • Change between jobs

    The count is nearing the rating with a job still running. Tool Wear proposes the change at job end and a Fishbowl move of the insert to the machine's crib location.

    With OPC UA, Fishbowl Advanced

  • Load says sooner

    Spindle load on one tool runs above its earlier runs on the same part. The operator brings the change forward and proposes the pick in inFlow Inventory.

    With MachineMetrics, inFlow Inventory

  • Crib short for the week

    Changes due this week exceed the inserts in Zoho Inventory. A reorder is proposed with the Plex jobs and machines that need them.

    With Plex, Zoho Inventory

  • A spindle, not a tool

    Load is high whatever tool the spindle carries. Rather than more changes, the operator proposes a MaintainX work order on the spindle with the load history and the Fulcrum operations affected.

    With Fulcrum, MaintainX

Requirements

  • An OPC UA connector to controllers that expose tool number, cycle count, and spindle load, or a MachineMetrics connector
  • A rated life per tool number, and where you want load compared, a baseline per tool and part
  • An inventory connector holding the tool crib: Fishbowl Advanced, inFlow Inventory, or Zoho Inventory
  • An MES connector with planned jobs per machine: Plex or Fulcrum, so a change lands between jobs
Authentication
Tool Wear keeps no credentials. Controller data arrives through your OPC UA or MachineMetrics connector; picks and reorders go through the inventory connector; work orders through the CMMS connector, each under its own scopes.

Limits

  • Rated life is yours. A tool with no rating gets no change proposal; it is listed as unrated.
  • Load is compared with the same tool and part's earlier runs. A new part has no baseline until it has run.
  • It never commands the machine, edits an offset, or changes a program. A person changes the tool and confirms it.
  • A controller that exposes a run state but no tool number cannot be tracked per tool.

Access and pricing

Reference listing. Fibric builds the operator under a managed deployment when you request it. Your quote covers the build, capabilities, usage, and support.

Request Tool Wear ↗

Questions and answers

What does a person approve?
Each tool change, crib pick, reorder, and work order. The proposal shows the tool number, cycles against rated life, the load trend, the job running, and the stock on hand. Approve, move the time, or dismiss. A dismissed change returns when the count advances further.
What record is left?
A life record per tool: cycles run, load history, when it was changed and by whom. A receipt per proposal: the rating used, the stock read, who approved, what was written to inventory or the CMMS, and how to reverse it.
Which actions wait for a person?
It never changes a tool, edits an offset, moves stock, or orders anything without approval. It never writes to the controller. If rated life is missing, it proposes nothing for that tool.
Ask about Tool Wear

Ask about the capabilities and requirements in this listing.

For project-specific requirements, contact Fibric.

This operator is developed, published, and supported by Fibric. Third-party names and logos identify the systems an integration connects to; they are the property of their respective owners, who are not affiliated with Fibric and do not sponsor or endorse this listing. Trademark policy