From two weeks to three days: AI-driven robot accelerates grinding of thick plate parts
Minerd & Sons, Inc. is a family-owned steel service center based in Pittsburgh, PA, supplying precision-cut, ready-to-fabricate steel components to customers in manufacturing, construction, energy, and heavy equipment industries. Thanks to Teqram's EasyGrinder robot, the company has reduced lead time from two weeks to just three days -- a breakthrough in productivity and delivery reliability.
The leading regional steel service center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has fundamentally accelerated the finishing of plasma -- and oxy-fuel -- cut plate parts with the implementation of the EasyGrinder -- Teqram's autonomous grinding robot. The system processes heavy plates fully automatically, without programming or teaching, and delivers consistent quality with a significantly higher throughput.
The EasyGrinder has a very compact footprint of only 550 square feet.
As a key supplier to manufacturing, construction, and heavy equipment customers, Minerd & Sons processes thousands of tons of steel plate annually. The final quality of thermally cut edges directly impacts weldability and coating performance. Until recently, cleaning and finishing these edges was a highly physical manual task performed by skilled workers.
"We've always invested in the best technology to serve our customers," says Mark Minerd, President of Minerd & Sons. "Delivering ready-to-fabricate components requires perfect edge preparation, and manual grinding had become a bottleneck."
Automation Solves Labor, Safety, and Consistency Challenges
The EasyGrinder now performs this critical finishing step across a wide range of part geometries, boosting throughput while addressing labor market pressures. "We wanted to free our skilled people from repetitive, exhausting work and let them focus on higher-value tasks," Mark explains.
The EasyGrinder has 10 tools and grippers at its disposal for a wide range of operations.
"It is a huge win for safety and the long-term well-being of our team."
He continues, "And beyond that, the system delivers perfectly repeatable quality on every part. It gives our customers a level of consistency that would be nearly impossible to achieve by hand."
A thorough evaluation process built trust in the EasyGrinder's reliability.
"We were concerned about needing to supervise the system constantly," says Matt Minerd, Work Order Manager. "Teqram showed us the EasyGrinder was a mature, production-proven product. Their team delivered innovative solutions for our toughest parts. Their philosophy is truly outstanding."
Hard slag is easily removed with a chisel.
The benefits were immediate. "Unlike flatbed grinding machines, the EasyGrinder handles both internal and external leads with ease," Matt notes.
Smart, Flexible Edge Preparation
The EasyGrinder is not a fixed, conventional automation system but a smart and flexible solution that uses advanced 3D vision technology and an AI-based controller to recognize each component's geometry and automatically select the correct processing strategy. It removes heavy slag with ease, softens sharp edges, and can precisely round profiles -- such as creating a consistent two-millimeter radius -- to ensure optimal coating adhesion.
At the same time, it cleans and removes the heat-affected zone from the cut surfaces, leaving parts truly production-ready. Employees only need to place pallets of raw parts in the work area; from there, the robot handles, processes, and neatly restacks every component without further intervention.
For two-sided processing, the sheet metal parts are turned over with the integrated EasyFlipper.
"Parts come off the robot ready to ship -- no extra finishing needed."
To increase throughput and reduce lead times, Minerd & Sons schedules large batches for unattended overnight production. Mark emphasizes: "Lights-out grinding adds the equivalent of an extra shift without adding staff."
The collaboration with the Netherlands-based Teqram has been equally impactful. "The time difference works in our favor," Matt says. "We report an issue during the day, and by the next morning Teqram already has a solution. Their direct service and detailed video logs show they truly care."
With the EasyGrinder, Minerd & Sons has strengthened its position as an industry leader -- delivering consistent quality, safeguarding employees, and maximizing operational efficiency.
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