Experience of buying custom 2030 router from Omni

[simplesimon]

My company wanted to buy a custom CNC router with an oscillating knife attached. After talking to several companies we settled on Omni and our salesman Zach.

We purchased a high end spec with 11MB Syntec controller (an upgrade needed to control the extra axis of the oscillating knife), Yaskawa servos and an HSD 9kw spindle and a linear tool change. We also had a voltage regulator included to ensure that the machine was compatible with the UK 415VAC 3 phase supply as somne of the components could not cope if the voltage went to the upper end of the tolerance band.

We placed the deposit in December 2014 and were informed that it would take aroiund 20 days to build. We were not in a desperate hurry at that point so timing was not so critical.
Progress was much slower than expected as Omni had underestimated the amount of extra work involved in adding the oscillating knife. By the end of February we were getting a little anxious and were putting pressure on Omni to finish the machine.
By 6th March the basic router was built and they started on the tangential knife wiring. The attached photos show the machine in build and it looks good and solid.

Omni were struggling with the tangential knife programming so I contacted Syntec who were very helpful and sent through a macro program to control the tangential rotation of the knife.

On 20th March Omni sent us a video of the tangential knife working. This was great news but unfortunately the machine had been assembled with a carousel tool changer rather than the linear one we had ordered. When we questioned this Zach informed us that we had to pay the difference. There then followed a protracted discussion about us not paying for something we didn't order and didn't want. Omni have since refused to send us the macro program so that we can convert the machine back to a linear tool changer like it is supposed to be when it arrives.
On 25th March the machine was put on a ship and we were sent a copy of the Bill of Lading. Zach also sent us a photo of the machine in the container which showed that contrary to previous photos the machine was not in a wooden crate but just wrapped in clear film. It also showed that the gantry and motors had been removed from the machine in order to get it into the container. We will have to wait until the container lands to see if there is any damage to the machine.

Once we sent the final payment the BOL documents promptly arrived by DHL. We contacted the agent on the BOL for details of the Port charges.

This is where we had a very nasty expensive surprise. We had purchased the machine CIF Felixstowe which means Omni pay for the cost of getting the machine to the Chinese port, the Insurance and the sea Freight. We have to pay the Felixstowe port handling fees, customs duty, VAT and getting the machine to our factory. However we have discovered that because the terms were CIF, the Chinese agent appointed by Omni can set the Port Handling Charges in Felixstowe through a fee called a China Service Import Fee (CISF). These charges have been set at £1150 rather than the usual £560 and also a spurious Currency Charge of £245 has been added. Needless to say we cannot get our machine released from the freight forwarder until all these fees are paid.

This appears to be a common scam where Chinese shipping agents give payments back to the manufacturers for allowing them to ship the goods and all these extra charges are then forced onto the end customer via the local agent through the CISF.

Lessons learned so far:
- If you order something custom expect it to take a lot longer
- Ask for regular photos to check the machine is being built to your specification
- Check how the machine will be packaged and insist on a wooden crate
- If it is a larger machine, expect the gantry and motors to be removed
- Arrange FOB shipping through a freight forwarder in your own country, preferrably in its own container. Do not ship CIF!

I will post an update next week when the machine arrives and we can see the quality of the machine and how it fared during transit.

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[gfacer2]

Thanks for posting and the specific issues with your build. I must say I'd be pretty worried if they wouldn't remove a tool changer you did not want or ask for. On the crate, I could be wrong but there does not look like enough clearance to fit a crate (of any usefulness at least) in the container. Please keep us in the loop as we continue to plan an order in the near future.

Thanks, Graham

[simplesimon]

Update.

The machine has arrived safely and we have commisioned it without any problems and we have already cut several products with the oscillating knife. Despite not being in a crate there was not any damage during transit - it turns out the gantry was longer than the container is wide so it had to be removed for shipping. All the wiring for the motors had connectors which assembled easily and we did not find any loose wires or other similar problems.

Zach at OMNI was very helpful in getting the Chinese shipping agents to refund us some of the port fees but I would still recommend buying the machine FOB and organising your own shipping so you know the costs in advance.

The machine is very solid and well built and with good components so I am sure it will last for many years. Be warned though that the gantry is very heavy and we needed a forklift truck to put it into place. We went for the Syntec 11MB controller and I am very impressed with it and the ease with which you can modify macros etc. to customise the machine to your needs - much easier than a Fanuc.

The Becker vacuum pump seems very good but we may buy a second one as our table is rather large for one pump.

Overall our purchase has worked out very well and you could not buy a similar machine in Europe for anywhere near the same money.

[dmannock]

Extreme caution advised!! Caveat emptor!! PM me for details.

[gfacer2]

Simplesimon - how is the machine working for you after a few months? Thanks, GF

[omnicnc]

Thanks for sharing omni cnc router details information. Here we also share a video about testimonial from OMNI client.

[omnicnc]