Articles

At Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Americas Inc., holemaking success is about timing—finding the best sequence in which to perform manufacturing operations.

What would cause parts manufacturers not to want to extend tool life, increase speeds and feeds, enhance chip evacuation to avoid recutting, impart finer surface finishes and eliminate pecking when deep-hole drilling? Apparently, ignorance in the marketplace.

Visioneering Inc. employees stay ready to adapt to change as the Auburn Hills, Mich., aerospace supplier opens a new facility and adopts a new way to apply coolant.

Today's machine tool users have more spindle choices than just the steep-taper designs developed 40 years ago.n

How do you treat your a customer who received an order and has a problem with it? Maybe you shipped the wrong part or made a part according to an old revision. How do you handle the situation and appease the customer?

Thinking of purchasing shop floor control software but don't know where to start? You might want to start by brushing up on the relevant jargon.

Many machinists fondly remember their early training or apprenticeships when they made 1-2-3 blocks from scratch under the watchful eye of a master toolmaker. These young machinists carefully machined the blocks oversize, heat-treated them and then ground them to size.

When CNC milling machines were conceived some in the metalworking industry asked why a computer couldn't also manage tool changes. That question was the impetus behind the development of the automatic toolchanger.

Keith Jennings, who writes the Manager's Desk column for Cutting Tool Engineering, never experienced being sad and mad at the same time until recently, according to his September column. The cause? A trusted employee who wasn't so trustworthy.

Many — if not most — shops encourage employees to purchase their own measurement tools. Some even help by "financing" these purchases, allowing machinists to pay them off in small increments. And what machinist doesn't want his or her "own stuff" with which to do the job? But does allowing machinists to use their own measuring tools actually make sense?

To profitably machine high-quality parts, many manufacturers follow a similar path, beginning with tool selection and application and then solving any problems that arise in a reactive way. However, research suggests that manufacturers should examine the entire machining process before cutting begins, focusing on eliminating rejected parts and unforeseen downtime.

Numerous toolmakers provide free programs that will automatically generate G code for a specific thread milling application. The programs vary in sophistication and in whether they are online-only or downloadable, but all are useful tools. Among the suppliers of these apps are Scientific Cutting Tools Inc., Simi Valley, Calif.; Guhring Inc., Brookfield, Wis.; and Kennametal Inc., Pittsburgh.