Picking low-hanging CNC ‘fruit’: 5-Axis Machining

As someone who visits job shops and manufacturers almost daily, I know why some are thriving, while others struggle. The ones that are thriving have invested and continue to invest in equipment, software, training and consulting services. Those struggling often say, “I would invest more in these areas, but I can’t afford them because my competitors keep underbidding me. They must be giving parts away.”

More often than not, owners of thriving shops are not underbidding their competitors—they’re out-machining them. They are taking full advantage of all the competitive benefits made available by their machining systems and advice from consultants to operate more profitably. In short, they’ve learned to pick the low-hanging fruit available to them and reinvest their profits to bring even higher fruit within easier reach. The following are some examples.

Courtesy of CNC Software

Trochoidal toolpaths make circular nibbling cuts around corners to cut faster and extend tool life. Almost all CAM software offers some variation in trochoidal milling, and users need only high-speed spindles to take advantage of it.

Table 1. CAM software contains numerous productivity-boosting tools.