Preset for success

In traditional setup processes, shop personnel take critical tool measurements in a machine tool before a job begins. While the machine is being used for tool setup, of course it isn’t being used for cutting, so shops that opt for this old-style approach also are getting increased machine downtime as part of the package.

Thus comes the appeal of tool presetters, devices that allow users to take tool measurements necessary for the next job outside the machine while it’s still running the current job. Besides increasing spindle uptime, tool presetters can cut down on costly operator errors, lengthen tool life and help pave the way for more automation of machining processes.

The basic process of readying a tool for a job can include assembling the tool; taking length and diameter measurements in the machine using a gauge, probe or laser; and then entering the proper values into the machine. Not including assembly, a general rule in the industry is that the setup process typically takes three to five minutes, said Robert Bied, vice president of product management at Haimer USA LLC, a presetter supplier in Villa Park, Illinois.

“If I use that three to five minutes per tool and I have 20 tools in my magazine for a new job, that’s 60 to 100 minutes” of machine downtime for setup, he said. “But if I do that process offline in a tool presetter, downtime on my machine tool is just the amount of time it takes the operator to plug the tools into the magazine or carousel.”

The venturion 450 presetting and measuring machine is billed as a good choice for Industry 4.0 manufacturing systems. Image courtesy of Zoller

The impact of this reduction on machine downtime can be huge. If a tool presetter can increase a shop’s spindle utilization by 40%, for example, the result could be a doubling of the shop’s production capability without a major capital investment, said Michael Colyer, key accounts manager at Zoller Inc. in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

He pointed out that cost analyses done by Zoller for most of its presetters at shops that have five or more machine tools usually show a return on investment in less than half a year.

“With an ROI of less than six months and the ability to significantly increase your business and the amount of throughput, in my mind (using a presetter) is a no-brainer,” Colyer said.

Applications and Options

Tool presetters are suitable for all machining applications but excel in environments where tool magazine changeouts are frequent, said Andrew Esposito, vice president of sales at Koma Precision Inc., a presetter supplier in East Windsor, Connecticut.

“The more tools that get swapped out, the more of an advantage a tool presetter is,” he said.

Tool presetters come in a variety of types with a wide range of features and price points. At one end are basic, lower-cost manual presetters while at the other are presetters equipped for fully automated toolrooms.

In a simple process involving a presetter, Bied explained, shop personnel measure each tool for a particular job and print a label with the information that’s affixed to the tool. Then the measured tools are placed on a cart and wheeled over to a machine tool, where an operator keys offset data for each tool into the machine control and places the tools in the machine’s magazine.

Features of the Performance presetter include an ergonomic design and easy-to-use software. Image courtesy of Koma Precision

In a more automated process, he said tool labels can be printed with a QR code, as well as human-readable information. He said many machine tool builders now equip machine controls with scanners that can read QR codes on the labels so tool data can be loaded automatically into the machine register.

Bied said another option is to have a presetter write the measurement data for each tool to a radio frequency identification chip on a toolholder. When the toolholder gets to the machine, it reads the data in the RFID chips and downloads that into the machine control.

Yet another automation option is to connect a presetter and machine tools to the same network so tool data files can be sent directly to machine controls.

“More shops are moving to automated database management with tooling offsets stored on servers and sent directly to the machine,” Esposito said.

The main goal of automating the movement of data is to prevent tooling mistakes, such as typing wrong information into a CNC.