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Rise of multitasking

01/01/2016
Author:
Christopher Tate
The drive to reduce setup times and operator intervention has led to the proliferation of multitask machines. Multitask machines range in price and complexity from lathes capable of driving rotating tools to large machining centers that can effectively perform the turning and milling operations needed to complete complex parts in one setup.
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A Machine Tool for Industry 4.0

01/01/2016
Author:
William Leventon
Are visitors to a bearing manufacturing facility in Hoechstadt, Germany, getting an early glimpse of what Industry 4.0 looks like? That’s the hope of Schaeffler Group, which owns the facility. The plant houses a machine tool meant to show how digitalization works—not in a laboratory, but in an actual manufacturing environment.
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Hold tight, and right

01/01/2016
Author:
Kip Hanson
Your shop just bought its first 5-axis machining center. Now what? Not only are there new and more complex programming techniques to learn—never mind the mind-boggling variety of part processing options to contend with—there’s also the pesky problem of how to grip workpieces. With the ability to tilt, rotate and position parts in ways never before possible, machining five sides of a workpiece in a single setup is a challenging but straightforward exercise—provided clearance between the workpiece, machine table and spindle head is maintained.
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LinX - The Evolution of the Linear Motor

Looking for a way to reduce grinding cycle times and improve cutting tool quality in order to satisfy customer requirements, Myles most recently invested in an ANCA MX7 Linear CNC tool grinder with linear motors. The LinX® Linear Motor consists of a shaft containing magnets and a forcer containing wound copper coils. The symmetric design results in zero attractive forces between the forcer and shaft, greatly reducing the loading requirement on support bearings. The thermal barrier design separates and removes heat from the motor, eradicating thermal growth for the machine.

Case Study: How a tool producer keeps its edge

12/01/2015
Myles Tool Company, Sanborn, NY, since 1977 has specialized in producing standard and special carbide cutting tools for the aerospace, automotive and medical sectors. A one-stop shop for standard tools, regrinds, and special tools made to customer requirements, Myles has grown by investing in new machines and high quality equipment.
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Designs on cost-savings

12/01/2015
A PROFIMAT MC 607 5-axis CNC grinding machine manufactured by Blohm Jung GmbH in Germany has been supplied in close cooperation with UK agent, J.R.A. Bennett Ltd, at The University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Center (AMRC) with Boeing. It follows a rigorous tender process that involved evaluating hundreds of parameters and included grinding trials at the machine builder’s factory in Hamburg.
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Dot peening in a 3D world

With an amplitude of 16mm, the 3D stylus tip extends and retracts automatically as it follows the shape of various parts in this video from Gravotech Marking SAS. The 3D stylus is a very high amplitude stylus capable of following the relief of every part to be marked.

Hand scraping

While many call hand scraping a lost art, Okuma begs to differ, the company report in a July 2013 video. "While it might be rare to find a craftsman skilled enough to hand scrape effectively, we never lost the art simply because we’ve always understood how critical hand scraping is to maintaining machining accuracy," according to the company's YouTube channel.

Go with the flow

12/01/2015
Productive Times challenge: Ensure there are no machining issues with a flexible manufacturing system. The solution: Machine simulation and optimization software.
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