Machines/Accessories/Controls

CNC tool grinding machine builder Strausak AG, Lohn-Ammannsegg, Switzerland, opened a subsidiary in Mundelein, Ill., and incorporated in the state of Illinois on July 1. Hank Ecker, previously regional sales manager of Rollomatic Inc., is the new president of Strausak Inc.

Machine tool builder Mazak Corp., Florence, Ky., will host a "Discover More With Mazak" event for manufacturers at its Northeast Technology Center in Windsor Locks, Conn., May 12 and 13 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. A special student day will be held on May 14 for local educational institutions. The technology and education event will showcase new metalworking innovations and techniques for boosting productivity and profitability. 

Machine tool builder SMTCL-Americas, City Of Industry, Calif., has partnered with West Coast Customs by supplying a CNC machine tool to the Burbank, Calif., custom auto body shop. The VMC2100B vertical machining center will allow West Coast Customs to create customized wheels and body parts in-house. This partnership will also allow SMTCL customers to purchase the West Coast Custom Edition VMC2100B.

SMTCL- Americas, City of Industry, Calif., kicked off the beginning of spring with a sales training course and open house. Instructed by Chief Operations Officer Jerry McCarty, 18 individuals became certified on SMTCL machines. This creates a larger distributor network in California and other regions to better service potential customers, according to the company.  

Methods Machine Tools Inc., a Sudbury, Mass.-based supplier of machine tools, automation and accessories, sponsored a senior year "capstone" project for several fifth-year electromechanical engineering students from Boston's Wentworth Institute of Technology. The project involved researching and designing a new type of infeed system for potential use in future Methods automated cell projects. The students presented different designs to Methods and a winner was chosen at Wentworth Dec. 15. The students are currently working on building the capstone project this semester and plan to have the prototype completed by April. 

Haas Automation Inc.'s recent HaasTec open house attracted nearly 3,300 attendees to the company's headquarters and manufacturing facility in Oxnard, Calif., according to the company. The 4-day event drew visitors from 48 countries, including China, India, Korea, Latin America, the Middle East and many European countries, as well as more than 330 students from regional high schools, colleges and universities.

Hand scraping mating surfaces on CNC machine tools helps maintain high levels of machining accuracy and reduces wear and tear, resulting in a long, stable and productive life for the machine, as detailed in a new white paper from machine tool builder Okuma America Inc., Charlotte, N.C. 

Absolute Machine Tools, Lorain, Ohio, now offers a full line of EDM consumable products and services through its AccuteX EDM business unit, based in Mason, Ohio. AccuteX EDM now offers not only consumables for its line of EDMs, but also for most other OEMs, such as Mitsubishi, Sodick, FANUC and others. 

Haas Automation Inc. will host its semi-annual 4-day HaasTec open house at its Oxnard, Calif., headquarters March 17-20. The event will include machine demos, factory tours and a catered lunch, according to the company. The previous HaasTec in 2013 drew nearly 3,000 attendees from 44 countries, and the company expects this year's event to be even bigger. 

The University of Tennessee—Knoxville, a longstanding member of the Council on Competitiveness, was selected by the White House to lead a public-private partnership of 122 leading companies, universities, research laboratories and non-profits that will create a $250 million manufacturing innovation hub.