Feature Article

Some might argue that edge finders, center finders and wigglers, which have been used for decades to touch off workpieces during machine setup, are a bit too analog for today's digital world.

Proactive security measures become even more important as manufacturing software moves into the cloud, machine tool intelligence and automation continue to grow, and the Industrial Internet of Things makes big data an increasingly big deal.

All shops are concerned with burrs, a natural side effect of cutting. They are all looking for a single solution to prevent or remove burrs. Unfortunately, there is no panacea.

As automation becomes more flexible and less expensive, work cells are propagating at smaller shops.

A growing number of manufacturers in the medical industry are seeing the light when choosing a machining option for micro parts and features. The light they're seeing emanates from laser micromachining systems.

Manufacturing microscale endmills and drills requires ultraprecise machinery and specialty grinding wheels—never mind extreme skill, the right carbide grade and abundant patience. Thankfully, a number of toolmakers have become proficient at this microscopic task, leaving shops to worry about just one thing: making parts.

Three primary elements play a heightened role when machining molds for plastic injection molding of microparts compared to moldmaking for the macro realm: part size, feature size and dimensional tolerances.

Craftsman Jasper Röders set up shop during the early 1800s to make pewter tableware for his neighbors in Soltau, Germany. Six generations later, his descendants still produce pewter but have expanded into blow molds and CNC machine tools.

In an interview conducted by CTE Editor Alan Richter at a global press event held at the company's headquarters in Sandviken, Sweden, Klas Forsström, president of AB Sandvik Coromant, discussed his new role, the state of the cutting tool market, the importance of attracting talent to manufacturing, tool recycling and the role of R&D.

Are you being asked to quote secondary machining operations on a handful of 3D-printed metal parts? If so, how do you cut these parts?

A recent report, "Global Ultra Hard Material Cutting Machines Market" by Transparency Market Research, forecasts a healthy compound annual growth rate of 10.8 percent for these machines for the years 2016 to 2024, with the total market reaching $1.8 billion by the end of that period.

Drilling, reaming and boring are the basic holemaking operations of machining. In simple terms, drilling creates a hole in a workpiece where there was no existing hole. Reaming and boring accurately enlarge holes that already exist.