Productive Times

Articles • March 1, 2011

Know how to hold ’em

END USER: The Boeing Co., www.boeing.com. CHALLENGE: Boost productivity and reduce setup time when machining carbon fiber-reinforced plastic aircraft components. SOLUTION: Abrasive waterjet cutting technology and flexible workholding. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Flow International Corp., (800) 446-FLOW, www.flowwaterjet.com

Articles • March 1, 2011

Dedicated fixtures simplify pump housing machining

END USER: Weir Minerals North America, (608) 221-2261, www.weirminerals.com. CHALLENGE: Streamline workholding and machining of 12', 5,000-lb. cast iron pump housings. SOLUTION: Dedicated fixtures that cut setup and machining cycle time while improving operator safety. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Advanced Machine & Engineering Co., (800) 225-4263, www.ame.com

Articles • February 1, 2011

Automated honing boosts production

END USER: Sonic Industries Div., Sargent Aerospace & Defense Group, (310) 532-8382, www.sargentaerospace.com. CHALLENGE: Reduce cycle times while holding critical dimensional and finish tolerances. SOLUTION: Automated honing machine with superabrasive tools. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Sunnen Products Co., (800) 325-3670, www.sunnen.com

Articles • February 1, 2011

Boosting beam production

END USER: HITCO Carbon Composites Inc., (800) 421-5444, www.hitco.com. CHALLENGE: Increase productivity when machining composite parts. SOLUTION: A 5-axis machine tool optimized for the process. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Bertsche Engineering Corp., (847) 537-8757, www.bertsche.com

Articles • February 1, 2011

No penalty for holding

END USER: Bob's Design Engineering Inc., (503) 648-7418, https://www.bdeinc.com. CHALLENGE: Increase productivity when drilling holes more than 10 diameters deep. SOLUTION: Toolholding system that permits use of aggressive drilling parameters with through-coolant drills. SOLUTION PROVIDERS: Advanced Tooling Co. Inc., (360) 450-9237; A&I Marketing Inc., (206) 972-5260, https://www.aim4u2.com; Rego-Fix Tool Corp., (800) 734-6349, https://www.rego-fix.com. :Walter USA LLC (800) 945-5554 https://www.walter-tools.com IS #303

Articles • January 1, 2011

HMC puts rail component producer on the fast track

END USER: Wabtec Corp.; (864) 433-5900; www.wabtec.com. CHALLENGE: Increase machining productivity for two-piece railroad drawbars. SOLUTION: Dual-pallet HMC with long spindle extension. SOLUTION PROVIDER: MAG; (859) 534-4600; www.mag-ias.com

Articles • January 1, 2011

Pumping up productivity

END USER: Premium Frac Pumps LLC; (682) 647-3300; www.premiumfracpumps.com. CHALLENGE: Increase output of components for hydraulic fracturing pumps. SOLUTION: Automated cell consisting of two CNC lathes and robotic workhandling. SOLUTION PROVIDERS: Gosiger Automation Inc.; (800) 888-4188; www.gosigerautomation.com; and Hartwig Inc.; (972) 790-8200; www.hartwiginc.com

Articles • January 1, 2011

Further freezing

END USER: Cryogenic Institute of New England Inc.; (508) 459-7447; www.nitrofreeze.com. CHALLENGE: Increase cryogenic treatment processing capability while reducing processing time and costs. SOLUTION: A cryogenic thermal cycling system that also heat treats parts and avoids oiling steel parts for processing. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Durable Metal Products Co.; (915) 351-8500

Articles • December 1, 2010

Maximizing multitasking with CAM

END USER: Central Utah Tool, (801) 374-2745, centralutahtool.com. CHALLENGE: Minimize time for programming complicated machining on a multitask machine. SOLUTION: CAM software for multitasking. SOLUTION PROVIDER: DP Technology Corp., (805) 388-6000, www.dptechnology.com

Articles • December 1, 2010

Better toolpaths help keep work onshore

END USER: Bob's Design Engineering Inc., (503) 648-7418, www.bdeinc.com. CHALLENGE: Retain contract for electronics components against offshore competition. SOLUTION: High-performance toolpath generation engine. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Celeritive Technologies Inc., (888) 253-6701, www.celeritive.com.

Articles • December 1, 2010

Ground to order

END USER: General Broach Co., (517) 458-7555, www.generalbroach.com. CHALLENGE: Increase capacity and maintain quality while grinding broaches for aerospace applications. SOLUTION: CNC surface and creep-feed grinder with auxiliary grinding head and large work volume. SOLUTION PROVIDERS: United Grinding Technologies Inc., (937) 847-1214, www.grinding.com; and Tooling Systems Sales Inc., (248) 656-2035

Articles • October 1, 2010

Skimming coolant costs

END USER: Tank Component Industries, (417) 831-5100, www.tankcomponents.com. CHALLENGE: Remove tramp oil that's contaminating coolant. SOLUTION: Portable oil skimmer that extends coolant life and minimizes the need to clean machines. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Abanaki Corp., (800) 358-SKIM, www.abanaki.com.