Industry News

Seventy years ago when the Society of Carbide Engineers launched the trade magazine that eventually became Cutting Tool Engineering as its official publication, the articles primarily covered carbide cutting tools. After all, the association advertised that those who were engaged in studying, using, supervising the use of or furthering the use of carbides were eligible for membership.

Ohio Tool Works LLC, an industry-leading manufacturer of precision honing machines, tooling, abrasives and accessories, announced that Paul Lykins joined the engineering department as the senior controls engineer.

Hexagon AB, Stockholm, a leading global provider of information technologies that drive productivity and quality across geospatial and industrial enterprise applications, acquired sole ownership of Licom Systems GmbH, a German distributor of Alphacam CAM software for woodworking, metal and stone cutting.

Hexagon AB, Stockholm, a leading global provider of information technologies that drive productivity and quality across geospatial and industrial enterprise applications, acquired ProCAM SRL, an Italian distributor of CAD/CAM solutions and complementary software.

Index Corp., Noblesville, Ind., as part of a revitalized sales, marketing and service strategy, partnered with five new, highly qualified distributors and realigned sales territories.

While manufacturers around the world have reached new heights in technology adoption and equipment innovation, there are still many pain points that hinder optimization, efficiency and even safety on the plant floor. Sensai, an augmented productivity platform for manufacturing operations, unveiled a list of the top five plant floor risks that reduce efficiency, drain productivity and negatively impact business results if left unattended.

Kitagawa North-Tech Inc., Schaumburg, Ill., a standard chucks, advanced chucks, custom-engineered workholding and steady rests manufacturer, announced that Mike Roberts of ITEX Workholding joined the company as regional sales manager for the Southwest region of the U.S.

As discussed in the current issue of Cutting Tool Engineering magazine in the feature article “Specialization on tap,” material-specific taps continue to evolve. Sources anticipate increasing specialization of the materials used for taps across industries.

Myths and debates swirl around the questions of using robots to automate CNC operations. From “Should we automate?” and “Can we automate?” to “How should we automate?” Are they true or not? Let’s look at a few of the most-discussed topics regarding robotic CNC automation.

On April 10, 2018, CNC Software Inc. hosted local Girl Scout troop #65023 for a tour of its corporate offices. Area Girl Scouts in 5th and 6th grades were able to see where Mastercam CAD/CAM software is developed and learn how it is used by thousands of companies worldwide to manufacture products they see and use every day.

State sales tax bases are both too narrow and too broad.

Avantech recently added two new, large bridge-style CNC machines, significantly enhancing its capability to provide large-scale tooling for customers.

U.S. factory output rose in April, although new estimates of manufacturing and overall industrial production showed less growth in prior months than initially believed, casting a shadow over the economic outlook.

I admit to some bias against school. From about fifth grade on, our educational system and I were rarely on speaking terms. Think oil and water rather than peas and carrots. Needless to say, I left at my earliest opportunity. Aside from that thing with my daughter pulling the fire alarm, my kids were far better students. So when it came time for them to make the big decisions, I kept my opinion to myself and did what most parents do these days: Encourage them to get their college degrees.

March U.S. cutting tool consumption totaled $207.08 million, according to the United States Cutting Tool Institute, Cleveland, and The Association for Manufacturing Technology, McLean, Va. This total, as reported by companies participating in the Cutting Tool Market Report collaboration, was up 8.8 percent from February’s $190.32 million and up 3.5 percent when compared with the $200.05 million reported for March 2017. With a year-to-date total of $581.02 million, 2018 is up 6 percent when compared with 2017.

BIG KAISER Precision Tooling Inc. held its Breakfast & Learn 2018 open house May 8-10 at its headquarters in Hoffman Estates, Ill. Each day include a technical presentation. On the third day, John Zaya, workholding product manager for BIG KAISER, covered multiple-axis, quick-change workholding systems.

TechDay is a dual-location event June 7 by Datron Dynamics Inc. at technology centers on the East and West coasts to demonstrate new CNC control software. Although free and open to the public, registration is required.

The Institute for Supply Management reported that the April Purchasing Managers' Index registered 57.3 percent, a decrease of 2 percentage points from the March reading of 59.3 percent.

Sandvik Coromant Co., Fair Lawn, N.J., and the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, Edmonton, Alberta, extended their contract until 2022.

Tooling Tech Group, Macomb, Mich., acquired Century Tool Group, which is composed of Century Tool & Gage Co. in Fenton, Mich., and CTG Bel-Kur Automation in Temperance, Mich.