Industry News

Hermle AG will welcome over 1,000 companies and 3,000 visitors from across the globe to its annual Global Open House event in Gosheim, Germany. from May 8-11, 2019. Visitors will have the opportunity to interact with more than 20 machine models in various configurations and with complementary equipment from high-tech industries to demonstrate the vast range of capabilities provided by Hermle products.

In response to my Lead Angle column in the April 2019 issue about machining large parts and my attraction to vintage machine tools, I received the following email from Chuck Oloffson, a CAD detailer and former CNC and manual machinist.

The rise of the robots is pervasive across all verticals, including the cutting tools industry. As more and more manufacturers turn to leaner processes robotics have been seen as a way to increase productivity, improve precision and reduce labor costs. It’s led to some asking whether robotics will replace humans completely. It’s also led others to ask if the benefits are just too good to be true.

Should we continue with classic machining and coolant lubricants, or do dry machining and minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) represent viable alternatives? From a technology point of view, it is important to consider material properties and machine performance, but plant costs, energy and health aspects increasingly need to be included in any assessment of the overall process. Lubrication system manufacturers and scientists commented on these aspects in the first of this two-part series. Part 2 now looks at various machining technologies from the practical perspective of tool and machine manufacturers: a preview of EMO Hannover 2019.

When you read this, 40 years will have already passed since the discovery of spark erosion for machining polycrystalline cutting materials. Lach Diamant named this process “spark grinding,” which accompanied the development of proprietary machines. Polycrystalline diamond tools conquered a multiple-application market traditionally reserved for carbides. Diamonds, baked under pressure and heat during synthesis, made this possible.

Whether traditional or new manufacturing processes are involved, none of the available technologies make it possible to produce component surface finishes in the required quality. Process steps such as deburring, rounding and cleaning, as well as targeted functional or decorative surface finishing, are thus indispensable. Solutions by means of which these tasks can be executed reliably and economically will be presented at DeburringEXPO at the Karlsruhe Exhibition Centre from Oct. 8-10, 2019. Beyond this, the third leading trade fair for deburring technology and precision surface finishing will provide valuable know-how at its bilingual expert forum.

Industry 4.0 is making inroads into several industrial sectors, creating massive demand for measurement and inspection technologies offering superior reliability precision, and stability. There has been a quantum leap in growth of the global industrial landscape, resulting in higher demands for high-quality precision measuring tools for reduced turnaround time and costs. Rising end user focus on quality-orientated operations as a key to high competitiveness is fuelling investments in the precision measuring tools market. Sensing the importance of a synchronized production as an essential aspect in optimal productivity, operators of manufacturing industries are willing to spend on better-than-the-rest precision measuring tools more than ever before.

Production managers in manufacturing often have to ask themselves: should we continue with conventional machining and coolant lubricants, or do dry machining or minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) represent viable alternatives? Several factors influence this decision. In Part 1 of this two-part series of technical articles being published in the run-up to EMO Hannover 2019, lubrication system experts and scientists give their assessment. Tool and machine manufacturers shed light on the subject in the second part.

Based on the high level of traffic and activity that I saw at Automate 2019 combined with a U.S. unemployment rate of just under 4%, my hunch is that robot manufacturers will report impressive sales figures this year. This guestimate is a result of a conversation I had with Joseph Gemma, CEO of division industries – Americas for KUKA Robotics Corp., Shelby Township, Michigan. According to Gemma, as the unemployment rate decreases, robot sales increase. He emphasized that automation is changing jobs—not taking them away.

Leoni, a global provider of energy and data management solutions in the automotive sector and other industries, and relayr, specialist in industrial solutions involving the Internet of Things (IoT), are entering a strategic partnership. The companies announced joint development work on linking intelligent cable and automation systems with innovative IoT technologies. The upcoming solutions are aimed at enabling carmakers and their suppliers to reduce unplanned downtime of robotic manufacturing lines and raising production efficiency thereby improving overall equipment effectiveness (OEE).

Rock stars have been smashing guitars for decades, few with more enthusiasm than Swedish-born guitar virtuoso Yngwie Malmsteen. Global engineering company Sandvik decided to test its cutting-edge techniques by building the world’s first all-metal, unbreakable guitar and letting Malmsteen unleash his smashing skills.

Kyocera Hardcoating Technologies (KHTL) a division of Kyocera SGS Precision Tools Group is pleased to announce personnel changes within the coating division in Munroe Falls, Ohio.

If you ever need a reason to be proud that you chose manufacturing as your career, just listen to Titan Gilroy, owner and CEO of Titans of CNC. “If you want to save this country, then you must fight for manufacturing,” Gilroy said in a keynote address on April 3 at Manufacturing & Technology, an IndustryWeek event. His topic: Key to the Training Transformation: Inspiration and Perspiration.

Industrial robotic applications have been growing exponentially across multiple industrial ecosystems, as value-addition to the existing operational paradigms become imperative. Rising eminence of collaborative robots (cobots) in the future is not surprising as automation continues to lie at the heart of industrial spaces for both regular and complex applications. Cost is also a key factor responsible for the rise of industrial robotics, owing to the fact that the average selling prices of robots have come down significantly over the past 20 to 30 years.

Greg Olson is the heavy machine shop supervisor at Washington Iron Works, Sherman, Texas. As a supervisor of a 12-person crew working on everything from crankshaft services to engine overhauls for oil and gas customers, he knows attention to detail is important. However, when Texas temps are pushing 90 degrees F in the shade and the sun is beating down on the metal shop, concentrating on details can be tough.

MIAMISBURG, Ohio – UNITED GRINDING North America earned recognition for the outstanding growth of its sales of FANUC robotic systems at the 20th annual FANUC Authorized Systems Integrators (ASI) Meeting.

MIAMISBURG, Ohio – UNITED GRINDING North America welcomes nationwide solutions provider Ellison Technologies as a key distributor, serving as the exclusive representative of the company's grinding solutions in Texas and Louisiana.

Noblesville, Indiana – INDEX has announced the hiring of Mark Smith as its regional sales manager for the Midwest.

FOND DU LAC, Wis. – 2019 is a big year for Fives Giddings & Lewis as it celebrates its 160th anniversary, with a special celebration happening this summer.

Erie, PA—Vice President and General Manager of Eriez-USA Tim Gland announces that Dave Heubel has been promoted to the newly created position of Senior Sales Director of Eriez-USA, effective January 3, 2019.