Machining

The Power of FIVE: The Definitive Guide to 5-Axis Machining book was officially released this month at an industry conference, Top Shops, in Indianapolis. The author, Michael Cope, is a machinist and works at Hurco as a product technical specialist.

The toii Platform, created by thyssenkrupp Materials Services GmbH, is said to effectively communicate with a wide array of systems and devices that will help fulfill the promise of the industrial internet of things (IIoT).

Collaborative robotics has three aspects: the human, the robot and the workspace where the task is to be completed. Much of the media coverage has focused exclusively on the robots themselves.

End User: DoubleStar Corp., (888) 736-7725, www.star15.com; Solution Provider: DP Technology Corp., (800) 627-8479, www.espritcam.com; Challenge: Write CNC programs to efficiently machine knives. Solution: 3D milling strategies in a CAM program.

If your shop makes parts that demand multiple setups, parts that have challenging geometry or parts with difficult GD&T requirements, 5-axis machining could provide significant benefits. Do not let the potential cost of the investment prevent you from conducting a thorough cost analysis of your current machining methods.

Navigating and complying with OSHA regulations can frustrate companies, particularly when the regulations are inconsistently enforced.

Chamfers and countersinks help control burr formation, improve thread starts, and protect hole quality. This guide explains where each operation fits and how tooling choices affect results.

Modular fixturing at its best offers the stability and accuracy of dedicated workholding with the flexibility to be reconfigured quickly for a variety of parts. But sometimes compatibility issues arise.

The benefits of presetting are somewhat intangible; it takes a little digging to actually understand how much time is spent manually setting tools and what impact that has on shop throughput and profitability.

The October 2017 Machinist's Corner column explains the "eight wastes of lean," for which there is an acronym known as DOWNTIME: Defects, Overproduction, Waiting, Nonutilized talent, Transportation, Inventory, Motion and Extra processing.

Maintaining constant cutting forces provides a constant radial tool engagement throughout the entire cut, which eliminates spikes in the cutting forces. This approach allows the programmer to take a larger axial DOC while simultaneously maintaining a high feed rate and extending tool life.

With its new EOS M 290 additive-manufacturing system, Indiana Technology and Manufacturing Cos. (ITAMCO) now 3D-prints medical devices. After obtaining the system in June, the company started shipping components in August.