Product News

New Steel Cut Burs from PFERD Inc., Milwaukee, Wis., reportedly provide up to 50 percent higher stock removal rates for applications on steel and cast steel compared to conventional burs with double cut, according to the company. The company's high-performance line of burs are said to deliver a smooth, but aggressive operating action, generating large chips and very high removal rates. Along with increased productivity, users experience better handling, reduced vibrations and less noise.

The machines in the VMC MT Series from EMAG LLC, Farmington Hills, Mich., are said to be ideal production systems for chucked parts with complex geometries, according to the company.  Whether used for prototype production or for fast changes in small production runs, the VMC MT series is designed to meet the demands of flexible production situations due to the ergonomic accessibility of the machining area and the bottom-mounted workpiece spindle.

SICK Inc., Minneapolis, Minn., today announced the launch of the deTec4 Prime safety light curtain for reliable protection even in the toughest environments. Additional functionalities of the deTec4 Prime include a built-in laser alignment aid—only from SICK—that provides a visible laser that saves time when setting up or readjusting the light curtain.

PRAB Inc., Kalamazoo, Mich., this week debuted a Screw Conveyor engineered to effectively move a range of metal scrap from chips to bundled turnings, according to a Feb. 1 news release from PRAB. The Screw Conveyor is said to be ideal for applications where scrap is dumped into the conveyor or infeed hopper in a load. The PRAB Screw Conveyor uses a single drive to operate an auger that rotates and moves the material through the trough. The straight-forward design and standard components reportedly make the conveyor cost effective to own and easy to maintain.

Designed to improve the manufacturing process, the new Walter Tool-ID system reportedly allows users to transfer tool data from the presetting device to the machine tool and evaluate the parameters that are run on the machine, according to a Feb. 2 news release from Walter USA LLC, Waukesha, Wis. The tool data, which may be contained in a laser-engraved matrix code on the tool, can be picked up using a scanner and automatically transferred to a machine control unit, the company explained, noting that "time-consuming and error-prone manual data entry" may be cut from the equation.

PFERD Inc., Milwaukee, Wis., today introduced Cast Cut, a new line of high-performance carbide burs specially designed for work on cast iron. The burs, which are characterized by an extremely high stock removal rate, reportedly offer a smooth milling action that significantly reduces vibration and noise. Cast Cut achieves stock removal rates up to 100 percent higher than conventional double-cut burs, thanks to its innovative tooth geometry—a major plus for automotive customers given the industry’s relentless drive to boost productivity and save time. Other key market applications include foundry, welding and general industry.

Seco Tools LLC, Troy, Mich., has further optimized the high-precision reaming performance of its modular Precimaster Plus™ indexable head system by adding floating and adjustable shank designs to the mix, the company announced in a news release today. The new floating PMX-FL and adjustable PMX-AD shanks are said to incorporate compact, highly accurate internal systems that eliminate the need for special toolholders to handle their respective functions. When compared with special toolholders, these shanks reportedly offer less tool overhang by situating the reamers closer to the machine spindle noses.

The Adcole Corp., Marlborough, Mass., this week rolled out a new programming interface for its Model 1100 and 1200 Crankshaft Gages that reportedly simplifies part programming, sequence building and reporting. Adcole’s PIR (Part Inspection & Reporting) Software features a single user-friendly interface allowing users to program a new part to measure in less than 15 minutes, including the crankshaft specification and inspection sequence. This fully integrated utility then creates a summary report, output plot and SPC templates, according to the company.

Emuge Corp., West Boylston, Mass., a manufacturer of taps, thread mills, toolholders, clamping devices and other rotary cutting tools, today announced the expansion of its patented Softsynchro® tap holder line, adding two new holder sizes. Constructed from precision-ground body and shank sections, Softsynchro's patented design is said to significantly increase tool life and performance.

The drebojet®-plus, a new diamond dressing roll from Lach Diamond Inc, Grand Rapids, Mich., will make its debut at GrindTec, which is set for March 16-19 in Augsburg, Germany, according to a company news release issued today. The drebojet-plus is intended for contour-controlled dressing and profiling of grinding wheels.

The Suhner Industrial Products Corp., Rome, Ga., recently announced that its SOMEX division offers custom-made deep-hole drilling solutions capable of drilling up to 12mm diameters and as deep as 100x diameter. Utilizing a modular component concept, the SOMEX deep-hole drilling solutions can be integrated directly into transfer machines, special purpose machines or conventional machines.

AGATHON Machine Tools Inc. has introduced the new Leo Peri 4-axis grinding center for grinding the periphery of indexable inserts. Throughout product development, the Leo Peri design concept focused on achieving a smaller machine size, incorporating greater user friendly accessibility, maintenance free concepts, and overall superior machine strength enabling high process performance to meet both high production and peak quality standards for carbide, cermet, ceramics and PCBN applications.

GF Machining Solutions, Lincolnshire, Ill., today announced the expansion of its line of laser texturing solutions with the LASER P 400 3-axis machine and LASER P 400U 5-axis machines. The machines provide easy, repeatable laser engraving texturing and structuring for small parts, such as for watches, jewelry, cutting tools, small inserts and micromachined workpieces, according to the company.

Coherent Inc., Santa Clara, Calif., recently enhanced its series of large-area, high-speed PowerMax-Pro laser detectors to enable power measurement of laser beams of up to 375W continuously, 600W for shorter durations, and modulated peak powers as high as 15 kW in intermittent (long-pulse) operation, according to the company. The PowerMax-Pro detectors, introduced in 2014, are based on Coherent’s proprietary thin-film sensor technology that combines the broad wavelength sensitivity, dynamic range and laser damage resistance of a thermopile with the response speed of a semiconductor photodiode.

Said to combine ease of use with expanded functionality, the new BX53M System Microscope from Olympus Scientific Solutions Americas is designed to make it easy for users to quickly and accurately undertake a variety of analytical tasks, the company announced in a Jan. 26 news release. What's more, when combined with new Olympus Stream 2.1 Image Analysis Software, the BX53M System Microscope reportedly simplifies workflow from observation to measurement, analysis and reporting.

Konecranes Machine Tool Service, Springfield, Ohio, offers retrofit packages that reportedly present customers with several approaches to maximize the performance of their equipment, the company announced in a Jan. 25 news release, noting that some of their customers have discovered a retrofitted machine tool can be a better option than new equipment—at about half the cost.

The Keyence Corporation of America, Itasca, Ill., recently added a new product to its popular IV Series vision sensor family—the IV-H vision sensor—that reportedly increases the stability and functionality of visual inspection, the company announced in a Jan. 29 news release. The new IV-H models boast increased stability and versatility with a brand new toolset.

Fischer Technology Inc., a Windsor, Conn.-based manufacturer of instrumentation for coating thickness, material testing, nanoindentation and material analysis, announced plans to open a new office in Livonia, Mich., to provide technical sales and service support for the Michigan area.

High performance cutting tool manufacturer M.A. Ford Mfg. Co. Inc., Davenport, Iowa, recently expanded its TuffCut® XT high performance Series 278 endmill product offering. More than 400 product line items have been added to include additional lengths of cut, corner radii and Weldon flat options. The corner radius offering is said to meet the needs of the aerospace manufacturing industry.

The MILLAC VII Series of vertical machining centers from Okuma America Corp., Charlotte, N.C., represents the pinnacle of large VMCs with high rigidity, heavy cutting ability and high operability, according to a Jan. 29 company news release. The VMC series is said to feature a strong base column construction with optimally placed ribs to counter chatter and twisting during heavy-duty cutting. In addition, traditional box ways are used for all axes to provide high accuracy and rigidity over the long term.