As of January 2026, the leading North American end mill brand of Harvey Performance Co, Helical Solutions, is available to European customers. According to Harvey Performance, Helical has earned a reputation in North America as the benchmark for advanced machining, delivering material-specific, high-performance end mills trusted by manufacturers in aerospace, automotive, medical and other production-driven industries.

With its European debut, Helical is not only bringing proven innovation across the Atlantic but also building upon its successful North American product line up with a fully re-engineered, metric-focused range designed specifically for European applications. Produced locally in the Netherlands and supported by rapid regional fulfilment, this next generation of Helical tooling ensures machinists gain category-defining performance while strengthening the competitiveness of European manufacturing.

“Helical has proven its performance across North America, and this launch ensures machinists in Europe experience the same advantages,” says Jerry Gleisner, senior vice president of sales at Harvey Performance Co.

John Gibbons, president of Harvey Performance Co Europe, adds: “By producing locally in the Netherlands, supplying in metric and partnering closely with distributors, we’re not just bringing Helical to Europe, we’re also giving European manufacturers the same competitive edge trusted by the world’s most advanced industries.”

Helical’s European launch began with a curated portfolio of its most in-demand high-performance end mills, specifically engineered in metric dimensions. The range includes tools for finishing, roughing, high-efficiency milling and specialised applications in aerospace and medical machining. Customers also have access to Helical’s established technical resources, including downloadable tool libraries for CAM software, performance calculators, and application guides.

Helical’s European sales strategy combines digital enablement with close distributor partnerships, connecting growing end-user demand with trusted local supply. Customers can now request a Helical Solutions catalogue.

More information www.helicaltool.com/find-a-distributor

MAPAL is expanding its NeoMill milling cutter product range for the semi-finishing and finishing of steel and cast iron workpieces, as well the roughing aluminium components. According to the company, all three milling cutter series – NeoMill 16 Finish, NeoMill 16 Face and NeoMill Alu Rough – stand for high cost-effectiveness, process reliability and sustainable manufacturing.

The NeoMill-16-Finish was developed for finishing tasks where requirements on surface finish and dimensional accuracy are high. With the combination of the ONMU05 pre-machining insert featuring 16 cutting edges and the OFGW07 indexable insert with eight cutting edges for finishing, MAPAL says it offers a system with complete process reliability. The face milling cutters are available in standard sizes in the diameter range from 63 to 200 mm and enable easy setting of the finishing inserts. Surface qualities of up to Rz 4 µm are possible.

The NeoMill-16-Face is joining the portfolio for pre-machining. Cost-effectiveness is in focus here, too: the ONMU05 plate with 16 cutting edges ensures low cost per part and stable machining. The tools are available in diameters from 32 to 100 mm and are particularly suitable for series production of cast-iron and steel components with low stock removal (up to 2 mm).

With the NeoMill-Alu-Rough shoulder mill and shell end face milling cutter, MAPAL offers an innovative solution for roughing cast aluminium components in the automotive, aerospace and mechanical engineering industries. In the standard range, milling cutters with a single row of inserts are available at diameters from 50 to 160 mm. The NeoMill-Alu-Rough is available with multiple rows of inserts as a shell end face milling cutter in diameters of 63, 80 and 100 mm.

More information www.mapal.com

Around the world, manufacturers are rethinking how industry can grow while protecting the environment for future generations. For Tungaloy Corporation, this balance between innovation and responsibility has guided its Think Green initiative, a programme focused on real, measurable actions to reduce environmental impact and contribute to a more sustainable society.

In 2025, Tungaloy continued to move forward with this commitment, expanding renewable-energy use, introducing green hydrogen in manufacturing and strengthening product design through environmental certification standards. These efforts reflect the company’s belief that lasting progress comes from genuine collective responsibility, not simply from meeting compliance requirements.

Tungaloy obtained ISO 14001 (for environmental management) in 1997, becoming the first in Japan’s cemented-carbide tool industry to do so. In 2024, the company’s Iwaki headquarters added ISO 50001 (energy management), reinforcing a management approach that combines quality, safety and energy efficiency.

Since 2022, the Nagoya Campus has operated entirely on electricity from renewable sources. At Iwaki, solar panels installed in 2015 generate about 160 MWh annually, reducing the plant’s CO₂ footprint by approximately 75 tons every year.

Within its own operations, Tungaloy has taken additional steps to lower emissions. In 2023, Iwaki switched from kerosene to city gas, cutting emissions by 27% in 2024, while the Nirasaki Campus introduced locally produced green hydrogen, reducing a further 300 tons of CO₂ annually. Together, these measures advance the company toward its goal of a 46% reduction by 2030 (compared with 2013) and carbon neutrality by 2050.

In both 2024 and 2025, Tungaloy received the Environment Grand Prize from the Japan Cutting & Wear-Resistant Tool Association, acknowledging the company’s long-term environmental efforts. Tungaloy sees these awards not as a contest, but as a reminder of the shared responsibility to advance sustainability across the manufacturing sector.

More information www.tungaloy.com

Cutting tool technology specialist TaeguTec has launched its WIN-MILL series, featuring the CVKT line of inserts and cutters for miniature machining applications. This comprehensive solution addresses the increasing demand for high-performance, cost-effective tooling in the precision manufacturing sector, offering diameter ranges from 6 to 20 mm.

TaeguTec says the WIN-MILL series represents a significant advancement in miniature end mill technology, featuring indexable inserts that provide higher performance than traditional carbide end mills. The system’s design incorporates innovative V-shaped, two-corner inserts that enhance stability and precision across various applications, including shouldering, high-feed milling, straight ramping, helical ramping, slotting, profiling and cavity machining.

Central to the WIN-MILL’s performance is its V-bottom contact design, which maximises clamping stability between the insert and cutter pocket. This novel approach ensures machining stability during demanding operations such as ramping and high-feed machining, while maintaining the precision necessary for miniature applications. The improved contact geometry offers enhanced rigidity compared with conventional designs, enabling more aggressive machining parameters and longer tool life.

The series offers productivity improvements through its optimised tooth configuration. Unlike traditional designs that typically accommodate only one or two inserts per tool, the WIN-MILL series maximises the number of available cutting edges. For instance, a 10 mm diameter cutter features three insert pockets compared with the industry standard of two, increasing productivity by up to 50% in certain applications. This increased tooth count provides four, five and seven insert positions on cutters ranging from 12 to 20 mm in diameter. When combined with a larger core diameter of the tool, end users experience improved rigidity and stability during machining operations.

More information www.taegutec.com

Tooling manufacturer Horn has expanded its DA milling programme for corner, face and plunge milling. Suitable for roughing or finishing, the new DA65 system uses a larger insert than the existing DA62, enabling greater axial depths of cut. The patented, six-edged, indexable insert can be used on both sides and has three axial and three radial cutting edges per side, leading to an economical cost-per-edge ratio.

The sintered, trigonal insert has a thick cross-section and, despite the negative lead angle, exhibits a positive cutting geometry, ensuring soft machining characteristics and reduced cutting forces. The selected axial and radial rake angles result in low torsional moment and less transverse load on the spindle, allowing system deployment on older and less powerful machines. A further advantage of the chosen axial rake angle is efficient chip evacuation, especially during helical plunging.

The cutting edge profile generates a precise 90° corner angle, the maximum cutting depth being 7 mm. As a point of note, the inserts are available with corner radii of 0.8 or 1.2 mm. The proven SA4B carbide substrate is an all-rounder for milling steel, stainless steel, cast iron and aluminium workpiece materials. Inserts are also available in grades SC6A or IG6B for machining other material groups.

The tools come as end mills in diameters of 32 and 40 mm featuring two or three inserts, and as shell milling cutters with a diameter of 50, 63, 80 or 100 mm. Depending on the size, there are four, five, seven, nine or 11 inserts. All tools have provision for internal coolant supply to the cutting zone.

More information www.horn-group.com