£1.7m investment

Lisburn-based manufacturer CASC is investing £1.7m in its business growth through the creation of 26 jobs and the skills development of its team. The SME provides project management and professional labour services for the renewables sector, as well as metal fabrication to the engineering, construction and utilities sectors. Karl Crockard, managing director of CASC, says: “We’ve recently invested in new state-of-the-art tube lasers and a robotic welder to enhance our manufacturing capability and increase productivity and efficiencies. With this in place, we’ve been able to develop a strong pipeline of projects, specifically in the renewable offshore wind sector.”
For further information www.casconline.co.uk

Entry-level machine with large Y-axis stroke

Mazak has responded to market demand for a high-specification entry-level machining centre with a large Y-axis stroke by launching the new VCE-600.

For its category, the UK-built VCE offers a generous table size of 1300 x 600 mm with a large machining envelope, while retaining a compact floor space. Specifically, the VCE-600 offers increased versatility due to its X, Y and Z-axis travel of 1050, 600 and 600 mm respectively, maximising space for workpieces and fixtures.

With productivity at the forefront, the new VCE boasts a 12,000 rpm/18.5 kW/119.4 Nm spindle with an electronic two-speed shift. This specification makes it a versatile choice for a range of materials, with power and speed for machining non-ferrous materials and torque and power for steel.

The VCE-600, the first model of a new range of vertical machining centres, is produced to Mazak’s global manufacturing standards with no compromise on build quality. According to the company, the level of specification mirrors that usually found on premium-priced machines and includes pre-tensioned ballscrews, direct-coupled servomotors and linear roller guides on all axes, resulting in high-accuracy agile machining performance with 36 m/min rapid feed rate on all axes. The machine is equipped with a 24-tool magazine as standard, with options available for 30 and 48 tools.

Mazak’s VCE-600 is equipped with Mazak’s latest CNC, SmoothEz, a high-specification CNC developed for entry-level machines that offers intuitive programming to deliver increased productivity through faster set up, programming and operation.

The 15-inch touchscreen enables programming in two languages, Mazatrol and EIA/ISO for G-code, and is customisable to the operator’s own preferences with a full keyboard.
For further information www.mazakeu.co.uk

Good service leads to repeat HMC sales

When Autocraft Solutions Group, Europe’s largest independent engine builder and remanufacturer, purchased the land and assets of an existing but redundant machine shop in Wellingborough, in June 2018, the company retained four existing Heller four-axis, twin-pallet horizontal machining centres (HMCs) that were already on site. Within weeks, Autocraft was using them to produce cylinder heads and blocks both for its own engine assembly and for delivery to its customers’ production lines on a just-in-time basis.

Autocraft co-owner Mike Hague-Morgan says: “Once we started using the Hellers, we saw how quickly they responded to our requests for aftersales service, including the supply of replacement spindles within 24 to 48 hours. It gave us such a high level of confidence that we decided to take all the stock out and purchase additional Heller HMCs to produce more parts, increasing our profitability.”

Autocraft produces cylinder heads and blocks in medium to low volumes for a range of three- to six-cylinder inline and V6 to V12 engines for automotive and off-highway applications. The four Heller H2000 machining centres were soon joined by another three. Then two further orders, each for three more, were placed during the pandemic to bring the total to 13.

Hague-Morgan says: “During an incredibly difficult trading period, we were still able to grow the business partly because of the service level provided by Heller. We deliver hundreds of engine blocks per week to major production lines and it costs millions of pounds if they stop, so continuity of supply of heads and blocks is critical. Having machines up and running within a day or two after a spindle failure is worth a huge amount to me.”
For further information www.heller.biz

Five-axis machines provide growth opportunities

Speed, power and precision are qualities coveted by Justin and Maryann Schaller, both in terms of the family-owned Schaller Group and in their other shared passion of hydroplane racing. And the speed, power and precision of Starrag’s STC 800 X five-axis machining centres are playing a key role in both their business and their sport.

The brother and sister duo are executives of the Schaller Group, a third-generation Michigan-based precision metal-forming and assembly company that manufactures parts for the aerospace, military, automotive and medical industries.

The Starrag STC 800 X was chosen not only because it is suited to machining complex aluminium workpieces, but also because its precision capabilities, axis configuration and ability to five-axis mill with the use of a rotary table and a 30,000 rpm, 120 kW tilting spindle will enable Schaller to expand into other industry sectors.

With an A-axis range of -100/+60°, no angle heads are necessary for machining complex parts. The rotary table allows economical machining by using a tombstone set-up or multiple parts and fixtures on the same table. Additionally, with two STCs integrated into a manufacturing system, Schaller has high levels of flexibility in production.

“These are the perfect machines for growth,” says business development specialist Maryann Schaller. “We started in the aerospace industry in the 1980s; it’s a great growth market, but we also know the importance of diversifying.”

Schaller selected Starrag machines because they can be utilised in any industry that requires high precision, complex parts including racing vehicles, satellites or electrical vehicles.

“Starrag’s capabilities allows Schaller to meet those diverse needs,” she says.
For further information www.starrag.com

Automation investment proves its worth again

Mills CNC, the exclusive distributor of DN Solutions’ machine tools (formerly Doosan machine tools) in the UK and Ireland, has recently supplied an automated machining cell to a precision aerospace subcontract specialist. The cell was delivered and installed at ASG Arrowsmith’s machine shop facility in Coventry and is being used, at present, to machine a range of pre-production, high accuracy aero-engine parts for the new, ultra-efficient Rolls-Royce Pearl 700 business aviation engine.

Says Jason Aldridge, ASG Arrowsmith’s managing director: “We’re gearing up for full production and, since the cell’s installation, have been focused on designing, optimising and proving-out the machining processes for eight Pearl 700 engine parts ready for PPAP, a standardised aerospace industry process for the design and manufacture of new and revised parts.”

The parts being machined by ASG Arrowsmith are all made from aerospace-grade titanium alloys and other exotic materials. They are machined to exacting tolerances and super-fine surface finishes, and are characterised by their complexity and intricate features – many of which can only be produced economically by using simultaneous five-axis machining technology.

DN Solutions’ DVF 5000 machining centre provides ASG Arrowsmith with full five-axis simultaneous machining capabilities and, as such, enables the company to machine complex, high-precision parts to completion in a single set up. To improve productivity and process efficiencies the machine is integrated with a compact eight-station automatic workpiece pallet changer: each pallet is 350 x 350 mm in size and has a 250 kg maximum load.

ASG Arrowsmith regularly invests in advanced machine tools and automation systems from Mills CNC.

“We are advocates of the advanced technologies they supply and the applications and technical support they provide,” says Aldridge.
For further information www.millscnc.co.uk