Micro-hole EDM gives boost

Dynomite Diesel Products, a US-based company with a 20-year history in the manufacture of high-performance diesel fuel injectors, has recently acquired an ONA MF5 micro-hole EDM machine (ONA machines are available in the UK from CNC International).

Until now, producing the high-flow injectors was very expensive and took about 2 hours using a process based on an extrusion machine. The company needed a solution to optimise costs by reducing the manufacturing time, while bringing precision and consistency to the product. By adding the ONA MF5 EDM model to its operations, Dynomite has reduced the cycle time to less than 5 minutes, increased process cost-effectiveness and extended the useful life of its extrusion machine. Furthermore, this new procedure, which combines the company’s extrusion machine and new MF5, makes the final calibration much faster and more consistent, injector-to-injector.

For Lenny Reed, owner of Dynomite, the addition has countless benefits: “The machine offers us to stay abreast of the ever-changing requirements of this sector. We now have the latest technology to manufacture even more precise injectors, which will enable us to create more innovative products in the future.”

Regarding cost and time optimisation, he adds: “We can predict more accurately the time spent on each product, and the costs are very good, which is great for the future as we anticipate the useful life of the machine to be around 20 years.”

Ultimately, the owner is thrilled with his investment as “this machine provides our business with possibilities we never dreamed of.”

For further information
www.onaedm.com

5G and TSN drive communications

The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology (IPT), together with partners from mechanical engineering, network technology and robotics, is developing an end-to-end real-time-capable communication infrastructure based on 5G mobile technology and time-sensitive networking (TSN). Among the goals of the project is to have highly available, reliable and secure communication of all components and modules: from sensors and actuators at field level via 5G networks and Ethernet connections, to the Fraunhofer Edge Cloud (FEC).

For further information www.ipt.fraunhofer.de

Supply chain pumps up for SMR market

Pump and motor manufacturer Hayward Tyler is working with the Nuclear AMRC on the development of a new coolant pump for small modular reactors (SMRs), while simultaneously helping the UK supply chain prepare for the production of critical components needed by the global SMR market. The government-funded project will focus on developing a class-leading reactor coolant pump, and strengthening the UK supply chain to provide long-term growth opportunities for the production of nuclear parts.

Nuclear AMRC engineers will work with Hayward Tyler on design-for-manufacture, to make sure that components and assemblies offer optimal performance and can benefit from efficient production to the quality standards demanded by nuclear customers. The project is funded by the Driving the Electric Revolution programme of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund.

For further information www.namrc.co.uk

EDM essential at Raysun

Raysun Innovative Design, a Rugby-based end-to-end precision engineering, design and manufacturing business, has invested in a second Mitsubishi EDM machine, an MV1200S model supplied by the Engineering Technology Group (ETG). The new machine sits alongside its existing MV2400S with simultaneous 6th axis rotary indexing unit.

Charles Ray, director at Raysun Innovative Design, says: “We purchased our second Mitsubishi because we had a good experience with the first machine, the larger MV2400S. This first machine was a bit of a chance for a small business like ours, buying a ‘top-end’ machine tool. However, after we had invested, we found that we were using the machine for all kinds of applications that at first didn’t appear obvious.

“The quality of the Mitsubishi machines really is the core of our business,” he continues. “We rely on them perhaps more heavily than we should, but if we are measuring a part on the CMM and get a questionable result, we look at the CMM first rather than the EDM machine. This demonstrates our reliance and faith in this particular platform.”

As an engineering group, Raysun Innovative Design admits it had very limited previous knowledge of EDM.

“I am not a programmer myself, but my colleagues tell me the control is considerably upgraded from the previous version on the MV2400S that was installed some years back,” says Ray. “From a quality viewpoint, it is much more accessible for maintenance routines; in fact, we can add our own maintenance requirements into the control. If we were in the market for another wire EDM machine, which we may be in the future, there is little doubt that Mitsubishi would be top of the list for consideration.”

For further information
www.engtechgroup.com

Minimise gearbox maintenance

According to a study by OneServe, manufacturers lose between £60,000 and £500,000 a year due to unplanned machine downtime. This figure is staggering, but there are ways for plant operators to avoid it. To find out how, WEG has released a free gearbox guide on maintenance, named ‘What Maintenance Staff need to know about Geared Motors’. The guide is available for free download from the web address below.

For further information www.weg-wg20.com