Funds Boost Vacuum Investment Casting

Wall Colmonoy Ltd (UK) has secured funding from the Defence Technology Exploitation Programme (DTEP) to support its latest initiative: Project EVaCC (Experimental Vacuum Investment Casting Capability). Project EVaCC aims to develop an advanced vacuum precision investment casting (VPIC) facility that will strengthen the UK’s sovereign capabilities and ensure a robust supply chain for the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

Wall Colmonoy and Rolls-Royce Bristol will partner on retrofitting the technology, leveraging over 100 years of combined metallurgical expertise.Once operational, Wall Colmonoy will produce complex vacuum castings using nickel-based superalloys – critical for most engine programmes. A key innovation will be the implementation of microstructural refinement technology for the improvement of mechanical performance.

More information www.wallcolmonoy.com

Colchester reports open house success

November saw Colchester Machine Tool Solutions host its annual open house, an event that showcasedthe company’s latest products and innovations, including the all-new Tornado sub-spindle turning centre with Y-axis machining capability.

Taking place at Colchester’s European Technology Centre in Elland, West Yorkshire, the open house carried the strapline of ‘multi-axis machining event’. The company reports “overwhelmingly positive” feedback, with many visitors coming away feeling particularly impressed with the number and quality of machines on display. They were also pleased with the amount of machine demonstrations taking place, with Colchester staff on hand to provide additional information.

Taking centre stage was the all-new Colchester Tornado SL25 MSY turning centre. With its integrated sub-spindle and Yaxis, the machine provedpopular at the open house. Its five-axis single-hit machining allows manufacturers to complete complex components with high levels of efficiency. By automatically transferring the workpiece from the main spindle to the sub-spindle, the machine ensures seamless turning, milling and drilling on both sides of the component, reducing cycle times.The addition of Y-axis machining further enhances its capabilities, enabling precise off-centre milling for keyways, flats and contoured surfaces.

Also catching the eye of visitors was the UK debut of Bridgeport five-axis VMCs, a miniature Formula 1 car showpiece, manual centre lathes, Storm VMCs, Student CNC lathes and turret mills. Furthermore, Siemens, LNS, Zerocob and Cutwel were present throughout the event as trusted Colchester partners.

Throughout the open house, Colchester ran a ‘golf darts’ chipping competition where the participant with the highest score over a certain number of shots took away a £500 tooling voucher courtesy of open house partner and cutting tool specialist Cutwel. A first-year apprentice from Tees Components was the deserved winner.

More information www.colchester.co.uk

Emag unveils VST 50 multi-spindle auto

Whether in the steering system or chassis, ball joints are indispensable in cars. They not only act as a kind of pivot point between different elements but are also usually in constant motion and exposed to high physical loads. In this context, ball pins and ball sleeves are among the safety-critical car components that must leave production with high surface quality and micron precision without exception – despite high quantities and general cost pressure. How is it possible to achieve these outcomes efficiently and with minimal chip-to-chip times? Emag says it has the answer with a new machine: using the VST 50, a finished ball pin leaves the machine every 7 seconds with each component undergoing comprehensive measurement.

The VST 50 has highly automated processes, including the use of three robots. It is also easy to operate using EDNA apps. For actual turning of the ball and neck of the ball pin (only these areas are involved here), two suspended workpiece spindles can move irrespective of each other. As a result, one spindle is always loading and unloading while the other is in use during the machining process. The associated tool compound slides are split in two: the tools on the left-hand side are mounted on a rotary Baxis, enabling the ball to undergo precision turning and finishing.

The solution ensures that a finished workpiece leaves the machine every 7 seconds, while the chip-to-chip time is less than 2 seconds.

Components must leave production without any error tolerance. Here, Emag relies on a 100% solution: each component passes through a light-band micrometer, which determines the required measured values in fractions of a second.

More information www.emag.com

Emco machines reduce production times

GF Casting Solutions relies on the Hyperturn 65 Powermill G2 and the EmcoTurn E65 CNC turning centre. Thomas Klade, team leader of contract manufacturing, reports on the effectiveness of the two Emco machines at this Altenmarkt-based specialist in magnesium and aluminium die casting solutions for the international automotive industry.

The two CNC turning machines from Emco manufacture the spare parts required for the die casting tools

“From the first technical discussions to the sales process and delivery, our collaboration with Emco went extremely well,” says Klade.“Besides, I’ve been familiar with Emco machines since my training days, and we know that we’re buying machines that deliver what they promise and perform very well in terms of precision.”


He continues: “Both machines are perfectly tailored to our requirements and run excellently. The support from Emco is also really good.”

The EmcoTurn E65 turning centre is used primarily to produce screw cores. With this machine, GF Casting Solutions has been able to reduce its machining times significantly. The
machine features a 65 mm spindle bore, counter spindle, radial turret with 12 driven tools, as well as a Yaxis with 80 mm stroke. Parts are collected in a pot and unloaded via the partial conveyor belt, which also eliminates the need to open the door.One of the biggest advantages is definitely the time saved.

“For example, if the system receives the order to produce 15 pieces, these are produced fully automatically within a certain period and engraved according to requirements,” says Klade.“They’re then ejected to a conveyor belt. No further manual intervention is required, and we’ve been able to reduce production time by two-thirds.”More information www.emco-world.com

Roll tooling firm opts for VTL from Mills

Mills CNC has supplied Bowers & Jones, a specialist in high-precision roll tooling and equipment for steel and copper mill customers across the world, with a new DN Solutions VTR 1216F: a large-capacity, wide-column, ram-type vertical turning lathe (VTL). The new machine operates at the company’s 1394m² manufacturing facility in Bilston, near Wolverhampton. It sits alongside three other machines supplied by Mills CNC over the past four years, including a Doosan Puma 5100B lathe and a DN Solutions GT 3100L box-guideway lathe.

Says Jane Sommerville, managing director at Bowers & Jones: “We needed a new large-capacity vertical lathe specifically to machine large-diameter straightening rings for the customer. It would also take pressure off an older Berry & Binns horizontal lathe that we acquired some years earlier. We approached Mills and two other suppliers to discuss our requirements and, looking at the proposed investment package as a whole – including cost, availability, machine design and configuration, operator familiarity, and aftersales support – decided to place the order with Mills.”

The FANUC-controlled 50-inch chuck VTR 1216F offers a maximum turning diameter of 1600 mm and a maximum turning height of 950 mm. Equipped with a thermally-stable 45 kW/400 rpm/20,557 Nm spindle, a servo-driven 12-tool ATC and an quad tool holder with fast indexing that enables the use of four tools directly via the ram, Mills CNC says the VTR 1216F delivers fast processing speeds, improved machining flexibility and high accuracy.

Bowers & Jones machines straightening rings on its VTR 1216F from D2, a high-carbon, high-chromium molybdenum-vanadium alloy tool steel that is highly abrasive. Machining takes place from solid round bar (cut to size) in relatively small batches.

More information www.millscnc.co.uk