FEATURE ON CNC MILLS & MACHINING CENTRES

Mouldmaker adopts automated five-axis machining

Established in the west of Ireland in 1984, Lawrence Engineering specialises in the manufacture of injection mould tools, extrusion tooling, jigs and fixtures for global suppliers in the medical device industry. At its factory in Loughill, County Sligo, the business also builds special-purpose equipment and provides contract manufacturing services, while at another facility in nearby Collooney, medical component manufacturing takes place in a Class 8 cleanroom.

Precision, quality and rapid turnaround times are hallmarks of the family-owned company’s success. Commitment to constant investment in cutting-edge machinery keeps it ahead of the competition. This philosophy is immediately evident when visiting the Loughill site. Purpose-built in 1995, the facility houses an impressive range of machine tools, including machining centres from Hurco and Roeders. Hurco Europe supplies both brands in the UK and Ireland.

In the Hurco cell are a three-axis VM10i vertical machining centre and a larger VM20i, with capacity for machining components up to 1 m long by 500 mm. Lawrence Engineering selected the machines as much for their reliability and ease of programming, as for their metal-cutting capabilities in tool steels.

Managing director James Lawrence says: “We try to keep everything in-house. When we consider the next investment, we’re looking to increase our capabilities, filling any gaps in capacity and aiming to achieve constant improvement.”

A prime example of this is one of two five-axis Roeders RXP500DS high-speed machining centres with linear motors driving all axes. The bridge-type design includes features necessary for ensuring component accuracy and high-speed dynamic motion. The 42,000 rpm spindle enables Lawrence Engineering to machine mould tools directly in hardened metals, often with cutters less than 1 mm in diameter. Moreover, it removes the need for time-consuming electrode manufacture, EDM and subsequent hardening.
For further information www.hurco.co.uk

30-taper machine is clear choice for SPE

These days, 30-taper machining centres are more robust and fast than formerly, and can also cut tough materials. One company discovering the merits of this type of prismatic machining equipment is Staffordshire Precision Engineering (SPE) of Newcastle-under-Lyme. The subcontractor recently purchased a Brother R650X2 30-taper four-axis machining centre with a table-mounted indexing trunnion from the Japanese manufacturer’s sole sales agent in the UK and Ireland, Whitehouse Machine Tools. Programming support and unlimited training formedpart of the deal.

The machine is the subcontractor’s first 30-taper machine and is today producing aluminium parts for the aerospace, Formula 1, high-end automotive, scientific, medical and other industries. The material currently accounts for about 60% of prismatic component production in the factory. However, it so happened that the first job put on the Brother involved the production of a batch of 304 stainless steel pivot blocks for an aerospace customer.

It was at this point that Phil Smith, joint managing director of SPE (alongside brother Gary), realised that he had been harbouring an incorrect view that 30-taper machines are unable to cut tough metals productively. He is now convinced that modern Brother machines, with their high-torque spindles, are far more robust than he thought.

There are numerous 40-taper VMCs on site that are between 10 and 15 years old.The company will gradually replace these machines with more capable and productive plant. Smith predicts that the four-axis Brother will do the work of two of these older models. For instance, the R650X2 produced the aerospace pivot block in just two operations in a cycle time of 15 minutes, whereas one of the older machines took 38 minutes to produce the part in four operations. Moreover, there is now far less workpiece handling and work-in-progress.
For further information www.wmtcnc.com

ETG launches 5AX double-column machining centre

Now available from the Engineering Technology Group (ETG) is the new DC12 model, a 5AX double-column vertical machining centre from Axile. The DC12 is the largest machine in Axile’s portfolio, suitable for handling heavy, lengthy workpieces. With a maximum table loading weight of 2500 kg, a maximum component length of 2.2 m and a workpiece diameter of 1.3m on a proprietaryintegrated rotary table of 1.2m, the DC12 takes on larger, heavier parts common in the aerospace, power generation and mould and die industries.

The double-column bridge construction provides greater rigidity, as well as better control over thermal deformation based on its sizeable RAM built as a box-in-box concept. Therefore, the DC12 is capable of both heavy-duty cutting and complex contouring while maintaining impressive precision levels, reports ETG.

With larger workpieces come more chips, meaning the DC12 features chip-removal efficiency to prolong tool life and ensure no residual interference. The DC12 has a chip auger, chip conveyor, through-spindle coolant, four coolant outlets at the spindle nose, air flushing and a chip wash-down facility.

Despite its dimensions, the DC12 incorporates directly driven servomotors, roller-type linear guideways, pre-loaded double nut ball screws and linear scales on the X, Y and Z axes to support 0.1 µm resolution. According to ETG, these features ensure that regardless of component size, the DC12 will deliver high levels of precision and repeatability.

From a flexibility perspective, the DC12 presents an HSK-A63 swivelling head B axis as well as a rotary C-axis table built into the large machine bed. This combination provides flexibility for large-part machining. The spindle is available with up to 90 or 120 HSK-A63 tools or 60 HSK-A100 tools.
For further information www.engtechgroup.com

Small five-axis machine packs real punch

Mills CNC, the exclusive distributor of DN Solutions (formerly Doosan) and Zayer machine tools in the UK and Ireland, has introduced a new simultaneous five-axis machining centre.The DN Solutions DVF 4000 is the latest addition to the company’s best-selling DVF-series of five-axis machining centres and, with its compact size and technical specification, targets component manufacturers looking to improve their productivity and process efficiencies.

The DVF 4000 is powerful, fast, flexible and reliable, reports Mills CNC. It is suitable for processing parts that require multiple machining operations,reducing the number of set-ups required to produce such components to completion.The machine comes with a 12,000rpm (BT 40) directly-coupled spindle as standard, powered by an 18.5kW motor that generates 118Nm of torque. AFANUC 31i-Plus control enables machine shops to use the DVF 4000 in full simultaneous five-axis machining mode with advanced contouring capabilities.

Notably, the DVF 4000 is equipped with a 400mm diameter, integrated rotary tilting table with a zero-backlash roller gear cam design that delivers improved speed and reliability.
Productivity and process efficiencies are further realised with the machine’s 60-tool, servo-driven automatic tool changer and an integrated thermal compensation system, comprising six sensors strategically located within the machine that combat thermal drift issues in real time.

Roller LM guideways deliver improved speed and rigidity, while linear scales on the machine’s X, Y, and Z axes, and rotary scales on its B and C axes, ensure accurate positioning and repeatability.
For further information www.millscnc.co.uk

XYZ helps PJ Innovations make lots of dough

Market Deeping based PJ Innovations makes dough divider-rounder machines (and theirassociated spare parts) for the bakery industry. When the company formed in 2014 it subcontracted all component manufacturing requirements. However, PJ Innovations started investing in XYZ Machine Tools in 2016 to bring some of the work in-house.

The company’s first purchase was an XYZ Proturn SLX 425 lathe with ProtoTRAK control, which it uses for turning large shafts 90mm diameter and 1m long in batches up to 100.The Proturn SLX 425 is a gap-bed lathe with a capacity of 2m and swing over the bed of 480mm. The extra length gives options for longer shafts. Notably, the operator has 20-30 tools ready set, so switching between programs stored in the control unit takes just 5-10 minutes.

For frame plates and the many parts which require lots of drilling, tapping and boring, the company takes advantage of an XYZ SMX 5000 with ProtoTRAK control and 1930 x 356mm table. Programming takes place at the control and fast changeover between jobs makes this machine suitable for 1-offs and low batch sizes.

The most recent acquisition is an XYZ 1000 TMC with ProtoTRAK RMX control. Manufacturing manager James Goode says: “The tool changer speeds machining up a lot and the enclosed cutting area is better from a safety and cleanliness perspective. We also like the handwheels on all XYZ machines, which allow us to move backwards and forwards through a program to prove it out. You can easily learn to program the ProtoTRAK in one day.”

PJ Innovation’s new XYZ 1000 TMC is for component batches of up to 50-off that need drilling, boring and tapping. Additionally, tool setting is easy using the touch probe, with offsets recorded in the control by pressing the ABS set button.
For further information www.xyzmachinetools.com