To support continued growth ambitions, work-holding specialist Micron Workholding has recently installed a new three-axis machining centre from the Engineering Technology Group (ETG). The Vulcan VMC610L machining centre was the machine of choice due to its spacious work envelope in a compact floor area.

Jon Mannion, regional sales manager at ETG, says: “When I first spoke to Micron, one of their key criteria was a small footprint. To demonstrate the work envelope of the machine at our facility, we loaded it with a really large block of material. We cut around the outside of the part to show the working envelope and then machined a very deep pocket in the middle.”

What impressed at the demonstration was not just the large working area for such a small footprint machine, but its performance, cutting capability and surface finish. Alluding to the size of the Vulcan VMC610L, Mannion says: “The machine has an X axis of 610 mm, but the table is 650 mm, so it suited the needs of Micron. We also offer 850 and 1000 mm models.”

Acknowledged to be an entry-level machining centre, the standard Vulcan VMC610L has a 10,000 rpm spindle (options up to 30,000 rpm), 20 bar through-spindle coolant, 24-station tool changer and swarf management. The BT40 machine also offers 36 m/min rapids, while all axes use an extra-wide 45 mm roller-type linear guideway, which further contributes to the VMC’s ability to accommodate heavy loads with fast acceleration rates and low friction.

For further information
www.engtechgroup.com

Matsuura Machinery has released its MAM72-52V, a high-speed, large-capacity five-axis vertical machining centre. Designed from the ground up and based on more than 30 years of multi-pallet automation expertise, Matsuura describes the MAM72-52V as a “factory in one machine” that enables variable-part/variable-volume production and extended unmanned operation.

The machine is equipped as standard with 130 tools on a 330 tool magazine base, a proven tower pallet system (PC15) for extended lights-out manufacturing, and a chip-removal system. Each pallet can accommodate a load capacity of 300 kg.

It was in 1995 that Matsuura first introduced its MAM72 series of five-axis machine tools, ushering in a new era of unmanned palletised and fully automated CNC machining. Synonymous with the introduction of lights-out machining, this production platform became instantly recognisable by its integrated tower pallet pool. The denomination ‘MAM’ signifies Matsuura Advanced Manufacturing.

Roger Howkins, managing director at Matsuura Machinery Ltd, says: “Investing in a Matsuura MAM72 series machine is not all about the mass production of a single part, or set of parts, although some end users utilise their MAM72 machines for that purpose. Instead, we often find customers treating their MAM72 as a ‘vending machine’, an approach that sees them “making what they need, when they need it and selling what they produce”. The machine facilitates minimal set ups following the inception of a new component with its fixtures, as well as highly optimised spindle utilisation in comparison with a manned single-table machine that requires long periods of downtime between set-ups. In addition, MAM72 machines provide proven capacity for customers to run profitably unmanned at night and weekends, while reducing operator dependency and associated labour costs.”

For further information
www.matsuura.co.uk

DMG Mori has entered the vertical machining centre market at the lower end of the price range with a new, nominally half-metre-cube model, the M1. Costing £54,000 (the least expensive in the company’s portfolio), DMG Mori builds the machine at its factory in Poland. Finance for the M1 is available through the group’s own leasing company, DMG Mori Finance.

Company director James Clist says: “Repayments on an M1 would be only £830 per month and, as for all our machines and automation, we offer a six-month break before repayments start. During that time it is feasible for a firm to earn £30,000 of income based on single-shift working, before the first instalment is due. If the machine works a double shift, it could be amortised before the user even starts paying for it.”

The machine features a 2400 kg, monolithic, thermally stable bed casting. Axis travels are 550 x 550 x 510 mm and, at 850 mm, the length of the fixed table is much longer than the X-axis stroke to allow for considerable component overhang. Table width is 650 mm, while maximum load is 600 kg.

BT40 (or SK40) tools exchange from a 24-station magazine by a twin-arm ATC into the direct-drive, 9 kW/43 Nm spindle, which can have a maximum rotational speed of either 10,000 or 12,000 rpm. Among the options is 20-bar through-spindle coolant.

Control is by a Siemens 828D and programs are fully compatible with the 840D CNC system. NC cycles generated by a CAM system can be easily imported and a DXF reader is available, as is the Siemens ShopMill user interface. DMG Mori currently has stock of the machine within the UK.

For further information
www.dmgmori.com

Yamazaki Mazak has unveiled a new, high-accuracy, simultaneous, five-axis vertical machining centre, the Variaxis C-600. The C-600, which is the successor to the Variaxis j-600/5X, is capable of machining workpieces up to 500 kg in weight. Among the build features is a 600 mm diameter fully supported trunnion table with roller gear cam on the B and C axes.

The machine offers 42 m/min rapid traverse rates in the X, Y and Z axes, and a chip-to-chip time of 4.5 seconds. A high-rigidity spindle can perform the heavy-duty cutting of steel, as well as the high-speed machining of other non-ferrous materials such as aluminium, as it is available with four different spindle options. Choices range from a 12,000 rpm standard variant, up to a 15,000 rpm high-torque option, or 18,000 rpm high-speed and 20,000 rpm high-power spindles. In addition, the new Variaxis features a 30-tool magazine as standard, complete with double-arm automatic tool changer. Options include 60, 90 and 120 tool magazines.

Mazak’s latest C-600 employs the company’s SmoothAi spindle function, featuring AI adaptive control that suppresses milling spindle chatter by intelligently adjusting cutting technology based on feedback from integrated machine sensors. Modularity extends to a variety of coolant packages that are available for different applications up to 70 bar pressure. Dedicated iron, aluminium and composite, and casting machining packages are also available as options.

Another noteworthy point is Mazak’s ‘Smooth Machining Configuration Plus’, which allows operators to easily adjust features that include cycle time, finished surface and machined shape on the CNC display according to material requirements. This function is especially effective for complex workpieces with contours defined in small program increments.

For further information
www.mazakeu.co.uk

Shortlisted for the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2021 and a finalist in 2020, 27-year-old Alun Cheung attended Farnborough College of Technology and then spent a few years working for a nearby composite components manufacturer. After spells at two contract machining firms, in April 2018 he decided to start his own subcontracting business, SLAC Precision Engineering Ltd.

At a time when his friends were buying their first houses, Cheung used the money he had saved to rent a factory unit in Basingstoke and put a deposit on a Hurco VM5i three-axis vertical machining centre. The investment allowed him to take on work suitable for machining within a 457 x 356 x 356 mm working volume, and he quickly established a loyal customer base within the aerospace, automotive, medical, and oil and gas industries.

Two years later, in May 2020, Cheung purchased a larger Hurco VMC, a VM10i with a 762 x 406 mm table, more than doubling his capacity. At the time he was busy fulfilling a contract for a new customer in the satellite communications sector, involving the production of a couple of dozen different, mainly aluminium components in batches of 1-50. Many of the parts fitted perfectly on the VM5i, and those that were smaller could be fixtured two at a time on the table of the VM10i, helping to cope with the required production volumes.

“It was the touchscreen CNC running Hurco’s WinMAX software, which offers both conversational and G-code programming, that persuaded me in favour of purchasing their VMCs,” says Cheung. “Their user interface makes it very intuitive and easy to control for millennials.”

For further information
www.hurco.co.uk