FEATURE ON CNC MILLS & MACHINING CENTRES

Dugard delivers for Dicker Precision Components

Hailsham-based Dicker Precision Components has taken delivery of another machining centre from Dugard Machine Tools. As a subcontract manufacturer serving a diverse range of industries from medical and aerospace to offshore, subsea and defence, Dicker Precision needed a high-quality machine from a supplier with a track record of delivering in short lead times. Dugard was the first name on the company’s radar.

Dicker Precision’s new Dugard 1100 vertical machining centre complements its existing range of Dugard machines, which includes a Dugard 1000Y Plus and a heavyweight Dugard 1886B HD with 4th axis and BT50 spindle taper.

“I went to Dugard and the 1100 VMC was in the showroom with the guarding off, so I could see the build quality of the machine,” says Dicker Precision’s managing director Mark Love.“The price point of the machine is particularly good, especially considering the extras we have. We bought the machine and it was running within two weeks.”

Taking a look at the extra features, Love adds: “We’ve taken the machine with a Nikken 4th-axis unit.We also have Renishaw probing, which saves a huge amount of time; we don’t need to get the clock out.”

The machine also has through-coolant, referring to which, he says: “We use the through-coolant facility quite a lot and with carbide drilling. The machine also has an extremely useful air blast, as we do a lot of dry cutting on stainless steel. In fact, the machine is currently cutting stainless all day long, and will be for the foreseeable future.Overall, this machine has been a cracking deal.It literally hasn’t stopped working since it arrived and has significantly increased our capacity.”
For further information www.dugard.com

Soraluce Performance Line: reliable and precise

Soraluce presents the New Performance Line, a totally new range of machine tools that the company says is built on a platform of reliability, precision and flexibility for medium-large workpieces.The Performance Line comprisesthree families of machines with three different architectures, all based on a common modular structure. Each family has a number of models and configurations, producing machines that are configurable for a number of work environments. Availability of the TA, FA and SA families in the UK is via sole agent, TW Ward CNC Machinery (Ward CNC).

The new Soraluce TA bed mill offers greater capacities than a machining centre in terms of work volume, power output, torque, chip removal and ergonomics, reports the company. There are different versions with square or round tables that can also undertake multi-tasking operations. The machine has standard peripheral guarding with easy front and back access to the work area.

Soraluce’s new floor-typeborer is configurable with floor plate, rotary table or rotary-travelling table; with one or more multi-tasking tables (milling and turning); with a portable rotary table which Soraluce can position vertically with a tailstock or horizontally; with the option of duplex machines – machining using two spindles simultaneously; or with a floor plate at user height for better ergonomics.

The new Soraluce SA fixed-table travelling-column mill has a novel machine architecture whereby the moving column and table share the same base. The work area is fully guarded, with complete front access to the workpieceat user height and the CNC on a sliding guide in front of the machine. Different work area versions include: a fixed table, rotary milling or milling/turning table of 1000 mm diameter on one side of the table, or two milling or milling/turning tables at either end of the machine.
For further information www.bit.ly/3XoF73K

Machining centres set to disrupt the market

Two new machining centres areset to shake up the market and provide component manufacturers with high cutting performance, flexibility and value.MACH Machine Tools, part of the Vigilance Group, is introducing two production-led vertical machining centres:
the MACH MDV 800 and MACH MDV 1100. Both machines feature the flexible and easy-to-use DynaPath WinDelta CNC control system, and are available at competitive prices.

Says Dave Andrew, Vigilance Group’s managing director:“Our new MDV machining centres are powerful, precise, fast and reliable.They have a rigid design and build, deliver best-in-class cutting performance and their price point will give other manufacturers’ equivalent-type machines a real run for their money.”

MACH MDV machines house BT40 air-cooled, high-torque spindles as standard (11-15kW, 8000rpm), but can be ordered and supplied with direct-drive 12,000rpm spindles replete with spindle chiller and through-spindlecoolant capabilities that extend their application potential.Other standard features include: Hiwin linear roller guides, 24-position swing arm ATCs and generous-sized worktables (1000 x 500mm with 500kg maximum load on the MDV 800, and 1200x 600mm with 800kg maximum load on the MDV 1100).

The machines are fast with 36m/min rapid rates on all axes and, to ensure process reliability, are fully enclosed with armoured telescoped covers.High precision comes courtesy of C3-class PMI precision ball screws and laser interferometer dynamic lead-screw compensation that enables 6 µm positional and 3µm repeatable accuracies across the work envelope.

As with all MACH machine tools, both MDV models are equipped, as standard, with a range of technology features that include auto-lubrication, flood coolant and wash-down systems.
Among the optional extras available are tool and workpiece probe systems, 4th-axis system configuration, and swarf augurs and conveyors.

“We’re confident that our new MDV machines will shake-up the market and prove that you needn’t ‘break the bank’ to acquire a new high-productivity, high-precision machining centre.”
For further information www.machmt.com

Subcontractor develops its own road-race engine

The original engine of the A-series Classic Mini included a 32 kg cast iron block. Imagine the improved performance if the latest advances in engine technology were applied today. This is what inspired Smethwick-based subcontractor A&M EDM to create its own engine, a road-race version with a block machined from solid aluminium weighing just 20.55 kg with end caps fitted. The machining of nearly all engine parts takes place on Hurco machine tools, of which there are 27 on the shop floor, including three-, four- and five-axis vertical machining centres.

A Hurco VMX42Ui five-axis VMC performs block machining, while the crankshaft is produced from a solid billet using the swivelling B-axis of a Hurco VMX60SRTi VMC synchronised with the motions of a Kitagawa GT320 rotary 4th-axis table. The initial engine design was for the front-wheel-drive, transverse engine layout of the Mini, but a crankshaft is also suitable for an in-line engine. So, with adapter plates it can serve sports cars with rear-wheel drive, such as the Austin-Healey or MG Midget.

The engine is the brainchild of Gary Surman, previously technical director at A&M EDM, who says: “The accuracy and surface finish we achieve on the Hurco machines are excellent. Roughing speeds are high at 12 m/min, while finishing with a ball-nose mill is at about 2.5 m/min. The programs for machining the block have been linked, so it can be left overnight for unattended machining.”

Ascaso A+5 engines of different capacities are also available – 998 and 1171 cc – for both the BMW K16V and 12G940 heads. The future for all of them looks bright, as there are thousands of Mini enthusiasts worldwide. Moreover, the engine’s ability to power rear-wheel-drive cars dramatically extends its potential.
For further information www.hurco.co.uk

New high-speed spindle from DMG Mori

The range of SpeedMaster high-performance spindles, manufactured in-house by DMG Mori for its machining centres, now includes a model capable of continuous operation at up to 30,000 rpm. The new spindle is for high-speed milling applications and may be factory-fitted or retrofitted to the company’s horizontal and vertical machining centres, such as the NHX 4000/5000 3rd Generation and NVX 5000 2nd Generation, as well as the MonoBlock series.

Previously, the spindles were only available in 15,000 rpm and 20,000 rpm versions. The new SpeedMaster30,000 rpm model is for reducing cycle times and, due to its rigid construction, achieving high surface quality during mould and die work. It is also well suited to machining complex workpieces with small-diameter tools, such as in the electronics industry.

In a comparative test, the company drilled 4000 holes of 1 mm diameter in a semiconductor machinery component in a cycle time 36%quicker than the 20,000 rpm spindle took to complete the job. Tool wear was also significantly less. Additionally, quicker machining times reduce overall power consumption and hence CO2 emissions.

While achieving fine surface finishes is one of the spindle’s attributes, so also is roughing at lower speeds, with 22 kW of power available between 7000 and 15,000 rpm. All Master spindles are covered by a warranty of 36 months.
For further information www.dmgmori.com