A substantial proportion of MJ Allen Group’s more than £30m turnover comes from gravity die casting and machining the aluminium main case, as well as the intermediate and cover castings, for a modified transmission that goes into the all-wheel-drive (AWD) version of the Ford Transit van.

Currently, 100 sets per week are delivered to Getrag Ford Transmissions in Halewood for assembly and export to a vehicle manufacturing plant in Turkey, but that number is predicted to double by the spring of this year.
To cope with the extra demand, the subcontract casting and machining specialist is building a second die-casting cell in Ashford, Kent, which is due to be operational imminently. Additionally, in September 2019 the company bought a second pair of Heller horizontal twin-pallet production centres to machine the increasing quantity of components.
Group managing director Tim Allen says: “We wanted a two-machine turnkey solution and a hand-holding approach with applications back-up, as this was the first significant automotive contract we had won and our initial entry into the machining of production volumes. That level of service was forthcoming from Heller UK’s Redditch headquarters and factory, and continues to this day.”
He adds that the first models were Heller MCI16s with an 800 x 630 x 630 mm machining envelope, whereas the two latest models, H4000s, have a larger 800 mm cube working volume and are manufactured in Redditch. One of each pair is devoted to producing the transmission’s main case in three operations, the longest cycle being one hour. The other two are able to machine both the intermediate and cover castings, four at a time per pallet in two operations apiece, as the cycle times are shorter.
For further information www.heller.biz

MACH Machine Tools has recently supplied Surrey-based precision subcontract specialist Delavale Engineering with two MACH 710MM+ vertical machining centres. The machines are positioned adjacent to each other at the company’s 5000 sq ft facility in Bagshot to create a flexible, high-productivity milling cell.

Delavale’s decision to invest in new machines from MACH Machine Tools represents a significant departure for the company. Prior to the new acquisitions, Delavale purchased pre-owned machines from Machine Tool Sales Online (MTSO) which, like MACH Machine Tools, is part of the Vigilance Group of companies. New machines were acquired from a different, well-established machine-tool supplier.
Explains Steve Burrows, Delavale’s managing director: “We regularly invest in high-quality used machine tools as an established route to increasing and improving our machining capacity and capabilities and, over recent years, have acquired a number of pre-owned machines from MTSO.”
Indeed it was during a visit to MTSO’s Bristol showroom facility where Burrows, with an eye on acquiring a pre-owned machining centre, caught sight of a new MACH 710MM+ vertical spindle machine.
“MACH 710MM+ machines have a number of attractive features and their specification compares favourably with many mid-size vertical machining centres on the market,” he says. “Particularly appealing was the direct-drive spindle configuration which, unlike belt-driven spindle options, are much quieter and more responsive. The machine’s face and taper tooling, and 48m/min rapid rates, were other key selling points.
“Following its delivery and installation, one of the first jobs loaded to the machine was an existing precision aluminium component,” he continues. “The MACH 710MM+ delivered immediate benefits, most notably a 50% reduction in cycle time and the elimination of secondary, hand-finishing operations.”
Such were the performance and productivity improvements gained from the MACH 710MM+ machine that, just a few months later, Delavale ordered a second identical machine.
For further information www.machmt.co.uk

A new five-axis machining centre with integrated laser-deposition welding capability for accurate, reliable, cost-effective, complete production of complex components in one hit has been introduced by DMG Mori. The LaserTec 125 3D hybrid is intended for the manufacture, maintenance and repair of workpieces up to 1250 mm in diameter by 745 mm high, and weighing up to 2000 kg.

Based on DMG Mori’s rigid MonoBlock platform, the LaserTec 125 3D hybrid offers automatic changeover between laser-deposition welding and simultaneous five-axis milling in a single set-up, reducing processing times by up to 80%. Such savings are helped by eliminating the need for heat treatment as a separate process step due to the machine’s ability to deposit material with a hardness of up to 63 HRc.
The alternate use of laser-deposition welding and simultaneous five-axis milling is beneficial for improving production processes or enabling new component geometries, an example being the manufacture of closed impellers. Another strength of these hybrid machines is the production and repair of hot and cold forming, and forging dies.
DMG Mori’s LaserTec 125 3D hybrid can also produce lightweight structures that reduce the weight of parts by up to 90%. A selling point of laser-deposition welding is the possibility it offers to change between two materials quickly under CNC. So, for instance, hard surfacing to reduce wear can be carried out in one area and corrosion-resistant welding for environmental protection may be performed in another. Alternatively, the cooling characteristics of a part can be significantly increased. As an illustration, a die-casting mould can be produced by starting with a bronze core that dissipates heat effectively, and welding on to it an outer skin of tool steel.
For further information www.dmgmori.com

Whitchurch-based toolmaker and plastic injection moulding specialist BM Injection has over the years steadily replaced the time-consuming electro-discharge machining of moulds and dies with the direct milling of tool steels in their hardened state (up to 58 HRc).

In 2019, the company invested in a second five-axis VMC, a Japanese-built Makino D200Z supplied by UK agent NCMT, for rough and finish-milling of tool steels to single-figure micron accuracy. Machining is now carried out in one hit, including complete milling of the gate, whereas at least two operations were needed previously, or else three if a route involving milling plus electrode production and EDM was chosen. Consequently, fewer skilled operators are now needed, cutting production costs and alleviating the problem of recruiting experienced staff.
Machining in one clamping by automatically repositioning the workpiece in-cycle using the two rotary axes brings higher accuracy through the elimination of tolerance build-up. The Makino has internal sensors and strategic cooling of the spindle, ball screws and machine structure that allow high precision to be held in the Whitchurch factory, even though it is not temperature controlled. Directors Tim Combes and his son Mark point to a 54 HRc Stavax test piece machined by the Makino under controlled conditions in its test laboratory in Japan to 2 µm total tolerance, commenting that twice that is achievable on BM Injection’s shop floor.
Says Tim Combes: “Dimensional accuracy is critical when producing moulds and dies. We need to hold ±0.012 mm on cavity dimensions, interpolated diameters and hole positions.”
Surface finish is also important. A mould that takes 20 hours to hand polish if it is produced on a spark eroder can, after direct milling, be finished in three to four hours on the Makino, which is an enormous labour cost saving. Lead-time from order to completion has been cut by an average of 40%.
For further information www.ncmt.co.uk

A Black Country manufacturing specialist is investing in a state-of-the-art multi-axis CNC milling centre to help it deliver £2m of new orders. Cube Precision Engineering, which can handle work from single-op prototype tooling to complex multi-stage tooling suites, has spent £300,000 on a new MTE BF3200 that will boost capacity at its Rowley Regis facility and support the development of low-to-medium volume work for clients involved in the automotive and aerospace sectors.

The company used expert advice from accountancy firm Haines Watts to unlock R&D tax credits funding that has made the purchase of the new machine possible, and is now planning on maximising its new capability to secure a record £5m year.
Neil Clifton, who started the business with engineer Phil Bannister in 2009, says: “It has been a rollercoaster of a year, with a very slow January and February leading into one of the busiest periods in our history. In a good way, the quieter months at the start of the year helped us to focus on new opportunities and that is now starting to pay off.
“In the past six months, we’ve picked up over £2m of new work and this is split across automotive and commercial vehicle [£1.7m] and aerospace [£300,000],” he continues. “We knew the sudden growth would cause a few production bottlenecks and that is why we’ve invested in the new CNC milling machine. When the machine is installed, it will give us an additional 15% capacity, provide larger milling capability and, importantly, is faster than previous models so will reduce cycle times.”
Employing 42 people, Cube Precision Engineering can handle tooling of all sizes, boasting a lifting capacity to 35 tonnes and pressing capacity of 1000 tonnes.
For further information www.cubeprecision.com