Gleason Corp has signed a definitive agreement with Daetwyler Industries AG and MDC Max Daetwyler AG to acquire all assets of Daetwyler’s Faessler gear-honing business.

Under the Faessler brand, Daetwyler has been producing gear-honing machines, related work holding and tools for the high-precision, hard finishing of gears. The business operations of the Faessler division, which has approximately 70 employees, will be acquired by a new Gleason subsidiary, Gleason Switzerland AG, and will continue to operate at its current locations in Bleienbach and Dietikon, both in Switzerland.
For further information www.gleason.com

Okuma is now offering an entry-level five-axis machining centre that is capable of handling workpieces up to 600 mm in diameter and 400 mm in height, with a maximum weight of 300 kg. The Genos M460V-5AX, which is available in the UK from NCMT, features a 48-station tool magazine.

Featuring a spindle that offers 15,000 rpm, the machine can achieve high productivity for a range of applications. Providing a maximum power output of 22 kW and up to 199 Nm of torque, the spindle is said to process demanding materials with ease. The spindle’s five sets of bearings are lubricated with oil mist and do not therefore require maintenance. By providing through-spindle coolant, the spindle adds to the shower coolant function. Manufacturers benefit from a three-year spindle warranty that is not limited by number of shifts or operating hours.
For efficient and accurate measuring, the machining centre is equipped with a Renishaw RMP60 touch probe, while the X, Y and Z axes possess an absolute scale. In addition to the hardware, intelligent technology apps like ‘Machining Navi’ for reducing chatter or ‘5-Axis Auto Tuning System’ for compensating geometrical errors, further enhance the machine’s accuracy. As a result of these measures, Genos M460V-5AX achieves a positioning accuracy of 2 micron in X, Y and Z.
For highest precision, the 5-axis machining centre is equipped with Okuma’s Thermo-Friendly Concept. This technology includes a symmetric, box-build, double-column construction made of cast iron. To eliminate any negative influence from the coolant and hot chips, the machine possesses a thermo-shield design. In addition, five sensors in the machine and three sensors in the spindle measure temperature changes and allow for active compensation of thermal deformation.
For further information www.ncmt.co.uk

Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) chief executive Dr Clive Hickman is spearheading a drive to establish a technology partnership with India.

The far-reaching link-up aims to increase trade, investment, technology and skills transfers between the UK and the sub-continent. Dr Hickman says the potential opportunities are enormous; the UK and India are among the world’s top manufacturing nations with a combined output of around £750bn. A major leadership summit – the India-UK FutureTech Festival – was attended by Dr Hickman in New Delhi last December.
For further information www.the-mtc.org

Last year’s acquisition of BTA Heller by Sunnen now sees the BTA Heller division relocated to Sunnen’s long-time headquarters in St Louis.

Sunnen says that the move will allow further development of deep-hole tooling, systems and processes for precision bore applications. The relocation from Troy, Michigan will be completed by 31 March, with key personnel making the switch.
“The transfer of knowledge between the two companies has already created unique value propositions, and Sunnen’s strong sales and service network will deliver this expertise to our customers,” says Chris Miltenberger, Sunnen president and COO.
For further information www.sunnen.com

Building on its successful company history, Neubeck & Wiedemann GmbH is well equipped and firmly established in the marketplace as a metalworking specialist. For the past eight years, wire-cutting machines from Mitsubishi Electric have had a major hand in this.

Based in Stockach, Germany, Neubeck & Wiedemann houses over 30 machine tools and 40 employees mainly producing precision components as one-offs or in series, as well as punching tools for toolmaking and the production of jigs and fixtures.
On a customer’s recommendation to integrate wire EDM technology in production, the company purchased a used Mitsubishi Electric wire-cutting machine in 2011. Jürgen Läufle, managing director, says: “This gave us an excellent opportunity to launch production in this area. The support from Mitsubishi Electric was quick and outstanding. We got off to a very fast start with the used machine. Within four to six weeks we were able to product parts without assistance. However, after two years we found that the used machine was no longer able to cope with the workload.”
The volume of orders called for investment in the first new wire EDM, an MV2400S from Mitsubishi Electric. Sometime later there was another bottleneck, and the second new machine from the Japanese manufacturer, a MV2400R Connect, was installed – it has been in operation at Neubeck & Wiedemann for the past year. The high workload of the wire-cutting machines has been fuelled by press manufacturer Schuler and demand from the company’s own punching tool activities, such as for the production of dies, punches and die plates.
The company uses coated and uncoated standard brass wire, usually of 0.25 mm diameter.
For further information www.mitsubishi-edm.de