WD Hearn has partnered with CAMplete Solutions to supply its software across South Africa.

The deal will help WD Hearn provide its customers with a solution that complements the company’s existing machine tool options. CAMplete TruePath is a fully integrated suite of tools designed to take users from their CAM system to their five-axis machine, quickly and safely.
“We are excited to partner with WD Hearn to expand our presence within South Africa,” states Jeff Fritsch, VP sales and marketing at CAMplete. “WD Hearn’s experienced technical support and sales staff makes them an ideal partner to provide CAMplete TruePath within the country. This partnership leverages our existing relationship with Kitamura to provide WD Hearn customers with an integrated and comprehensive solution.”
For further information www.camplete.com

In terms of capacity, the new DMC 1850 V vertical machining centre from DMG Mori, with 1,850 x 700 x 550 mm axis travels and a maximum table load of 3000 kg, sits between the company’s 1450 model and the DMF range of travelling-column machines.

A one-piece cast-iron bed, twin ballscrews in all axes, a cooling system and linear scale positional feedback to the Siemens 840D or Heidenhain TNC 640 control with proprietary CELOS interface, combine to deliver accuracy that includes circularity of less than 5µm. The machine is thus suited to mould making and the production of precision aerospace parts.
There is a choice of spindle with 15,000, 20,000 or 40,000 rpm maximum speed or an optional SK50/HSK-A100 spindle offering up to 288 Nm of torque. The standard tool magazine capacity is 20 pockets, which may be expanded to 120 if desired, while the maximum tool length is 400 mm. Short non-cutting times result from automatic tool change in under one second and 5 m/s² acceleration in all axes to a rapid traverse rate of 42 m/min.
Ergonomic operation is another feature of the machine, thanks to a door that opens to nearly 2 m and a distance from the front of the machine to the centre of the 2,160 x 750 mm table of just 677 mm. The bed inclines steeply at 35°, which together with flushing ensures that chips are removed efficiently.
For further information www.dmgmori.com

Aarti Steels Ltd and SMS Concast, a company of SMS group, have successfully commissioned the revamped continuous casting machine (CCM) for billets in Cuttack-India.

With a casting radius of 9 m, the two-strand CCM is rated for a capacity of 200,000 tons per year. Before the modernisation, the CCM cast 125, 160 and 200 mm square section sizes. Together with the revamp of the technological part of the CCM, namely the hydraulic oscillation equipment, the secondary cooling system and the withdrawal and straightening unit, the bloom section sizes 240 x 280 mm and 250 x 320 mm have been introduced.
For further information www.sms-group.com

CNC machines rely on certain fundamentals to achieve peak performance for maximum productivity. This not only includes the machine but, importantly, the infrastructure of the facility – specifically ancillary services such as power, air and coolant.

Tru-Edge Grinding, a specialist in precision tool manufacture and reconditioning, found out first-hand what could be achieved by setting up a facility to ensure the high performance of its machines, where the company reduced power consumption by 4% while increasing productivity by double digit gains.
David Balster, director of manufacturing at Tru-Edge, which is based in St Henry, Ohio, USA, says: “At Tru-Edge we struggled for years with electrical related problems and the failure of machine electronics. After reviewing the three-phase electrical supply to our 16 Anca machines, we upgraded the power boards and replaced the cables to a higher quality with large gauge wires.”
Director of engineering, Frank Seger adds: “Replacing power boards and rewiring our facility proved to be more than a worthy investment from a view of machine uptime and, importantly, cutting costs.”
The key benefits achieved by changing the power include: greater power efficiencies, with overall power consumption reduced by 4%; increased machine uptime; reduced spare part costs; and less service related costs.
“We no longer turn off the power to the machines at the weekends as this was creating problems when they were powered back up again due to spikes in the supply,” says Balster. “With Anca’s idle shutdown feature, we found that there was no increase in our overall power usage by leaving the machines powered on.”
For further information www.anca.com