By calling in Mollart Engineering’s tooling specialist, a move that led to the introduction of a Steiner Autofacer back-counterboring tool, Atherstone-based precision subcontractor Lunn Engineering has been able to introduce a fully automatic production cycle, significantly reducing production lead-time and operational routines when machining cast iron flywheel housings for off-road vehicles. Previously, due to access difficulties and the design restraints of certain features, a separate counterboring operation had to be set up in an adjacent machining bay that not only introduced logistical problems and additional work-handling, but also significantly extended lead-times.

“We have produced some 1400 of these components on our horizontal, twin-pallet machining centre, which was installed specifically to manufacture these castings,” says works foreman Martin Sharpe. “However, we have always had to run an additional operation on a horizontal borer located in another bay just to produce three counterbore features that were very difficult to access as they were set back behind the main location flange of the housing.”
He follows on to explain that the effect of combining operations from three into two has been relatively marginal on overall cycle time, but importantly it has enabled a fully automatic production cycle involving A and B fixtures on the twin-pallet machine that has considerably reduced lead times, work handling, setting, operator attendance and inspection times. As a result of the change, Lunn Engineering has also been able to concentrate production and sub-assembly of the flywheel housing in one area of the works.

Sharpe adds how the customer has gained from improved control over quality by eliminating a third relocation of the workpiece, while tool life has been increased to achieve some 120 counterbores per insert corner. This improved performance is largely due to the combination of the inherent rigidity of the machining centre and the Autofacer tool set-up, as opposed to the previous method with varying tool life and the workholding arrangement of the borer.
Lunn Engineering produces two types of housing for two- and four-wheel drive off-road vehicles at a rate of 15 per week. Following machining, the housings are cleaned, painted and then sub-assembled for the customer, which includes the insertion of bearings. The revised fully automatic machining sequence, following Mollart’s change to the application, now involves just two operations on the machining centre that incorporate considerable milling, boring, drilling, counterboring and tapping sequences.
Following the approach by Sharpe, Mollart’s tooling specialist came on site to assess the operation. He found that with access to produce the three counterbores being severely restricted, the objective could only be achieved by back counterboring through three 18 mm diameter holes. These holes are drilled through from the outer face of the housing directly opposite the main flange face that is used for initial first operation location on the fixture. It was this main flange that partially covered each counterbore position.
Adding to the problems was a steep draft angle around each of the three features which meant any back counterboring tool had to cope with progressive material build-up, creating a variable interrupted cut. Indeed, this draft angle aided the failure of previous attempts to back-counterbore using competitor tooling, resulting in chatter and inconsistent tool life.
According to Sharpe, following the visit and assessment by Mollart’s tooling engineer, it was recommended that the Steiner Autofacer tool be employed because of its high rigidity and being well-proven in applications of this type. Both Sharpe and the engineer then worked together to develop the process and set the speeds and feed rates whereby the spindle is now run at 810 rpm at a feed rate of 0.04 mm/rev.
The Steiner ‘bump style’ Autofacer spotface/counterbore tool is activated from contact with the datum face of the workpiece as it passes through the previously drilled 18 mm holes. Each drilled hole is used to support a pilot bearing on the Autofacer tool that is positioned behind the insert pocket on the body of the tool. By reversing the machine spindle, an internal friction clutch mechanically opens and locks the cutter blade to the set dimension of 36 mm diameter.
The tool is then fed in reverse back into the casting, and when a programmed depth of 32.5 ±0.05 mm is reached from the machined datum face, is fed back before a cone positively drives the cutter blade to its closed position into the tool head. It now takes just 6 minutes and 20 seconds to complete the three holes.
Lunn Engineering was originally formed as a general engineering and subcontract business in 1938 under the name of the Rotary Pump Company. In 1952, the firm changed to Lunn Engineering Co, when it became a principal supplier to the UK’s very active, at that time, machine tool sector. During 1960, the company moved to its current 16,000 sq ft site in Atherstone, producing five-speed gearboxes for the mining industry and safety clutches for conveyor systems.
In 1969 the company obtained manufacturing rights for Lunn Davis keyseater machines, which the company updated two years ago to include its own design of control system. Since commencing production, Lunn Engineering has built over 200 machines with demand now increasing following the introduction of the new control.
Lunn also specialises in design, development and prototyping for customers and employs 22 people. The company designs, builds and re-engineers equipment such as special rotary table chucks used in ultrasonic testing, and produces test rigs and fixtures for leak testing products such as domestic showers. In addition to its design and build operations, Lunn’s subcontract production supplies sectors such as metrology, machine tool, off-road and specialist aerospace and automotive related industries with batches of work that vary between 40 and 300 parts. Over 70% of the order book is repeat business.
Says owner and managing director Fred Lunn: “We had such a recent success producing a one-off bespoke gold-plated desk fitted with an Onyx top for one of our customers – a leading UK aircraft interior specialist – that we were then asked to make a smaller version to accommodate a printer.”
Following the success of the application engineering and trials of the Mollart-supplied Autofacer, the engineering team is now working on further process improvements to replace twist drills used on specific deep holes in the two housing types with Botek gun-drills. This strategy will provide improved efficiently to produce certain special holes within ±0.2 mm geometrical tolerances.
For further information www.mollart.com

Technoset has built a strong reputation for supplying complex components to the aerospace industry over a number of years. More recently, the company has steadily increased its manufacturing capabilities and staff skills to move further up the industry’s tiered supply chain. At this level every detail counts, which is why a Wogaard Coolant Saver is playing a notable part in ongoing business development.

Part of the Techno Group, Rugby-based Technoset is a precision engineering company specialising in one-hit manufacturing of precision turned and milled components. Having continually invested in the latest fixed- and sliding-head CNC machine tools with up to 13 axes, driven tooling and full turning and milling capabilities, the company is able to offer a high degree of flexibility to its customers.
Continued success for the company means investigating and evaluating every potential business advantage, as managing director Kevan Kane points out: “Even at the high-end of the sophisticated parts we produce for our customers there is still a need to look for efficiencies and enhancements. We are under constant pressure to improve the operation of our business. These pressures can be financial or environmental, or a combination of these key drivers. There can even be peer-pressure from other members of the Midlands Aerospace Alliance, or Coventry and Warwickshire Aerospace Forum, to do better.”

One of the most recent improvements on the shop floor has come from the installation of a Wogaard Coolant Saver. The simplistic design and execution of both the Wogaard Coolant and Oil Saver is said to belie the potential benefits it can provide to manufacturing companies. Using very few component elements, the system efficiently collects the normally wasted cutting fluid which is dragged out of the machine by the swarf that is evacuated by the automatic chip conveyor or swarf auger. The neat oil or water miscible (soluble oil) cutting fluid is reclaimed by siphoning it from the chip container and returning it to the machine tool’s main coolant tank for reuse.
Using a vacuum generated within its body to draw the fluid out of any container, the Wogaard unit is powered by the machine’s coolant pump, so no additional power source is required and fitting remains a straightforward operation requiring just a few pipe joints that can be specified in an optional fitting kit available for most popular machine tools.

“You must consider with coolant that you are not only buying the fluid, but you need to pay to dispose of it, so waste is a great consideration,” explains Kane. “We initially tested the Coolant Saver on one machine, and the benefits were both clear and immediate. It was then a case of fitting a unit to all of our milling machines and all of the fixed-head turning centres. We also fitted the new Oil Saver to our sliding-head machines, where the savings on neat oil and disposal of waste have an impact on the business bottom line that is even more dramatic.
“The downtime for any machine tool waiting for coolant levels to be replenished has been reduced to a minimum, and the operators appreciate not having to fill the sump so often,” he continues. “We run a core day with overtime. The nature of the material we machine, plus the tight tolerances required, do not lend themselves to running lights out. However, we often leave the batch running on the machine at the end of the day, which we can now do confidently knowing that the sumps will not alarm out because the coolant level is low.”
Each of the Coolant and Oil Savers has been installed in-house by Technoset staff.
“In a year or so we will have the accurate figures on the savings achieved, but right now it is just making life much simpler for all of us,” says Kane. “Today, except for one, each of the machine tools on our shop floor has a Wogaard unit fitted and our housekeeping is much improved. We like to think that we are a forward-thinking company. As such, no stone should be left unturned; you should look at your business from every facet.
“There is simply no way we would go back to a shop floor without the Coolant and Oil Savers fitted to the machines,” he concludes. “Walk around now and the swarf bins are dry with material that is ready to be responsibly recycled. And we know the coolant, be it oil or water-based, is getting reclaimed and recycled quickly and efficiently back into the same machine tool’s sump, so there is never any worry about cross contamination.”
Technoset was founded in 1978 and moved into its present modern factory, which occupies 1600 sq m, in 1988. The company can offer scheduled deliveries, Kanban systems, small (single figures) to large batches, assembled components, and will undertake the management of subcontract processes such as heat treatment and plating. Technoset manufactures turned products from 0.4 to 65 mm and milled components up to 800 x 400 mm. A wide range of common and more exotic materials can be machined, including titanium, Colsibro, Berylco, Arcap, high-temperature alloys, ferretic stainless steel and precipitation and austenitic stainless steel. Technoset also guarantees the traceability of products throughout the process.
For further information www.wogaard.com

Bay Engineering is a precision engineering company based in Weymouth, Dorset on the Lynch Lane Industrial Estate. The company is committed to providing high-quality CNC machined components while providing prompt and efficient customer service. Established in 2001 by directors Steve Balem and Darren Taylor, Bay Engineering has been going from strength-to-strength.

In 2012, the company moved into a new purpose built 6000 sq ft factory and invested in new machining centres with a prospect to increase its workforce of 13.
“We have expanded our team to 20,” states Taylor. “Our highly skilled staff are augmented by external specialists in their respective fields. This has enabled us to continue our steady growth while making improvements across the company. Ultimately, this lets us deliver an ever-improving service and quality of work to our customers.”
But it doesn’t stop there.
“In 2010, we turned over £320,000. Since then we have steadily grown and have every confidence in reaching our forecast of £1.7m for 2017.”
Adds Balem: “Our culture of continuous investment should see us soon surpass the £2m mark. This will undoubtedly include the procurement of more Haas five-axis CNC mills. We have a long-standing tradition of using Haas. We find them to consistently deliver solid, long-lasting machines, which are great value for money and output quality components.

“Our commitment to quality has always been at the forefront of our current and future plans,” he continues. “We have just received our certification of the latest ISO standard, ISO 9001:2015. We are duty bound to ensure all components we manufacture are fully traceable. From the material purchased, to programmer, to operator, to inspection, through to goods-out.”
More five-axis machining has been an essential part of Bay Engineering’s long-term investment plan for increasing both capacity and machining capabilities.
“We were looking for a five-axis machine to expand our capabilities and had a list of specific requirements,” says Taylor. “Our search for a ‘perfect-fit’ machine began and ended with a call to Haas. They suggested the 12,000 rpm version of the Haas UMC-750 universal machining centre.”

Investing in a CNC machine tool should not require nerves of steel. But, for owners of SME machine shops with a need for high-productivity five-axis machining that is exactly what used to be the case. High purchase cost and complexity were usually enough to put-off those with anything less than cast-iron composure. Until, that is, Haas released its UMC-750 in 2015.
The UMC-750 is designed for both 3+2 and simultaneous five-axis machining. Travels of 762 x 508 x 508 mm and an integrated dual-axis trunnion table are featured. An inline direct-drive, low-heat 40-taper spindle (8100 rpm standard, or optional 12,000 or 15,000 rpm) is offered, while the machine comes as standard with a 40+1 tool side-mount tool changer. The machine provides +35 and -110° of tilt and 360° of rotation for suitable tool clearance and large part capacity.
According to Haas, the UMC-750 is a high-performance CNC machine tool for a fraction of the usual cost associated with machines of such capability and quality.
A wide selection of high-productivity options is available for the UMC-750, including a belt-type chip conveyor, high-pressure through-spindle coolant systems, high-speed machining control software, the Haas Wireless Intuitive Probing System and expanded program memory.
“With 762 x 508 x 508 mm travels, an integrated dual-axis trunnion table and 40+1 tool changer, we knew we had found the right machine for our needs,” says Taylor. “Since taking delivery in March, it has become the most popular machine in the workshop.”
Such an advanced machine requires a similar step up in CAD software. Fortunately, Bay Engineering’s CAD package of choice was ahead of the game.
“We’ve been using OneCNC for over 10 years now,” says Taylor. “It has always worked seamlessly with our existing Haas machines. We have a CAD station attached to each mill for programming and file transfer. This year we’ve upgraded all our CAD stations to Windows 10 Pro and OneCNC-XR7 3D Expert to fully complement our new five-axis machine. We’ve also added modules to OneCNC that provide us with optimum five-axis control while maintaining our existing workflow.
“We have a strict 5S strategy in place, but we take the spirit beyond the obvious tooling and marking,” he adds. “All our CAD stations are configured with the same software connected to a central server providing access to all files at any time. Our ERP software is bespoke and accessible throughout the building. It provides the latest information from the shop floor as required by those who need it, including production status, resource planning and delivery performance.”
Bay Engineering has also started running a night shift, allowing continuous manufacturing around the clock.
“We were looking for a way to increase utilisation of our growing range of machining centres to meet customer demand,” says Taylor. “Adding 24-hour skeleton staff has allowed us to realise and leverage the full potential of our machines.”
Concludes Balem: “Our long-term investment plan since moving to new premises in 2012 has already paid off. We will continue putting our collective expertise, our machines, and our teamwork into ensuring our customers receive the highest quality components with customer service to match.”
For further information www.haas.co.uk

Smiths Harlow has built a reputation manufacturing a range of commercial aircraft components for customers such as Rolls-Royce, Bombardier, Safran, GKN and a number of tier one companies. Focusing on aero engine parts from 200 to 3000 mm diameter, plus prismatic parts of 1000 mm3 and above, the company runs an array of sturdy CNC machines capable of working with hard on exotic metals such as Inconel 718, Waspaloy, nickel alloy C263, and Haynes 188. Smiths Harlow also machines softer metals that include aluminium and magnesium.

Among the components currently going through the shop floor are titanium aero engine casings – the visible part at the front of the engine containing the fan blades – and high-pressure turbine casings. All programs for the company’s machine tools, which include lathes, vertical mills and machining centres, are developed in Edgecam, from Vero Software. The machines include a six-pallet Burkhardt & Weber machining centre, which cuts most of the titanium parts at Smiths Harlow, and a recently installed Dugard DBM 2150 five-axis bed mill, along with other models supplied by Cincinnatti, Kitamura, Toshiba, Mandelli, Deckel Maho, Kia, Mazak and Boehringer.
Engineering manager Tim Hambridge says the company uses Edgecam’s ‘Part Modeller’ function for design, getting the correct stock sizes, laying out any tooling lugs in the material, fixture design, clamps, and fixture drawing. “Then we move on to part programming in Edgecam, using Waveform roughing on both milling and turning.”
Smiths Harlow’s private equity investor (Agathos) is looking to grow the once family-owned firm. Former wartime Spitfire pilot Gerald Smith founded the company over 60 years ago, and director Ian Knightley says with recent investment by Agathos, machine tools and manufacturing systems are being upgraded.

A recent upgrade to Javelin 2017, also from the Vero Software stable, has been providing the infrastructure basis to become more “data-centric” with full real-time information feedback. This is a major element to promote growth at Smiths Harlow, either by acquisition or organically.
Upgrading the company’s Javelin production control software was the catalyst for the aerospace manufacturer to roll the system out across its business, enabling the provision of more data to control the organisation and meet the investor’s growth objectives. Moreover, rolling out the Javelin shop floor data capture system to many of the 70-strong workforce across the 60,000 sq ft factory was a vital part of development plans.
“We’d been using a 10-year-old version of Javelin’s predecessor, Jobshop, which contained many bespoke items,” says Knightley, “but we only really used it as a production control MRP system. We’re now taking advantage of Javelin’s capabilities to give us full control over the business, as it provides us with more comprehensive information that we need about all aspects of our processes.”
A component’s Javelin journey begins with sales order processing. Some come in by EDI, while others are entered manually.
“MRP is vital to us,” says Knightley. “Working almost exclusively on aerospace parts, we know at least a year in advance what the customer is looking for, and we need to be flowing that information through to our suppliers. For instance, some forgings that we purchase have a lead time of between 40 and 50 weeks. Therefore, the MRP function helps us give suppliers a good signal of our future requirements.”
Knightly says that purchase orders flow naturally out of MRP: “A central area previously produced all of our purchase orders, and everyone would go there to authorise them. Section managers now raise their own purchase orders in Javelin, which are also authorised within the software.”
Every job going through the machine shop carries a routing card, with all relevant documentation – such as drawings, operation sketches and self-inspection sheets – attached to it through Javelin’s document linking and viewing functionality.

“We can print those documents to ensure that the shop floor operator has the latest data and documents relating to the job they’re working on,” says Knightley.
Updating to Javelin 2016 R2, quickly followed by 2017 R1, has revolutionised Smiths Harlow’s scheduling. Previously, ‘work-to’ lists were printed weekly for each machine. Now, this information is available to managers around the business through Javelin. And with a number of shop floor data capture terminals throughout the workshop, each operator can readily see forthcoming jobs.
“Until recently, operators were working with paper timesheets, but now they’re logging on and off Javelin each day through SFDC, and processing each stage of their work.”
The materials control functionality is particularly important to the company, as Smiths Harlow needs to adhere to the aerospace industry’s strict traceability requirement.
“We use the serial number feature within Javelin, so we can now tie all items down to serial numbers as they go to the machine shop,” states Knightley.
Costing gives the company the ability to analyse every job by the actual hours against the planned hours for each operation. Now, Smiths Harlow can view a complete snapshot for each job – drill right down and see the materials allocated to it, and pull data out of the system on an ad-hoc or monthly basis for further analysis.
In conclusion, Knightley says that Javelin’s simple systems management meant the company could easily customise screens, creating hotkeys for functions that are used regularly. Having those keys on the Javelin desktop instead of having to go down the tree structure has accelerated the process considerably.
“Everything is now rolled up into the one system for everyone,” he says. “Javelin provides more real-time data about the business, which is easy to analyse, and enables customised and complex Crystal Reports to be produced. It gives us full control of the business.”
For further information
www.edgecam.com
www.javelin-mrp.com

When Gordon Robinson formed D&D Engineering over 30 years ago to design, develop and manufacture bespoke conveyor systems for the food processing industry, he had no ambition to machine parts in-house. His reliance on local subcontract manufacturing companies to provide the components needed worked perfectly well in the company’s formative years. This was to change when he was joined in the business by his son, and current managing director, Mark Robinson.
With Mark on-board, plans were developed to grow the business and, within seven years, D&D Engineering found itself too large for its original premises. As a result, the decision was taken to buy land and create a purpose-built factory.

“It was a risk when we mortgaged to buy our current premises, but with the business growing it was a calculated one which paid off quickly – the 25-year loan was repaid in 12 years,” says Mark Robinson.
The growth of the company had come not only from increased sales of conveyor systems, but from the decision to begin bringing machining in-house for its own production before being developed into a full subcontracting resource. And with Hull’s economy expected to benefit from its year as the City of Culture, and new manufacturing businesses setting up in the area, this growth looks set to continue.
D&D Engineering’s first machine tool investment was to bring in some turning capacity in the form of XYZ SLX ProTurn lathes with ProtoTrak control.
“We found the ProtoTrak control easy to use as a first step into CNC machining,” says Robinson. “Not only that, but the ethos of XYZ Machine Tools and the support and enthusiasm from everyone there reassured us that we were making the right decision.”
With this initial investment satisfying the turning requirement at the time, attention turned to milling and, the positive experience of the ProtoTrak control meant that choosing SMX bed mills was an easy decision.
“ProtoTrak is such a wonderful control for producing contours, pockets, holes and a host of other features on the parts for our conveyor systems, with programming being very straightforward,” says Robinson.
With experience of ProtoTrak turning and milling, and the business still growing – both for its own products and increasingly for customers from the wind power, oil and gas, petrochemical and food industries – D&D looked to develop its machining capability further. This next step saw two XYZ MiniMill 560 vertical machining centres installed with fourth-axis attachments.
The new capacity brought in larger batch sizes from customers, while the versatility of the Siemens control system, which Robinson describes as “perfect for our business”, made programming at the machine easy. Additional business generated by having the MiniMills meant that D&D Engineering could invest further, with XYZ 1020 vertical machining centres joining the capacity list, closely followed by turning centre capability in the form of an XYZ Compact Turn 52 and an XYZ 250 TC. Furthermore, larger diameter turning was catered for with the arrival of an XYZ XL 1100 lathe with 2 m between centres and 1100 mm swing.
With these machines in place, new opportunities arose for D&D Engineering, prompting the company to expand its support for the food and drinks industry, with one customer from this sector providing in the region of £20,000 of subcontract business every month. Due to the elevated level of work, machine reliability was vital for Robinson, and here he cannot fault the XYZ machines and the service support that he gets, if needed.
“Many of our machines are running 18 hours a day, so we ensure that they are regularly serviced, with the highest dependency machines being on XYZ service contracts, which provide excellent value,” he states. “On top of that, the service engineers always seem willing to spend time and discuss things with us, which reflects the high level of support we get from anyone we talk to at XYZ.”
Although both the ProtoTrak and Siemens control make programming at the control a relatively simple procedure thanks to their conversational languages, D&D Engineering has also invested in offline programming through XYZ Machine Tools and, once again, this is opening up new opportunities, especially in the injection moulding sector.
With this mould tool work came a further need for investment, this time in larger capacity vertical machining centre capability. The issue was addressed with the arrival of an XYZ 2010 HD VMC. Part of XYZ’s heavy-duty range of machines, the 2010 has 2000 mm of X-axis travel (1000 and 800 mm in Y and Z). Developed for large components, such as mould tools, the machine features hardened box slideways, with six slides alone on the Y axis. At D&D Engineering, the company utilises the 30-position toolchanger to maximise run-time, with the machine running unmanned overnight on long cycle time work, then switching to shorter runs during the day.
“The XYZ machines and XYZ itself has served us very well and I can’t recommend them highly enough,” concludes Robinson. “One knock-on effect of our investment in XYZ machines has been the requirement to develop our skills set. This led to us starting an apprentice scheme several years ago and we currently have five apprentices out of a workforce of 28; a fact that we are very proud of. More positive is that many of those we have trained have stayed with us and gone on to operate and program the XYZ machines.”
For further information www.xyzmachinetools.com