Despite only opening its doors for business in 2002, Oakley CNC Machining has undergone a major transitional shift in its machine tool technology in recent years to support its relentless growth trajectory. Initially starting with Herbert capstan lathes and a selection of two-axis CNC turning centres, the company has rapidly evolved its investment strategy, with the latest acquisition being a Nakamura-Tome WT150IIF twin-spindle twin-turret turning centre from the Engineering Technology Group (ETG).

Already progressing through a transition period, it was the company acquisition by Ian Oakley in 2015 that led to an acceleration in capital equipment investment. Unfortunately, the performance, capabilities and service support from some machine tool vendors fell short. With an order book continually filling and capacity at a premium for the Burton-upon-Trent subcontractor, the company searched the market for a twin-spindle turning centre – and it was the Nakamura-Tome WT150IIF that caught its attention.

Oakley CNC Machining’smanaging director Ian Oakley says: “We’ve taken full advantage of the 130% super-deduction tax allowance and invested in several high-end CNC turning and milling centres. However, not all acquisitions have performed as we would have liked. As we have several new projects that require production volumes of 10,000+, we needed a high-performance turning centre to absorb the volume.The Nakamura was the perfect choice.”

Oakley CNC Machining searched for a twin-spindle, twin-turret turning centre with an intuitive CNC interface that could offer both conversational and G-code programming.

“We wanted a user-friendly machine capable of machining the range of parts we produce, but we got so much more,” reveals Oakley.“One factor that drew us to the Nakamura is the oscillating servo [oscillation cutting] that prevents long strings of swarf and enables us to extend our unmanned running. This was particularly important as we have a family of nylon parts required in production runs up to 10,000-off. Required for the rail industry, the project involves a family of 40mm diameter parts up to 100mm long that we can set up on the Nakamura and leave to run for days without manual intervention. In fact, it was the swarf-breaking technology and the ability to run long unmanned periods that won this contract for our business.”

Before the arrival of this project, the initial prompt to invest in the robust turning centre was in fact a brass electronic component for the construction and earthmoving equipment sector. The company regularly machines the brass electronic part in batches of up to 15,000.

Discussing this component and why the Nakamura WT150IIF was needed, Oakleysays: “This part was being machined on an existing twin-spindle turning centre, lights out, but we were having issues keeping the component in pristine condition with no marks. The existing machine has a traditional parts catcher with swarf deposited in the parts catcher area from machining. The parts, when ejected, land on top of the swarf, which is far from ideal. In contrast, the Nakamura has a robotic arm that unloads the parts very gently and ‘places’ them into a separate unloading conveyor belt. This capability in itself is a big bonus, but coupled with the benefit of having an extra turret, we’ve reduced cycle times from 3.5 minutes to 1.5 minutes. Considering the batch sizes, we’re now saving just over 500 hours per batch.”

He continues: ‘’We previously machined another aluminium part for the food processing industry on our existing twin-spindle machine that is just over 200mm long. This part needed four different operations due to the sub-spindle bar capacity being very limited, incurring significant set-up time and taking a lot of capacity from our machine shop.The overall cycle time was 6.5 minutes. We’re now able to produce these on the Nakamura with a cycle time of 3.5 minutes in one-hit.’’

As a long-running project that has been ongoing for more than three years, the Staffordshire manufacturer was struggling to keep up with demand prior to the arrival of the WT150IIF. The major saving on this project for the ISO9001-accredited company is not just the cycle time but the reduction in set-ups, the ability to free capacity from other machines and the reduction in manual intervention.

“It was a labour- and machine-intensive process,” states Oakley.“Now, we can set the job on the WT150IIF and it will run unmanned 24 hours a day for up to two weeks with the swarf-breaking technology. All we have to do is feed the bar into the machine and collect the finished parts from the other end. The stability of the machine also means that we don’t even have to change the tools in a two-week long production run.”

As the company gains familiarity with the machine following its arrival at the end of 2022, it is moving more parts to the Nakamura.

“The brass and nylon parts are long series runs and we’re benefitting from the combination of the swarf-breaking technology and the one-hit capabilities of the WT150IIF,” says Oakley.“We are continually moving more jobs to the Nakamura and will likely need another machine in the near future.”

Discussing the service from ETG, Oakley concludes: “We have machine tools here from a range of vendors and the service, and the quality of the machines has been indifferent. It’s only been a matter of months since we installed the Nakamura, but we’re delighted with the machine and the service from ETG has been exceptional. If we have ever had any issues, the service team have jumped on the issues immediately. We are currently planning to double the size of our facility to nearly 700sqm, a move that will help facilitate our growth. When we have our new building, we’ll definitely be looking to purchase more Nakamura machines from ETG.”
For further information www.engtechgroup.com

GF Machining Solutions has recently supplied a new wire EDM machine to Mechlam Precision Tooling, a precision mould tool, fixturing and subcontract manufacturing specialist based in Haydock.The machine, an AgieCharmilles CUT P 350 Pro, arrived at the company’s 8000sq ft facility in October 2022 and is machining a range of high-precision components that include complex and highly accurate mould tools, inserts and associated parts.

The acquisition of the CUT P 350 Pro has significantly increased and improved Mechlam Precision’s wire EDM capacity and capabilities. Notably, the machine’s fast processing speeds combined with quick and easy job preparation and set-up, plus its ability to consistently hit tight geometric and dimensional tolerances, have been more than instrumental in helping the company secure more high-value work from new and existing customers.

Says Martin Atherton, Mechlam Precision’s managing director: “We are always looking to improve and, as such, regularly invest in advanced manufacturing technologies to help make us more productive, efficient and competitive.Our new CUT P 350 Pro is a case in point and has helped transform our wire EDM operations, enabling us to make precision parts faster, better and more economically than before.”

With business from many of Mechlam Precision’s customers, specifically in the automotive, aerospace and medical sectors, returning to pre-pandemic levels, the company needed to act quickly and decisively to meet the upturn in demand for its high-quality machining services.

“Our existing wire EDM resource, specifically an older machine that we had acquired some years earlier, was becoming unreliable and creating production bottlenecks that, if left unchecked, would impact on our ability to meet lead times,” reports Atherton.

To overcome the issue, Mechlam Precision decided to upgrade its wire EDM capabilities, approaching a number of machine tool suppliers with its plans.

Although Mechlam Precision has a long-standing relationship with GF Machining Solutions, having invested in a number of the company’s milling and EDM machines in the past, the company decided toinvite three wire EDM machine tool manufacturers to present their ideas and take part in a test cut.

“The part selected for the trial cut was an existing mould tool insert that we have machined in the past, and that we knew inside-out,” says Atherton. “We were particularly interested in how the machines proposed by each manufacturer would meet the high accuracy and surface requirements, as well as the total processing time [from set up through to the completion of machining] involved to complete the part.”

The results of the test cut were illuminating.GF Machining Solutions’ CUT P 350 Pro machine used for the test cut came out “head and shoulders” above the other two machines in terms of speed and precision.

“The test cut results plus GF Machining Solutions’ back-up and support were major factors in us placing the order for the CUT P 350 Pro”, states Atherton. “Since being installed, back in October 2022, we have been blown away by the CUT P 350 machine’s continued performance, flexibility, reliability and efficiency.

According to GF Machining Solutions, the CUT P 350 Pro is a high-end wire EDM machine that features a number of proprietary technological innovations.The machine is compact and boasts X-, Y- and Z-axis travels of 350 x 250 x 220mm respectively, and can handle workpieces up to 1000 x 550x 220mm in size and up to 750kg in weight. In addition, the CUT P 350 Pro has a rigid design and build, and is equipped with GF Machining Solutions’ Quadrax system for high stability and accuracy during machining operations.

Says Atherton:“The mould tools, mould inserts and precision parts we machine are characterised by their high accuracies (±2µm) and surface finishes (Ra 0.08µm).The machine’s Quadrax system ensures we are able to meet these stringent quality requirements, even during long machining runs.”

The CUT P 350 Pro also features GF Machining Solutions’ Spark Track and digital generator technology – both designed to improve productivity, performance and process reliability.

“The machine is equipped with ISPS [Intelligent Spark Protection System] and iWire: together they have had, and continue to have, a significant impact on our performance,” says Atherton.

ISPS monitors the spark environment in real time, adjusting the spark intensity according to individual part characteristics and features.This technological innovation reduces the potential for wire breakage during machining operations, ensuring machine uptime and optimal production.

Says Atherton:“ISPS helps reduce wire breakages that can be caused by poor flushing and/or unstable machining conditions.As a consequence, machining operations do not require stopping to allow for wire re-threading and our production schedules are uninterrupted.”

ISPS is particularly beneficial during lights-out, unattended operations where wire breakages can severely disrupt and compromise production planning and manufacturing output.

Running in conjunction with ISPS is the machine’s iWire innovation which, adjusts wire speeds (feed rates) according to individual part characteristics.The bottom line with iWire is that the process consumes less wire to produce complex parts, delivering real consumable savings to the customer.

“IWire helps us reduce the cost per part, and this enables us to be more competitive,” states Atherton.

Another innovation, available on all new machine tools from GF Machining Solutions, is rConnect, a remote and secure diagnostic and trouble-shooting facility that provides customers with instant and secure assistance in real time.

Says Atherton:
“rConnect is a really useful tool.If we experience any machine or machining issues, or if we specifically need applications help and advice, the rConnect facility gives us instant access to GF Machining Solutions’ service engineers who are on hand to provide immediate expert input and assistance.”

Since investing, Mechlam Precision’s new CUT P 350 Pro has been operating around the clock.The machine is helping the company secure new, high-value machining contracts and is a key component in Mechlam Precision’s drive and ambition to create a truly world-class machining resource and become a ‘preferred partner’ to many of its customers.
For further information www.gfms.com