UK NEWS

Adams slides into three-axis machining

Although a predominantly sliding-head turning machine shop, Adams Engineering (Ilkeston) Ltd has just purchased a Dugard 1000XP three-axis machining centre. Initially founded in the 1950s and run as a single-cam auto machine shop for decades, the business has more recently been taken over by Scott Burrow. Since the takeover, the company moved to new and larger premises three years ago and continued its machine acquisition trail.

Discussing why Adams Engineering has invested in three-axis machining, Burrow says: “Our first venture into milling was down to one of our customers. They kept pressing us to do milling work, so eventually we took the plunge. With the first machine we bought, we were initially just drilling and tapping prismatic parts and putting steps in plates.”

As word got around that the company was undertaking milling work, more enquiries flowed in.

“Due to rising enquiries we bought a larger machine, the Dugard 1000XP three-axis machining centre,” explains Burrow.

The ISO9001-accredited company wanted a machine with a sizeable capacity and a robust platform, which is exactly what the Dugard 1000XP delivers. As standard, the machine has X, Y and Z-axis travel of 1050 x 540 x 560mm to accommodate large parts. It also offers a 27kW BT40 spindle motor, a cartridge belt drive spindle and pre-tensioned twin-nut ballscrews.

“We just thought, why not go big.Today, we are doing work that takes up almost all the entire bed.”

The Dugard 1000XP has X, Y and Z-axis rapid feed rates of 44, 44 and 25m/min, with a cutting feed rate of 20m/min credit to the Mitsubishi CNC control system. Positional accuracy is 0.01mm, while repeatability is ±0.003 mm.
For further information www.dugard.com

Toolmaker diversifies into five-axis machining

Located in the centre of Birmingham, press toolmaker Tooling 2000 began trading more than 50 years ago. Since 1996 it has focused mainly on the design, production and try-out of tools for the automotive industry, notably for Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan and Rolls-Royce/Bentley.

With a view to strengthening its position in the industry and breaking into the provision of subcontract machining services to other sectors, such as power generation and renewables, the company has invested £1.8m in the past two years in new plant and hiring extra people.

A significant proportion of the spend has gone on acquiring new machine tools from Hurco, including the toolmaker’s first two five-axis machining centres, VMX60SRTi and VMX42SRTi models.The SRTi configuration is rapidly becoming Hurco’s most popular five-axis model. The torque motor-driven, swivelling B-axis spindle head and 600 mm diameter Caxis set flush into a fixed machine table create a compact, high-capacity platform that can serve as a large-capacity three/four-axis machine whenever required.

Tooling 2000’s manufacturing director Brian Abbott says: “In recent yearswe’ve seen growing demand from customers for the supply of more complex components that require five-axis machines to produce them cost effectively.The technology was a step into the unknown for us, so the availability of support from the machine supplier was paramount. As an existing Hurco user, we were comfortable with sourcing our first five-axis machines from them, particularly in view of the user-friendly, twin-screen controls.”

Machine operator Dean Henning adds: “Hurco machines are best suited to our type of work because the conversational control with WinMax software is easy to use and we can program most jobs on the shop floor. Even on the 5-axis models we can use the Hurco control to program 3+2-axis cycles.For more complex work, the option of inputting a DXF file from CAD into the Hurco control and using the drawing as the basis for creating the part program is especially useful and fast.”
For further information www.hurco.co.uk

NI firms lead way in smart manufacturing

Four Northern Ireland manufacturing companies are preparing to transform their production operations and improve their output after graduating from the latest Digital Catapult Smart Nano NI Accelerator Programme. Following the completion of the programme, and by adopting new digital solutions,it is hoped these companies will further accelerate smart manufacturing in Northern Ireland. Delivered by Digital Catapult, Nelipak Healthcare Packaging, Aeroblue Software, Terex and NuPrint Technologies showcased their solutions at the latest graduation event atNorth West Regional College’s Industry 4.0 Centre.
For further information www.digicatapult.org.uk

New CAO for NMITE

NMITE has appointed David Oloke as its new chief academic officer and first professor of civil engineering. Oloke will take up the role and leadership of NMITE’s academic mission in February. NMITE says this will add to an exciting year ahead because 2024 willyield its first graduates, the pioneers who, in September 2021, embarked on the accelerated Master’s Degree in Engineering. The appointment of an experienced civil engineer to NMITE’s leadership team will further drive NMITE’s commitment to the sustainable built environment, a key area of NMITE’s academic focus. Oloke joins from the University of Brighton.
For further information www.nmite.ac.uk

Hurco bucks the trend with record sales

Against a backdrop of difficult trading conditions in the UK machine tool industry, Hurco Europe’s turnover to the end of its financial year in November 2023 was surprising. It turned out to be a record year for sales, higher than the best previous figure, achieved in 2018.Managing director David Waghorn says: “We delivered a few more lathes than last year and, while the number of machining centres we sold did not increase, their unit price was significantly higher.”

There was also an increase in large machine sales, which increases the value per sale, while many negotiations included requests for extras like mist extraction, through-spindle coolant, probing and longer warranties. Notably, the addition of a collaborative robot raised the value of some orders:the number delivered was two and a half times up on the previous year.
For further information www.hurco.co.uk