Leicester-based Taylor Hobson is a globally renowned, ultra-precision technology specialist operating at the highest levels of accuracy within the field of surface and form metrology. The company’s advanced grinding capabilities enable the manufacture of components with industry-leading surface finish, straightness and form standards. The latest addition to Taylor Hobson’s grinding department is an Okamoto 208 ACC-CHiQ double-column surface and profile grinding machine from DF Precision Machinery.

“In order to achieve the required stability and ultra-precision performance, we installed our new Okamoto grinder on a 0.8 m concrete foundation, with a further 14 piles that reach deep into the bedrock beneath the machine,” explains Mark Bent, chief manufacturing engineer at Taylor Hobson. “Our challenging flatness value target across the entire working surface of the new machine was to reach a sub 2 µm figure. Following the machine’s installation and precise adjustments by the installation engineers, we were delighted to achieve a flatness value of just 1.2 µm.”

He adds: “Our choice of machine, its solid foundations, the fine-tuning of its working surface and the skill of our staff, has resulted in our ability to achieve remarkable levels of grinding flatness. For example, we now grind our 600 mm long columns to a straightness value of 0.5 µm. In addition to the precision of the Okamoto ACC-CHiQ, the machine’s speed is enabling us to boost production efficiency.”

Used throughout the world in some of the most challenging grinding applications, Okamoto’s ACC-CHiQ series of double-column machines satisfy the demands for high-accuracy grinding while also providing the production speeds required by today’s manufacturers. As the accuracy of a double-column grinding machine depends largely on the precision of its cross-rail, Okamoto has developed a novel cross-rail mechanism that facilitates small mechanical adjustments following a machine’s installation.

For further information
www.dfpmach.com