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Digital tool management systems, and the digital tool libraries that support them, are changing the way cutting tools, toolholders and workholding are assembled into tooling setups and used to machine parts

Manufacturing Engineering asked thought leaders at five companies for their views on challenges and trends facing the metalworking industry.

Cutting tool maker Shape-Master Tool Co. (Kirkland, IL) needed to expand its tool grinding capability beyond that of its conventional machines or run the risk of losing work to the competition.

When work in the oil field dried up due to poor economic conditions, Knust-Godwin LLC, a Texas oil & gas supplier, faced new challenges following transitioning into small parts machining. Rather than hunker down and wait out the cyclical downturn as many shops would do, David Prickett, sales manager, and Knust-Godwin management agreed they should work to diversify the company’s customer base.

Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite materials deliver the important performance advantages of high strength-to-weight ratio, durability, and extreme corrosion resistance in lightweight structures, valued especially for demanding aerospace and oil and gas industry applications.

Tool life, geometry, and stability largely depend on proper edge preparation. Tool Flo, located in Houston, Texas, is a manufacturer of carbide cutting tools such as inserts for threading, turning, and milling. The company uses Alicona’s optical 3D measurement systems in the quality assurance of inserts.

Thermo Fisher Scientific, a leading manufacturer of laboratory technology, designed new incubators to cultivate human and animal cells. With 55,000 employees worldwide and group sales of $17 billion, Thermo Fisher Scientific is one of the world’s largest providers of laboratory and analysis technology. The company headquarters are located in Waltham, MA, near Boston.

In 2006, Jim Pontillo, founder of TRA Medical Inc. (Placentia, CA), saw two distinct trends: his medical mold-making workload was diminishing and demand for guns and gun components was rising. Sizing up TRA Medical’s core competencies, Pontillo saw an opportunity for growth in the development and production of 9-mm handguns. Today, these guns are branded and sold under their own brand FMK Firearms, which is a stand-alone business.

New retrofit systems make it possible to quickly, easily and cost effectively transform the standard external-coolant live tooling heads on turning machine turrets into those with through-tool-coolant capability. And shops that have done the retrofit are experiencing longer tool life, more efficient chip control and less heat generation.

A fully programmable B axis is the latest advanced technology for Swiss machines.