Machining with Robots November 1, 2009 Robotic machining technology has advanced to where it poses a serious alternative to metalcutting applications on more traditional machining centers. With the latest robotics equipment and related software, automation suppliers and robotic system integrators are gaining some traction using robots in many material-removal applications previously done only with machine tools.
Edge Finishing — Product Enhancement or Wasted Cost? June 1, 2009 Edge finishing is a relatively new term in manufacturing. It’s a new and deeper focus on what many used to call deburring, edge honing, edge preparation, edge prepping, burring, chamfering, or edge blending. Edge finishing goes beyond any of those definitions. Deburring, which is often considered wasted effort by managers, wrongly carries a negative connotation. In reality, deburring and edge-finishing processes add many benefits to parts—they create highly desirable edge quality—the quality most products need.
Machine Components/Cleaning/Environment/Fluid Power and Other Manufacturing Equipment August 1, 2004 Keeping products clean is becoming a more significant part of manufacturing as standards for cleanliness, deburring, and finish grow more stringent.
Bar Feeders Boost Turning Productivity March 1, 2004 One of the most cost-effective ways to obtain the benefits of automation is by adding a bar feeder to a CNC lathe or other bar machine. Costing anywhere from about $10,000 to $40,000 depending on configuration, the devices can add hours of untended operating time for part volumes of a few hundred to tens of thousands.
TRAK Machine Tools and New Century Careers Partnership Supports Post-COVID Recovery August 14, 2020 While businesses were in lockdown and people were quarantined at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, TRAK Machine Tools – Southwestern Industries Inc. and New Century Careers continued to forge a partnership that will benefit Pittsburgh’s regional manufacturing industry.
New Mazak VMC Eases Shops Into Full Five-Axis and Automation August 24, 2020 Shops that have always wanted full simultaneous five-axis machining capability but were afraid to take the plunge now have access to a recently developed vertical machining center from Mazak Corp. that the company says not only helps reduce the intimidation factor of full simultaneous five-axis machining, but also makes automation integration a whole lot easier.
Double-Duty Lasers June 29, 2020 As laser manufacturing systems for sheet and tube grow more sophisticated—powerful, automated and scalable—navigating the wealth of choices might feel daunting.
Finding the Sweet Spot in Vertical Machining Centers May 18, 2020 The 40/20 vertical machining center platform is rightly regarded as the workhorse of job shops. To help their customers deal with increased competitive pressures, machine tool builders are improving on this established 40 × 20" design, relying on advanced spindle technologies, fourth and fifth axis table-on-table configurations and high-speed, high-efficiency machining strategies.
New Universal Robots Interface for Injection Molding Applications April 23, 2020 The Injection Molding Machine Interface (IMMI) is made for plastics manufacturers to integrate Universal Robots with injection molding machines.
Toolpath Simulation Allows Shop to Go ‘Crash-Free in Conroe’ February 28, 2020 Gassed up your car this week? If so, you might want to thank Conroe Machine LLC. That’s because among the many parts machined by this specialty job shop in Conroe, Texas are most of the components used to build downhole positive displacement motors (PDMs.)