Metal Parts Follow Tough Plastics Act April 1, 2010 When you walk into the Redeye On Demand facility in Eden Prairie, MN, you enter into one version of the factory of the future. There you will see a bank of 100 high-end Fortus fused-deposition modeling (FDM) machines from Stratasys that provide the capacity to build real, functional parts with production-grade thermoplastics directly from CAD data.
Change-up Pitch: From Metal to Plastic October 2, 2014 Even though it’s been around since the 1950s, when engineering-grade resins were first introduced, many manufacturers still are not familiar with the many benefits that metal-to-plastic conversion provides.
Grinding Roots August 22, 2013 Until the middle of 2010, first-tier subcontract machinist, JJ Churchill, could produce turbine blades only if they had their fir-tree root-forms preground elsewhere, or if they were subsequently added by another subcontractor. No longer is this the case.
Process Holds Keys to Efficient Titanium Machining January 1, 2016 Demand for machining titanium for aerospace applications won’t abate any time soon. It is driving OEMs and the supply chain in the commercial airplane market to find ways to dramatically increase machining output. Whatever date you pick from now until 2030, there’s a sufficient backlog of commercial airliners for both structural and jet engine applications to keep spindles humming around the clock cutting titanium.
Technology Tailored to Shop’s Machining Needs May 2, 2017 You don’t have to look too far to find tooling presetters that fit the machining requirements of just about any size shop. The value of off-line tool presetting—rather than stopping machine spindles to touch off tools as machines sit idle—continues to prove itself invaluable, especially to the smallest first-time user shops.
Raising the Stakes with High-Speed Aerospace CNCs February 6, 2017 In the aerospace world, as in all sectors of manufacturing, the race is on for faster, more automated and connected machining operations. Aerospace builders have steadily pushed for more automotive-like automation over the past several years in order to improve productivity and more effectively handle large order backlogs in commercial aviation.
R&D Aids Aluminum Use June 12, 2017 For global automakers, removing weight from their vehicles remains the top priority as they seek ways to meet a stringent federal fuel economy mandate by 2025 and other new pollution-control regulations.
FCA, Toyota, Faurecia, AP&T Win Lightweighting Awards July 31, 2017 Altair and the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) have announced the winners of the 5th annual Altair Enlighten Award, which strives to promote and celebrate innovation in automotive lightweighting.
Carbodeon Develops Nickel-PTFE-Nanodiamond Coatings June 30, 2017 Nanodiamond material specialist Carbodeon of Finland has worked with metal finishing specialist CCT Plating of Germany, to develop a new electroless nickel, PTFE and nanodiamond composite coating.
Cutting Tools for Use with New Aluminum-Compound Materials January 6, 2017 New work materials are developed continually to improve the capabilities of finished parts, making them lighter and stronger, among other properties. When these materials catch on, cutting tools must adapt to their often challenging properties.