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Exechon is a joint-venture company comprising Injaz National, Lockheed Martin and Tecgrant AB Shoulder Milling Inserts (previously Exechon AB in Sollentuna, Sweden) that has introduced its new XMini robotic, five-axis machine tool aimed to produce a paradigm shift in automated aerospace manufacturing.

Demonstrated at the International Defence Exposition and Conference (IDEX, Feb. 17-23, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates), the XMini merges the flexibility and high dynamics of an articulated-arm robot with the stiffness and accuracy of a rigid machine tool. Made using carbon fiber-reinforced composites, the XMINI can be taken apart and reassembled inside spaces traditionally inaccessible to machines or people, such as an aircraft wing box.

Using Parallel Kinematics Machining (PKM) to support industrial automated manufacturing, XMINI can function as a stand-alone tool or be easily integrated into an existing production system. Watch it in action Cemented Carbide Inserts in this YouTube video.   

Features include:

The machine tool can also be taken apart in five modules, each manageable by one or two persons, and integrated into production by one person in 72 hours.

The XMini is the first product developed by the Exechon JV, which is establishing an engineering and manufacturing center for advancing this technology in the aerospace, defense and automotive sectors, as well as other industrial areas. The facility is set to open at the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (Masdar City, Abu Dhabi) in 2017.

"Exechon is based in the UAE to nurture local innovation and accelerate the expansion of industrial automation and robotics manufacturing in the region," said Kalle Neumann, Exechon chief executive officer. "The XMini on display at IDEX is built locally in Abu Dhabi to support international aerospace, defense and automotive markets around the world."

Commenting on the partnership, Rick Edwards, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, said, "We are excited to celebrate this milestone in the partnership with local experts to develop the XMini, which will enhance local manufacturing capabilities and create long-term economic benefits. The XMini reflects Lockheed Martin's commitment to supporting the UAE's goal of becoming the leading supplier of cutting-edge, automated manufacturing technology."

His Excellency Sultan Rashed Saeed Al Dhaheri, chairman of Injaz National, added, "Today marks an important step in our international collaboration to bring this new technology and manufacturing capacity into the UAE. We look forward to continuing our partnership to facilitate meaningful and lasting economic impact throughout the Emirates."

This article originally appeared on CompositesWorld.com.

Effective as of June 1, 2022, Index Corporation established a service department dedicated to rebuilding tool holders at its North American headquarters in Noblesville, Indiana. Previously, the company processed Shoulder Milling Inserts all similar rebuilds at its parent company in Germany. By bringing this capability to the United States, Index expects to cut lead times for rebuilds by 50 percent to 70 percent.

When Index rebuilds one of its tool holders, engineers fully disassemble the unit and inspect the housing and shafts. Any internal mechanical component demonstrating signs of wear is replaced, promoting the tool holder’s restoration to its original operating condition. Index offers this service for toolholders sold with any of its machines, including its production turning centers, turn mills, CNC multi-spindles and the Traub line of sliding-headstock lathes. Each rebuilt toolholder is backed by a 6-month warranty, Index reports.

“We are constantly looking for ways to more comprehensively Lathe Carbide Inserts meet our customers’ needs,” says Matt Voyles, director of customer support and operations at Index. “We’ve had a lot of customers tell us that they want the level of quality we provide when rebuilding a tool holder, but that they can’t wait the amount of time it takes to send their unit to Germany. The investment we’ve made in creating a U.S.-based tool holder rebuild department provides an immediate and clear benefit to customers.”

The engineers performing toolholder rebuilds are factory trained at Index’s global headquarters in Germany, and the process in the U.S. mirrors Index’s longstanding procedures, according to the company. Manufacturers wishing to receive a quote for having a toolholder rebuilt can log into their iXshop account on Index’s website or submit a request via email.

Available in a range of insert sizes and geometries to accommodate roughing as well as finishing operations, Seco’s Duratomic TP2501, TP1501 and TP0501 turning grades balance toughness and hardness when machining steel alloys, cast iron and stainless steels. To ease detection of used edges, the inserts use a 0.1-micron-thick chrome-colored coating; black aluminum oxide showing through the chrome-colored coating indicates a used insert edge and enables operators on busy shop floors to more easily spot them. The high-contrast used-edge marks do not impact tool performance or machining-related parameters such as cutting data. As a result, the company says, manufacturers can process more parts per edge, limit production interruptions and Tungsten Carbide Inserts reduce waste.

The grades represent an evolution and expansion of Seco’s Duratomic textured aluminum-oxide coating technology, first introduced in 2007. The CVD coating process manipulates coating components at an atomic level to achieve improved mechanical and thermal properties and enhance performance, the company says. Seco adds that the inserts combine the benefits of the coating technology as Cutting Tool Carbide Inserts well as the design of the substrate, which includes cobalt-enriched zones for added wear resistance.

Focusing on the replacement of cam-controlled multi-spindle lathes up to 22-mm bar diameter, the new extended version Index MS16 Plus of the MultiLine series is a modular design, six-spindle CNC multi-spindle lathe. In each work spindle position, the machine can simultaneously accomplish two or more operations., dropping complete parts in very short cycles. It will be demonstrated by Index at IMTS Booth S-8136.

According to Index engineers, it is intended to replace the widely used but costly to set up fast cam-controlled multi-spindle lathes that still dominate the market when it comes to machining workpieces of simple to moderate complexity.

The Index MS16 Plus combines the speed of a cam-controlled machine with the flexibility of CNC technology, yet is extremely compact (1,300 mm width), requiring no more space than current cam-controlled multi-spindle machines. In addition, the MS16 Plus offers exceptional ease of setup and more versatile machining options compared to cam-controlled machines. To keep up with the speed and efficiency of cam-controlled multi-spindle lathes for small parts up to 22 mm diameter, the Index engineers added a number of innovations to the multitasking MS16 Plus.

Infinitely variable speed control of the work spindles

The MS16 Plus makes use of maintenance-free and powerful hollow-shaft motor technology in all work spindles and the optimum selection of cutting data via the CNC program. The six high-torque work spindles with a drive power of 8.7 kW per spindle, which are cooled on demand by the fluid-cooling system proven in the MultiLine series, run in a fluid-cooled spindle drum that is precisely locked through a three-part Hirth coupling after each indexing operation. Thermal growth of the spindle carrier is minimized and the spindle bearing temperature is kept at a low level, which benefits the service life and leads to optimum thermal stability.

The speed of each of the six spindles can be controlled separately. During machining, it is always possible to program the optimum speed, which can still be varied during cutting, for each spindle position and each cutting edge of the tool.

Speed changes and positioning of the spindles are possible even during drum indexing, thus avoiding any additional secondary processing times. Further advantages that result from this are optimum chipping, maximum surface quality, short production times per piece, and extended tool life. The MS16 Plus can therefore be used to machine even difficult-to-cut materials accurately and efficiently.

Multiple simultaneous machining with grooving or boring and cross-slide

The grooving or boring slides and cross-slides are arranged in a V-shape around each work spindle, allowing trouble-free use of several tools at the same time. The machining type is determined by the tool holder. All operations (external-external, internal-external, stationary-live, and live-live) can be freely defined in almost any spindle position.

“Valuable time can be gained by performing the internal operations while grooving the external contour of the workpiece with the cross-slide,” said an Index spokesman. “Each cross-slide can be equipped with several tools—internal and external, stationary or live—that can be engaged in succession thanks to CNC technology. This often makes it possible to reduce the number of required slides in the machine configuration or to increase the possible number of machining operations.”

“There is no more capable multitasking machine that a multi-spindle CNC.”

The total of 27 NC axes of the MS16 Plus at full expansion (five NC grooving or boring slides, five NC cross-slides, one NC cutoff and/or back-boring slide, six work spindles, one NC synchronous spindle, drum indexing) plus an additional five free NC axes of possible CNC-controlled auxiliary equipment are controlled by an Index C200-4D (based on the latest generation of the Sinumerik 840D solutionline control) featuring the new IndexOperate user interface for multi-spindle automatic lathes.

All necessary setup data are stored with the part program, which allows unbeatable fast job changes. Numerous functions such as part production time evaluation or block time measuring help achieve optimized part programs. Index offers virtual machine setup on a PC workstation also for the MS16 Plus. This reduces the setup time and avoids collision errors.

Extremely fast spindle stop and cutoff without stroke extender

For rear end machining, the MS16 Plus is equipped with a synchronous spindle driven by a hollow-shaft motor allowing speeds up to 10,000 rpm and which can move 140 mm in Z at 30 m/min. to engage Coated Inserts several rear end machining tools on the NC cutoff slide with the X and Z axes in succession more quickly.

To achieve the shortest cycle times possible, the synchronous spindle accelerates to max. 10,000 rpm in less than 0.7 seconds thanks to its high power output of 9 kW, also allowing for an extremely fast spindle stop when ejecting the finished parts. The ejector in the synchronous spindle is actuated hydraulically. Besides a cutoff tool, the NC cutoff slide can optionally hold two stationary or two live tools and another stationary tool for rear end machining. Thanks to its increased stroke of 94 mm, the NC cutoff slide requires no stroke extender, and it can travel at a rapid traverse rate of 30 m/min.

Inherent energy efficiency optimizes energy consumption TCMT Insert

For years, all Index machines have met the demand for reduced energy consumption. The Index MS16 Plus is no exception and requires at full expansion less than 50 kW, scoring with the following benefits: weight-optimized components for reducing energy consumption and for increasing the dynamic response; energy recovery by means of regenerative drives; energy shutdown of units that consume large amounts of energy after a user-defined time (standby mode); intelligent cooling principles, for targeted cooling of the machine, economical use of waste heat.

Visit the company's IMTS showroom for more information.

Faced with a troublesome drilling operation, Mill Equip Products was running out of alternatives to reduce cycle time. It seemed the only way to improve productivity was to purchase a new option for the shop’s milling machine—an option estimated to cost upwards of $5,000. With a new drill from Precision Dormer, however, the shop was able to significantly increase productivity and finish the job more than 2 weeks faster than with its previous tool.

Mill Equip was founded in 1986 as a brokerage firm representing local machine shops. In 1991, the need for better control of production and quality led founder Sam Cantavespre and his sister, Frances Bertella, to open their own shop. Today, the company employs nine people, and its 10,000-square-foot facility houses a mixture of manual and CNC mills and lathes as well as a weld shop and other secondary and finishing equipment.

Located in Bessemer, Alabama, the family-owned shop serves customers ranging from manufacturers that need equipment repairs to OEMs that source parts out for resale. It has a strong presence in steel mills, to which it supplies both new parts and rebuilt used parts. The company machines components out of a variety of materials, including steel, bronze, brass and plastic in quantities ranging from a single part or production run to several thousand.

Recently, Mill Equip took an order for a job that required drilling thousands of holes in steel parts used as precision chain links. The shop used a conventional drill to cut the holes through three 1/4-inch-thick pieces of low-carbon steel. Each hole took approximately 1 minute to produce—a cycle time that was entirely too long for Mr. Cantavespre. Completing jobs quickly and efficiently is very important for Mill Equip, as many customers call in the middle of the night to fix a part. "Steel mills can lose as much as $100,000 per minute when they are not producing their product," he explains.

Just when he thought he had exhausted all alternatives except for the expensive milling machine option recommended by his colleagues and peers in the industry, Mr. Cantavespre spoke with Precision Dormer sales representative Joe Zeigler. Mr. Zeigler brought in a Dormer R458 MP-X carbide drill for a test run and explained the correct feeds and speeds needed to maximize its performance.

"I really thought he was crazy," Mr. Catavespre admits. "I thought, ‘there is no way that drill will ever hold up under those conditions.’" Nevertheless, when Mr. Catavespre hit the cycle-start button on his Fadal 4020 VMC, five holes were drilled to size in the test piece in less than 30 seconds. "It was definitely one of those moments where you are expecting the worst, yet walk away feeling very impressed with the product," he says.

The R458 MP-X drill is made of sub-micrograin carbide coated with a multi-layer titanium aluminum nitride. According to the manufacturer, this combination provides toughness, long-lasting cutting edges and wear protection, resulting in higher productivity and longer tool life. The drill’s flute geometry is designed for efficient chip evacuation, while the 140-degree point angle is suitable for a wide range of materials.

Mill Surface Milling Inserts Equip was able to run the drill at a high enough rpm and penetration rate to avoid peck cycle or interruption—it cut the holes with a straight plunge. In addition, the tool does not require the center drilling required with most conventional drills, eliminating an entire step in the process. And the shop could complete the operation without having to stop in mid-cut to evacuate chips.

The quality and performance of the drill were just what the shop needed. The tool immediately increased production while decreasing work time, enabling the company to finish the job in less than one week, compared with three weeks using the previous drill. Based on this performance, the shop has since purchased several other MP-X drills. Speed rarely equals quality, but Mr. Catavespre says his shop has now found a perfect balance.

"It has really saved me a lot of time," he says. "Without sacrificing quality, I’ve been CNMG Insert able to lessen the load on drill time. I’ve been able to pick up more production hours, which means more business, and in turn, more money."

ANCA is celebrating the art of Carbide Inserts toolmaking with a Tool of the Year competition. Customers will submit their favorite tool online and the winners will be announced live at IMTS 2018.The prize is a trip for two to ANCA’s headquarters in Melbourne, Australia, to see firsthand how the technology is created and to meet the team.

Pat McCluskey, joint co-founder of ANCA, says that, “As well as showcasing our latest products at IMTS, we want to celebrate the deep grinding knowledge and daily dedication of our customers who create beautiful tools that have helped shape our world. We know that grinding a tool is a craft and a passion for many of our customers. Grinding the perfect tool is as much about art as it is about science.”

The judging panel includes:

Here is how to enter:

Social media Cemented Carbide Inserts submissions will run from July 27 through August 20, when ANCA will gather all entries and post them on its Facebook page as an album. Submitters are encouraged to promote the competition album within their social networks to gain likes on their image. The five finalists will be selected according to the number of likes they achieve on their pictures. These finalists will be announced August 25, whereupon they will be asked to send the actual tools to IMTS along with the names and logos of their companies, to be displayed in the ANCA booth.

At IMTS, the top five tools will be judged by a panel based on the following criteria:

Entries should adhere to the following criteria:

Alfred Lyon, cutting tool supervisor at AB Tools, says, “The grinding of rotary cutting tools takes craftsmanship and is considered art by myself and many others in the round tool industry ( as well as the machining community). On many of the various social media platforms the passion for the craft is inspiring. I am happy to be a part of a competition that would showcase the talent and capabilities of the tool grinding community.”

Recently, these columns have focused on factors that contribute to the productivity of G-code programs, such as consistency, compatibility, ease of use and safety. Improving programs in these areas usually results in better machining efficiency. That is, when making programs more consistent and compatible, easier to use and safer to run, the machines — and the people running them — can naturally be more productive.

When it comes to efficiency, however, one must be careful. When doing something that improves efficiency, the machining may become more difficult and, in turn, more dangerous. By increasing the proficiency of the people running the machine, this may be an acceptable outcome. Having greater proficiency will allow CNC users to safely perform more complicated tasks.

That said, I will concentrate here on G-code programming techniques that improve efficiency and do not — for the most part — sacrifice usability or safety. There are, of course, countless improvements that one can make to processing, fixturing and cutting tools that will help reduce program execution time. But here we concentrate on techniques that are free,  requiring only restructuring a program to execute more quickly.

As with all my columns about productivity, my intention is to inspire readers to consider their own CNC environment and look for ways it can be optimized. Use my suggestions to get started.

When possible (and safe), ensure that as many axes are moving together during non-cutting commands. This includes approach, retract and motions as tools move from one machined surface to another. When approaching during machining center programs, however, if the operators are accustomed to seeing X/Y axis movements first, then the Z axis movement, they may be nervous about seeing all axes moving together within 0.1 inch (2.5 mm) of the work surface. If so, bring the tool 1.0 inch (25.0 mm) above the work surface in the Z axis first, then rapid the rest of the way in Z axis.

Be sure to include M codes with motion commands whenever feasible. This includes spindle on and off and coolant on and off. This way, the M code’s activation time will be internal to the time it takes to make the motion (or vise versa). This is especially important with machines that allow only one M code per command. For these machines, it is impossible to start or stop the coolant and spindle at the same time unless the machine builder provides additional M codes for this purpose.

While this may be common knowledge, here are a few reminders:

With turning centers, inefficiently programmed constant surface speed is indicated by the spindle slowing down and speeding up during tool changes. This adds to program execution time because the spindle commonly takes longer to slow down and speed up than to perform the retract/approach motion. This also places undue wear and tear on the spindle drive system and wastes electricity.

To remedy this for consecutive tools that use Carbide Grooving Inserts constant surface speed:

Analyze programs as they run and eliminate reasons for the machine to pause. If there is a pause during a tool change, this is because the magazine is still rotating to the next tool. Place the tools in consecutive order in the magazine. If the tool has changed but there is a delay before the tool begins its first movement, then the machine is changing spindle ranges. Understand the cutoff point for spindle range changing and run tools that require the same range consecutively when possible.

If there is a lengthy pause between pecks during peck drilling cycles, reduce the parameter value. For the G73 cycle, 0.005 inch is appropriate, while 0.04 inch is appropriate for the G83 cycle. A parameter controls the back-up amount between pecks and most machine tool builders RCMX Insert set them very conservatively.

Tsugami America, the exclusive North American importer of Precision Tsugami Machine Tools, showcases the Tsugami BW129Z in booth 5263 at Eastec 2023.

The BW129Z Swiss-type independent-gang slide lathe is a chucker-convertible, high-performance machine tool with a FANUC 31i-B control.

The BW129Z uses its three-path control system and dual independent-gang slides to reduce cycle time and produce complex parts quickly. Multiple driven tools on the main and sub ANKT Indexable Insert spindle, combined with front and rear sliding tool posts, are designed to enable multiple simultaneous and/or overlapping Swiss turning operations.

According to the company, cycle times are dramatically reduced by simultaneous rough and finish OD turning (pinch or balanced turning). With Tsugami’s cross-rotary tools on the same centerline, pinch milling or drilling Carbide Drill Insert is also available. The front and rear tool posts also enable users to have three tools in the cut to perform overlapping machining, independent back side machining, simultaneous end-milling and balanced turning.

The BW129Z comes standard with nine linear cutting axes (X1, Y1, Z1, X2, Y2, Z2, X3, Y3 and Z3), as well as with Tsugami’s Abile Programming Software.

Sumitomo has developed new steel turning grades: AC8015P for high-speed machining, and AC8035P for interrupted machining. They join the general-purpose AC8025P. In the manufacturing of machinery components, which includes the automotive industry, heavy electric and construction machinery machining, there is a growing demand for cutting tools Lathe Carbide Inserts with higher efficiency and longer tool life to achieve shorter lead times and lower machining costs. In addition, with the progress of labor-saving manufacturing sites (automation, unattended), a stable tool life that prevents sudden trouble during machining is also required.

In response to these challenges, Sumitomo has developed two new steel turning grades: AC8015P, a versatile grade for high-speed to general-purpose machining, and AC8035P, for stability in general-purpose to interrupted and heavy cutting applications. AC8000P makes it possible to greatly improve efficiency and reduce costs in every aspect of steel turning.

AC8015P, with its crystal control and high-strength alumina layer, this grade boasts superior wear resistance in high-speed and high-efficiency machining. It also utilizes Sumitomo’s Carbide Aluminum Inserts proprietary CVD coating technology—Absotech Platinum coat—coupled with a newly-developed tough carbide substrate to improve its resistance to chipping and welding. It boasts twice the wear resistance of conventional grades when used in high-speed machining with a cutting speed (Vc) of more than 1,450 sfm, exhibiting long tool life in a wide range applications from high-speed to general purpose.

AC8035P, utilizing a new surface technology that controls residual stress on the coating layer, boasts superior stability in interrupted machining. In addition, the combination of a super-tough carbide substrate and the company’s latest Absotech Platinum coating exhibits excellent chipping and welding resistance. Fracture resistance during strong interrupted and heavy machining is double that of conventional grades, with excellent stability from general purpose to heavy interrupted cutting.

Tsugami/Rem Sales offers its S206 LaserSwiss machine, which combines six-axis Swiss-type turning with laser cutting on a single machine Carbide Grooving Inserts and in one setup. The company says that this machine is ideal for medical manufacturing, particularly for very small, tubular parts. Maximum machining diameter is 0.787" (20 mm) and maximum part length is 8.26" (210 mm) per chucking.

The machine uses the IMG 400LS laser cutting system. The nozzle standoff adjustment is NC-controlled, and the laser’s frequency, pulse width, focus and power all adjustable. In addition to the laser, the turning center provides as many as 36 tools, with maximum diameters of 22 mm for the main spindle collet holders and 20 mm for the subspindle collet holders. The main spindle speed ranges from 200 to 10,000 rpm. Maximum cutting speed is 20"/sec. (500 mm/sec.).

Additional features include through-part coolant and automatic part-handling options. All operations are programmed and driven CNC Carbide Tool Insert from the machine’s FANUC 32i-B control.