Straight to a round - carbide insert cutting tools

 2024-06-28 06:00:16

Horn USA’s new booth concept is designed to enable attendees to (literally) get a better feel for its various tooling offerings.

Diamond turning is traditionally associated defense- and research-related work, such as missile or satellite guidance system optics. Such parts are expensive, application-critical and difficult to manufacture. However, a contract for an automobile rain sensor, or a mold for an LED headlight or a contact lens, requires prioritizing more than quality and precision, Dr. Wenzel says. New customers demand increased part volumes, faster deliveries and greater geometric variety.

Join Mahr for an informative webinar to discover the latest advancements in precision measurement, designed to elevate your quality assurance processes and unlock peak productivity. It'll explore cutting-edge technologies — such as modern height gages and contour measuring systems — along with their applications, benefits and technical capabilities. Discover the power of height gages: Learn how intuitive and sophisticated height gages can revolutionize your measurement processes, enabling quick and accurate results in inspection and production areas. Explore the practical functions and ease of use that make height gages an ideal solution for manufacturers seeking high-performance and reliable measuring technology. Examine sample applications and industries where height gages excel, such as qualifying first parts, inspecting incoming parts and measuring series of parts in industries like aerospace, automotive and medical. Unlock efficient contour measurement: An introduction to the latest contour measuring technologies that enable fast, simple and comprehensive contour measurement in the production environment. Discover how these innovative solutions ensure reliable measurements, saving time and increasing efficiency while measuring a wide range of workpieces. Learn how to streamline your contour measuring process with speed and simplicity, achieving fast and precise measurements with incredible versatility. Register now and discover how to unlock peak productivity with new innovations in precision measurement. Agenda: Insights into the latest precision measurement technologies and their applications Understanding of how to improve quality assurance processes and increase productivity Knowledge of how to select the right measurement solutions for your specific needs Tips on how to optimize your measurement processes for maximum efficiency

Ever wonder what sets Top Shops apart from the competition? Dive into their award-winning practices and explore behind-the-scenes strategies for operational excellence.

Zoller’s open house in Ann Arbor, Michigan, provided attendees with a glimpse of the connectivity and efficiency the company’s products offer to users.

Relieving the control of its calculation burden speeds production of complex, mirror-finish components machined with diamond tools.

Legacy Precision Molds takes us on a tour of their moldbuilding facility. They've recently implemented two automated 5-axis cells for metal and graphite machining that run lights out during nights and weekends.

So far, Made in the USA has looked into system-wide effects of broken supply chains, automation, skilled workforce issues and our perception of manufacturing jobs — examining each topic through a prism of individual experiences. For this final episode for Season 1, let’s look at one more system-wide question and bring it back to personal perspectives: Is there today a new dawn, a new moment for American manufacturing?

Chiron Group combines the best of both worlds at IMTS 2024, featuring live demonstrations of their Micro5 and Mill 2000 machines, alongside a cutting-edge virtual showroom. This innovative approach allows visitors to explore Chiron’s full product lineup without the logistical challenges of transporting large equipment.

Understanding all the things that contribute to a machine’s full potential accuracy will inform what to prioritize when fine-tuning the machine.

Take a look inside James Engineering, a high-end CNC Deburring OEM that became a job shop when they decided to produce their own parts in-house.

Greenleaf is a supplier of industrial cutting tools, specializing in high-performance carbide and ceramic inserts, innovative toolholding systems and custom-designed tooling solutions. OCCO produces large crankshafts, camshafts and other custom, critical components for diesel engines, pumps and reciprocating equipment.

From quadruped robot dogs, to an in-booth putting green where you can test out a new golf putter, to a 3D-printed car and more, attendees enjoyed cutting-edge technology and innovations all week long. Take a look to see what (or who!) you might have missed this week!

FPGA chips operate at 100 khz—that is, the query for position feedback happens 100,000 times per second in every axis, versus a few thousand in the most powerful CNCs. With tool paths pre-plotted, axis motion values precalculated and the CNC’s capacity freed, enhanced diamond machining productivity is well within reach. “Say we’re cutting a heads-up display mirror for a car,” Dr. Wenzel says. “Conventional diamond turning would take about 11 hours. On our IL600 machine, we can cut that to about three and a half hours.”

The Innolite IL600 can be configured as needed with various tooling and gaging stations. Options include the Overdrive unit, milling spindles, and more. Machines can employ Nano-Grip zero-point clamping modules for easy changeover of tools and workpieces alike.

Modern Machine Shop is the leading publication and media brand in North America devoted to CNC machining. MMS combines unprecedented editorial access to manufacturing facilities with decades of experience to provide long-form content that is both insightful and impactful. About Us

When revising part designs, investigate the 3D CAD, the 2D drawing and the part’s functional requirements to determine which details should be tightened up.

Dr. Wenzel often refers to “diamond turning” because turning is the most common operation in diamond machining. However, Innolite systems like the IL600 are also capable of milling, ruling, fly-cutting and grinding. On this machine, the workholding spindle moves back and forth in Z and up and down in Y to present spinning parts to cutting tools and measurement equipment on the opposing X-axis slide. Periodic checks with both contact and non-contact probes keep the process on track, as do various temperature-control systems and hydrostatic, linear-motor driven axes leveraging high-resolution optical scales. With cutting edges so sharp—some turning insert edge radii measure only 20 nanometers—“everything must be perfect,” Dr. Wenzel says about the need for such features. “If you take a hair and cut it into 1,000 pieces, then take one of those pieces and cut it into four, that’s what we’re working with.”

User-friendly inspection software for CNC machining centers is shown monitoring measurements between and after machining while performing SPC based on recorded measurement values.

DirectDrive3D outputs the same information as any CNC: Coordinated motion profiles for each individual axis, all precisely timed to ensure the tool follows the intended path. However, these calculations are performed offline, before the cycle starts. With no need to look ahead, there is no need for the CNC to slow down.

Lenses, mirrors, optics and the mold inserts that enable making such parts at scale have long been machined with tools made of solid diamond. Despite a well-deserved reputation for precision, however, diamond machining can be painstakingly slow, says Dr. Christian Wenzel, CEO of diamond machine tool builder Innolite.

LED Headlight insert molds like this one are driving demand for increased diamond machining productivity. All photos and video courtesy of Innolite.

The IL300 is designed for standard diamond turning as well as free-form and micro structure generation. ILSONIC models use ultrasonic assistance to diamond-turn steel and infrared materials.

ANCA CNC Machines is celebrating its 50th anniversary as a global producer of CNC tool and cutter grinders.

With the CNC freed from much of its calculation burden, the bottleneck shifts to the drive system itself. Individual axes move via a feedback loop in which the motor adjusts power output as-needed based on periodic position checks from the encoder. Most machine tools use a centralized, PC-based system (often the CNC itself) to control and coordinate the axis positions, which are determined by precisely timed commands for position, speed, acceleration and jerk calculated from CAM data by the CNC (or by DirectDrive3D). If the coordinated feedback loops do not cycle fast enough, the machine cannot take full advantage of a system like DirectDrive3D, Dr. Wenzel says.

This new quick-change tooling system enables shops to get more production from their Swiss turning centers through reduced tool setup time and matches the performance of a solid tool.

Each tool setting technique has merit, and it depends on where you are as a shop and the type of work you do, as cost and efficiency all come into play.

Entrepreneur Scott Colosimo found early success in China producing parts for his Cleveland-based motorcycle company in the mid-2000s. This is the story of how IP theft issues overwhelmed the business, prompting Colosimo and his team to start over from scratch — and move production back to the United States.

Kern machines like this Micro are recommended for providing the productive, precise milling required to limit the need for diamond turning in the first place. This photo was taken at Kern's headquarters in Germany where, like Innolite, the company produces parts as well as machine tools.

Formnext Chicago is an industrial additive manufacturing expo taking place April 8-10, 2025 at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. Formnext Chicago is the second in a series of Formnext events in the U.S. being produced by Mesago Messe Frankfurt, AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology, and Gardner Business Media (our publisher).

The choice between buying a new machine or refurbishing the current one will become clear after a thorough assessment of the machine.

Heidenhain and Acu-Rite Solutions are offering several hands-on experiences at their booth this year, as well as internal components that reduce energy use.

LED Headlight insert molds like this one are driving demand for increased diamond machining productivity. All photos and video courtesy of Innolite.

Granted, any CNC could theoretically calculate any number of toolpath set points offline. The problem is that calculations take time—enough time to make doing the work in advance impractical. In one experiment, the company used a conventional CNC in offline mode to calculate the tool path for an LED headlight lens mold. With no need for lookahead to scout ahead of the tool in real time, the system ran at 10 kilohertz (khz)—that is, it was tasked with processing 10,000 toolpath set points per second. The calculations took more than 12 hours.

Standards for surface finishes and profiles are not static; they change as technology changes or new processes come along that need to be considered.

Lee Wimmer invited us to tour his second-generation family-owned machine shop in Perkasie, PA. This video explores the production processes behind precision-machined parts for both Wimmer Custom Cycle and LS Wimmer Machine Co., and shows how ingenuity and determination are still at the heart of American manufacturing. Today, both companies are now managed by Wimmer’s three sons.

Did you know that the show was postponed for WWII? Or that McCormick Place was expanded in the ’70s just to accommodate IMTS? A fascinating look at the show’s history from 1927 to today.

Weldon Solutions is demonstrating three grinders at IMTS 2024. Though they differ in size and use case, all feature the company’s hallmark customizations.

A crankshaft cutter segment up close. The segmented design allowed for more insert pockets, resulting in faster feed rates.

New tech center is serving as a cutting-edge showroom and a technological hub for advanced machining applications.

Greenleaf Corp.’s proprietary insert, cutter and machine adjustments helped OCCO reduce crankshaft machining costs to, in some cases, a quarter of the original cost.

Thousands of people visit our Supplier Guide every day to source equipment and materials. Get in front of them with a free company profile.

These improvements reduced OCCO’s cycle time to under two hours, with four shafts machined per index of the carbide inserts.

Innolite machines work differently. Rather than relying on the CNC to work while the machine runs, the company’s DirectDrive3D software calculates the entire tool path offline, before the cycle begins. Moving the work of the CNC offline eliminates the need for (and the delays associated with) in-process CNC look ahead. Meanwhile, a decentralized servo-system architecture ensures the machine can respond dynamically enough to execute high-resolution toolpath data without compromising efficiency. “We want to make diamond turning productive as well as precise,” Dr. Wenzel says. “The market demands it.”

AccuRounds has created synergy between culture and technology, driving a commitment to customer satisfaction and continuous improvement.

Though most frequently used for diameter measurements, an air plug and platen can be readily configured to measure perpendicularity.

Heidenhain and Acu-Rite Solutions are offering several hands-on experiences at their booth this year, as well as internal components that reduce energy use.

A partnership between two companies that celebrated milestone anniversaries in 2020 — Greenleaf Corp., which celebrated its 75th anniversary, and the Ohio Crankshaft Company (OCCO), which celebrated its 100th anniversary — resulted in solutions that greatly improved OCCO’s heavy milling and crankshaft manufacturing throughput and reduced costs.

Each tool setting technique has merit, and it depends on where you are as a shop and the type of work you do, as cost and efficiency all come into play.

Take a look inside James Engineering, a high-end CNC Deburring OEM that became a job shop when they decided to produce their own parts in-house.

When it comes to utilizing the spindle’s power, there is a lot of headroom at the upper limits, provided it’s in short bursts. Be mindful of your time at these loads so you don’t stall out.

The burden on the CNC is due more to the intricacy of diamond turned microstructures like these than stringent requirements for surface finish and precision.

Learn more about the variety of technology and machinery Hwacheon Machinery America, Inc. is featuring at its IMTS 2024 booth.

Job shops are implementing automation and digitalization into workflows to eliminate set up time and increase repeatability in production.

More specifically, even the most powerful computer can only handle so many set points—the points in space that approximate the curves and contours of a tool path—in so much time. Spacing the set points closer together enables smoother tool motion around smaller, more complex shapes, but a CNC must work harder to plot that motion, particularly if real-time lookahead is required to ensure fluid point-to-point transitions. Beyond a certain number of set points (typically a few thousand), a conventional machine tool CNC must slow down to allow time for processing.

Ever wonder what sets Top Shops apart from the competition? Dive into their award-winning practices and explore behind-the-scenes strategies for operational excellence.

Manufacturers continue to feel the pressure to reduce costs, increase efficiencies and meet their sustainability strategies. As the industry evolves to keep pace with these priorities, there are opportunities within metalworking processes to use less resources with advanced lubricants and technical expertise. Agenda: An overview of metalworking lubrication Evolutions in metalworking lubrication Experience on the shop floor Key takeaways

In this episode of Made in the USA, several executives and senior staff at Hardinge give their first-person account of how they formulated the plan to shift the manufacturing of its milling and turning product lines from its Taiwan plant to its plant in Elmira, New York, the major challenges they encountered and the rewards that made it worth the effort.

To ensure the drive system can react dynamically enough, Innolite entirely decouples position and current control from the CNC or any other PC-based “master” computer. Instead, the work is done by field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) embedded in each axis drive. Dr. Wenzel describes an FPGA as “a computer chip that is very stupid—there’s no Windows running in the background; it can’t execute Outlook or Word. But it can do just one thing and do it really fast: position and current control.”

Walter USA has acquired PDQ Workholding, intending to strengthen its offering of workholding products and develop future cutting tool sales.

FANUC’s IMTS 2024 booth includes real-time demonstrations that show the abilities of its equipment, including robots, controllers and machine tools.

New U.S.-based event announced in 2021 finally debuts next year: focuses on complete additive manufacturing value chain. More at formnextchicago.com.

FANUC’s IMTS 2024 booth includes real-time demonstrations that show the abilities of its equipment, including robots, controllers and machine tools.

Effective team collaboration is a critical component of success in today’s manufacturing world. With cloud-based technologies that make it easy for team members to brainstorm and problem solve remotely from various locations, design-to-manufacturing processes can become faster and more efficient. This webinar will demonstrate how fully integrated CAM software can be utilized with 3DExperience SolidWorks in a seamless work environment to accelerate product development. Agenda: See how HCL CAMWorks can be used as an add-in for all SolidWorks applications working with the cloud-based 3DExperience platform Learn how fully integrated CAD/CAM saves significant amounts of time during the design to manufacturing process Gain a new understanding of how software can connect users worldwide to accelerate product development Watch a demonstration of team collaboration using platform tools in the CAD/CAM software environment

Automation is no longer a luxury in manufacturing today – it’s a necessity. The Automated Shop Conference (TASC) will connect job shops with experts who offer advice and considerations for this process.

When it comes to utilizing the spindle’s power, there is a lot of headroom at the upper limits, provided it’s in short bursts. Be mindful of your time at these loads so you don’t stall out.

Across a range of technical presentations aimed at small and mid-sized job shops, the first-ever Automated Shop Conference (TASC) offered insights into several automated technologies, implementation strategies, shopfloor training tips, and even the untapped power of automated coolant delivery.

Machined directly in steel, LED headlight mold inserts require layering ridges and other microstructures directly atop complex, contoured surfaces.

The Nanogrip zero-point clamping system's modular design enables users to quickly and easily swap not only workpieces, but also various, multi-station configurations of cutting and measuring tools. Additionally, parts can be moved from Kern machines to Innolite machines without losing location references.

Part of Major Tool’s 52,000 square-foot building expansion includes the installation of this new Waldrich Coburg Taurus 30 vertical machining center.

Fryer Machine Systems Inc. presents its TC Series of CNC machining centers for high-performance cutting, accuracy, reliability and ease of use.

In the latest episode of our View From My Shop series, MMS Editor-in-Chief Brent Donaldson visited the JN Shapiro Watches headquarters and production facility where Founder Joshua Shapiro—a history teacher turned watchmaker—realized his dream of "making a watch from scratch and everything in it."

Tool-holder-spindle-machine combinations each have a unique dynamic response in the same way that each person has a unique fingerprint, which can be revealed using modal testing.

Are AMRs the next big trend in job shop automation? System 3R’s IMTS booth will emphasize both its specialty EDM tooling and its automation products, including an autonomous moving robot.

Looking to automate your shop floor? The Automated Shop Conference (TASC) will connect shops with experts who can advise them through this transition.

FABTECH 2024 will be held October 15-17, 2024, in Orlando, Florida, at the Orange County Convention Center. FABTECH provides a convenient ‘one-stop shop’ venue where you can meet with world-class suppliers, discover innovative solutions, and find the tools to improve productivity and increase profits. There is no better opportunity to network, share knowledge and explore the latest technology, all here in one place. Future U.S. Show Dates and Locations 2025 – September 8-11 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL 2026 – October 21-23 at Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV 2027 – September 13-16 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL

The Automated Shop Conference (TASC) will give shops of all sizes and production volumes key insights and practical guidance on how to implement automation.

Rob Guiao, Chris Hall and Bassanio Peters will demonstrate relatable situations to equip you with data to improve predictability, future-proof operations and maximize ROI. Agenda: Explore the importance of data in decision-making, especially for facility upgrades or new projects Learn how comprehensive solutions for manufacturing and construction projects can improve predictability and ROI See real demonstrations of machine integrations, facility layouts and automations to ensure proper throughput and integration

Are AMRs the next big trend in job shop automation? System 3R’s IMTS booth will emphasize both its specialty EDM tooling and its automation products, including an autonomous moving robot.

This presentation focuses on the vital role that linear and angular encoders play in ensuring precision in machine tools. Attendees will learn about the common challenges compromising accuracy, such as thermal expansion, mechanical misalignments and vibration. Whether you're an OEM, integrator, or machine operator, this webinar will offer valuable insights into optimizing CNC performance. Agenda: Challenges to CNC machine accuracy Understanding encoder technology How encoders address accuracy challenges

Thoughtful considerations will set you on a shortened path to the most optimized solution once cutter meets metal.

New tech center is serving as a cutting-edge showroom and a technological hub for advanced machining applications.

The L.S. Starrett Co. has been manufacturing precision measurement tools in Athol, Massachusetts, since 1880. Attention to U.S. manufacturing often focuses on reshoring manufacturing from other countries, but Starrett never left. The facility in Athol employs hundreds and produces thousands of tools that remain vital for measurement in machining and other fields.

Tool-holder-spindle-machine combinations each have a unique dynamic response in the same way that each person has a unique fingerprint, which can be revealed using modal testing.

FANUC’s IMTS 2024 booth includes real-time demonstrations that show the abilities of its equipment, including robots, controllers and machine tools.

The Walter Turn toolholder features rake-face cooling to help break and control chips, and double flank-face cooling directly at the cutting edge to extend tool life.

Women in Manufacturing is excited to announce that the 2024 SUMMIT will be a hybrid event — both an in-person and virtual experience. Both program offerings will enable you to grow through education and connections that are insightful, meaningful and actionable. Join Women in Manufacturing Oct. 6-9, 2024, in Boston or digitally for an event filled with plant tours at leading manufacturing facilities, professional development sessions, roundtable discussions on important topics, and inspiring keynotes. All while engaging and interacting with peers through social and networking events! __PRESENT __PRESENT

The burden on the CNC is due more to the intricacy of diamond turned microstructures like these than stringent requirements for surface finish and precision.

Misapplication of these important CNC features will result in wasted time, wasted or duplicated effort and/or wasted material.

Incremental mode can be more advantageous when programming sculptured surfaces or for certain hole-machining canned cycle applications.

The MB45 series is designed to deliver the low cutting force benefits of positive inserts and the fracture resistance of negative inserts.

Working closely with customers and making careful investments has enabled this Wisconsin machine shop to tackle difficult jobs with tight deadlines as a core part of its business.

“Special tooling is one of Greenleaf’s greatest areas of expertise, so we started working closely with the engineers at OCCO,” says Denny Carpenter, sales and service engineer for Greenleaf. The cutting tool supplier altered the cutter bodies to encapsulate a segmented design, which allowed for more insert pockets. This meant the machine could apply 25% more inserts — which Greenleaf also altered from their original triangular design, in addition to boosting their total to 48 — to the parts, resulting in faster feed rates. The heat and wear resistance of Greenleaf’s GA5036, a CVD-coated carbide grade, made it well suited for high-speed milling of the forged steel. Additionally, OCCO mechanically upgraded its American GFM model FKP45 crankshaft milling machine to allow for higher cutting speeds.

The system also eases transfer of pallets from the three- and five-axis Kern milling machines recommended for “roughing,” which in this case can require machining surface profiles and shapes with peak-to-valley accuracy of less than ±10 microns. “Diamond turning is not very productive compared to conventional milling,” Dr. Wenzel says. “A Kern machine is going to be superb for providing the repeatability and accuracy required to limit the need for diamond turning in the first place.” However little diamond turning is required, Innolite’s DirectDrive3D offline CNC system ensures it proceeds as fast as possible.

Stringent specifications for precision and surface finish are not enough to make the CNC a bottleneck to efficiency, Dr. Wenzel says. Geometry creates the problem. If a turning insert is to machine non-rotationally symmetrical, freeform curvature and complex 3D shapes into the face of a spinning part, it cannot stay in one plane, like a needle on a record player. Following along the hills and valleys of the spiraling tool path requires moving in and out in Z in perfect synchronization with the main spindle’s rotation. However this functionality is achieved, oscillating the tool is a demanding task for an already busy CNC.

With speeds maxing out at 3 or 4 khz (that is, 3,000 to 4,000 set points per second), most PC-based position-control systems are too slow. “The handshake that occurs when the CNC calculates and sends commands to the position controller is typically done online, but we do all of the work up-front,” he explains. “Essentially, we can feed more data from our offline CNC than (a PC-based system) could handle.”

Part of Major Tool’s 52,000 square-foot building expansion includes the installation of this new Waldrich Coburg Taurus 30 vertical machining center.

Greenleaf Corp. and OCCO worked together to improve productivity on this crankshaft machining application.

LED Headlight insert molds like this one are driving demand for increased diamond machining productivity. All photos and video courtesy of Innolite.

Machined directly in steel, LED headlight mold inserts require layering ridges and other microstructures directly atop complex, contoured surfaces.

Though most frequently used for diameter measurements, an air plug and platen can be readily configured to measure perpendicularity.

Mitsui Seiki USA Inc. appoints Joseph Farkas as its director of sales West and Terry Ritterbush as its director of sales East.

Q-Mark has built its metrology business by providing what customers need, when they want it. This goes for its IMTS booth, too, with free drinks alongside custom technology.

At the seminar, representatives from multiple companies discussed strategies for making orthopedic devices accurately and efficiently.

Consistency is key for beryllium manufacturing, so the data visibility granted by Harmoni has swiftly become a vital, profitable tool in the shop’s arsenal.

The IL300 is designed for standard diamond turning as well as free-form and micro structure generation. ILSONIC models use ultrasonic assistance to diamond-turn steel and infrared materials.

The first step in meeting this demand is changing old habits. To that end, Innolite and Kern offer Nanogrip, a spring-loaded, zero-point clamping system that enables swapping entire pallets of fixtures and cutting/measuring tools in seconds with no need for realignment. Repeatability is less than half a micron. Well-established in more conventional machining operations, such a system represents new thinking for diamond turning operations where painstaking, manual setup of tools and parts in vacuum chucks is common practice. Dr. Wenzel says.

Weldon Solutions is demonstrating three grinders at IMTS 2024. Though they differ in size and use case, all feature the company’s hallmark customizations.

The Diatool Top Speed Disc features a solid reamer body with multiple connections to produce tolerance stack up.

Refined machines at EROWA are handling heavier loads, while its precision workholding enhances stability and rigidity.

Working closely with customers and making careful investments has enabled this Wisconsin machine shop to tackle difficult jobs with tight deadlines as a core part of its business.

Attend TASC, The Automated Shop Conference, in Novi, Mich on Oct. 11, 2023 for a comprehensive look into how to use automation to transform your machine shop.

SSP’s commitment to adopting the latest machining technology benefits not only the business, but its employees as well.

Thoughtful considerations will set you on a shortened path to the most optimized solution once cutter meets metal.

JD Machine, 2024’s Top Shops Honoree in Human Resources, embodies its “Education for Life” core value with a robust apprenticeship program and significant continuous improvement efforts.

Innolite equipment is available in North America as of late last year through Kern Precision, the Chicago-based U.S. arm of fellow German machine tool builder and long-term partner Kern Microtechnik. The two companies’ motivation here is the same as it is in their home market: to help manufacturers of parts with optical-quality surface finish adapt to the unfamiliar demands of new applications, particularly in the automotive industry.

Thoughtful considerations will set you on a shortened path to the most optimized solution once cutter meets metal.

When surface form accuracy is measured in microns and roughness is measured in nanometers, the CNC becomes a bottleneck, he explains. In any application, fluid, precise motion depends on lookahead functionality to scout ahead of the cutter and ensure ample reaction time to adverse conditions, all while the control is simultaneously engaged in other tasks. Diamond machining applications can require plotting motion in such detail that slowing down is the only way for the CNC to keep up.

In this webinar, industry-leading experts will demonstrate how additive manufacturing can revolutionize your operations and answer the question: Can you afford not to? From rapid prototyping to robust fixturing and specialized custom tooling, it’ll showcase the diverse applications that can drive your business forward in a time where cost and time saving can be crucial. Discover how to reduce costs, accelerate production cycles and achieve unparalleled design freedom through the strategic integration of 3D printing technology. Phillip’s panel of seasoned professionals will share real-world examples and practical insights to help you understand the potential of additive manufacturing. Learn how to overcome production challenges, improve product quality and gain a competitive advantage. It will explore the cost-benefit analysis of 3D printing — including material and labor savings — as well as the potential for increased revenue. Join this webinar to discover why additive manufacturing is no longer a luxury, but a necessity for success. Agenda: Prototyping example: quick-change prototype Custom tooling real-world example: press brake, tube bending die CMM fixturing and workholding example: CMM fixture and soft jaw

The latest episode “Made in the USA” podcast explores a company that uses collaborative robots, one of the key tools helping US machine shops and other manufacturers compete with lower cost countries by automating production.

Machined directly in steel, LED headlight mold inserts require layering ridges and other microstructures directly atop complex, contoured surfaces.

The IL300 is designed for standard diamond turning as well as free-form and micro structure generation. ILSONIC models use ultrasonic assistance to diamond-turn steel and infrared materials.

When Puneet and Neelam Neotia moved from India to the United States several years ago, they brought with them a family background in manufacturing and CNC machining. Now the couple is working to get their startup machine shop off the ground, sourcing new customers and getting the word out about their shop in Clarksville, Indiana. The couple — proud to publicize their "Made in the USA" parts — is leveraging family connections and manufacturing capabilities back in India, but not in the way that some people assume.

Ceratizit USA announces it has appointed Carlos Garza as its business development leader for the oil and gas industry sector.

The burden on the CNC is due more to the intricacy of diamond turned microstructures like these than stringent requirements for surface finish and precision.

FANUC’s IMTS 2024 booth includes real-time demonstrations that show the abilities of its equipment, including robots, controllers and machine tools.

In one particular application, OCCO was machining locomotive and tugboat crankshafts from steel forgings that measure between 95-165 inches long and range in weight from 2,000-6,200 pounds. Machining one shaft would take between 4-6 hours with one shaft machined per two indexes of the triangular carbide inserts. “We really felt there must be a more efficient way to do this,” says Greg Stem, OCCO’s director of engineering. “We’ve worked with Greenleaf for a long time, so we talked with them about potential solutions for this application.”

Structured light scanning is used to create a digital twin of a manufactured part, but we must understand the measurement reproducibility to best use the data.

In contrast, DirectDrive3D did the same work in less than 10 minutes. The difference between the two systems is how the calculations are performed, Dr. Wenzel explains. Running offline enables DirectDrive3D to use parallel processing, or the division of computing tasks among multiple cores (processing units). In contrast, CNC algorithms designed to work while the machine runs use a single core because the calculations are derivative—that is, adjustments made on the way to one toolpath set point can affect how the CNC might react when it responds to the next. “In the end we’re doing the same thing (as a CNC), but because we don’t need the online functionality, we can use different math and parallelize calculations,” Dr. Wenzel says.

After experiencing process stalls in the finishing stage of production, Bryan Machine Service designed an air-powered twin spindle and indexable rotating base to effectively double its production of small parts.

AccuRounds has created synergy between culture and technology, driving a commitment to customer satisfaction and continuous improvement.

Straight to a round - carbide insert cutting tools

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