25years ago
42
Mould tool making meltdown; CD-ROM machine tool spec database; ABB’s two
decades in robots; DSG’s manual/CNC combo; deburring specialist’s success;
aqueous degreasing; cam technology come-back; Renishaw founder’s award
november 1995
‘Mould tool making set for meltdown’ screamed our rst
comment this month. The culprit is ‘3D-printing’, which
up till this point had been mostly associated with
prototype designs, hence its ‘rapid prototyping’ nomenclature and
not 3D-printing as now. 3D Systems’ stereolithography process was
the main game in town. But, off the back of that company’s
statements, we say that ‘rapid tooling’ is now a potential threat to
the traditional approach. 3D Systems introduced its QuickCast
process in 1992 for investment casting of tool details, the process
that is leading the charge towards rapid tooling, along with other
indirect methods of creating tool details. It’s just the beginning,
we say, noting also the direct production of metal tool details as
possible. There has been no 3D-printing-driven mould tool meltdown,
however, rather where the tools are made has seen major
readjustment. The future never arrives quite as imagined.
Our second comment this month heralds the launch of
Machinery’s CD-ROM Machine Tool Selector, a global database of
machine tool speci cations. The faster creation of a shortlist, based
on technical criteria, was the aim, not a complete eradication of faceto
face visits and comparison of ‘soft’ issues, however. This was a
step up from our previous Machinery Buyers’ Guide print annual but
would in just a few years be superseded by our website.
In news this month, we celebrate two decades of
robot welding for ABB and the installation of its
500th such unit in the UK, at Triumph
Lathes, Keighley, which is now offering a combination manual/CNC
lathe option for its rebuilds – a trend of the day, in fact. DMG (UK),
today DMG Mori, has started to unveil its new-look prismatic
machinery, following the rescue and reorganisation of the Deckel and
Maho brand machinery activities. The DMU 50V universal machining
centre is one of the rst all-new designs.
Celebrating a more mundane and unforgotten area of
metalcutting, that of deburring, we report on Cheltenham-based
Deburring Services’ success in doubling its turnover in just three
years. The company offers a wide range of deburring processes on
one site and can turn parts round within 24 hours. Another
previously mundane area that is becoming increasingly important is
degreasing, due to the outlawing of solvents and the increase in
aqueous degreasing technology and chemicals. New company Bio-
Clean Equipment Sales is talking big about its technology, which is
targeted at the aerospace industry. And a resurgence of old-style
mechanical technology is being seen at Cam Pro les, a maker of
cams for mechanical machinery for 45 years. Having seen its market
reduced by electronically controlled, servo-motor/ballscrew-driven
alternatives, there is a swing back, due to cams’ increased durability
and higher ef ciency, the company says. Cam Pro les was dissolved
in 2011, however. A short-lived reprieve, then.
In what has become something of a habit for Renishaw, the
company’s founder, David McMurtry (today Sir David), was recognised
at the inaugural 1995 Metrology for World Class Metrology Awards.
In feature articles this month, we have: surface nishing of shiny
engines at Triumph Motorcycles; Mitsubishi’s third-generation EDM
fuzzy logic technology; combination punch/laser machinery; Landis
Lund/Cran eld Precision Engineering grinding machine/control
developments; machine tool rebuilding; a subcontracting
supplement; rapid prototyping; Sharnoa laser digitising plus metal
and graphite machining centre; Dutch company Unisign’s Open
House; drilling/tapping – dedicated machine or machining centre?
Key Events
Motorcycles, Hinckley. ABB claims 30% of all
UK welding robot installations at this time.
It introduced the world’s rst commercially
available electrically driven industrial robot
in 1974, it’s IRB6. Production of that model
ceased in 1993, by which time 7,000+ had
been installed, 5,000+ for welding duties.
Also making technology news is DSG
Machinery’s Machine
Tool Selector CD-ROM
database heralds a
new way to shortlist
machine tools
fotogestoeber /stock.adobe.com
James Bond 17th
lm, GoldenEye
with Pierce
Brosnan
as lead, opens
▼
nov 95
▼ ▼
Bombay restored to Mumbai
▼
SNEHIT PHOTO /stock.adobe.com
majivecka /stock.adobe.com
First-ever fulllength
computeranimated
feature
lm, Toy Story –
Pixar & Walt Disney
Pictures
seanlockephotography /stock.adobe.com
Web
language
HTML 2.0
standard
rst
published
The coatings for
the highest performance
For more informations:
cutting.tools/en/dragonskin
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