TOOLING SUPPORTING A NATIONAL EFFORT
0.5 mm thick PETG face visors that had to be
free from both burrs and sharp edges, as
these could obviously pose a different health
risk to medical staff. Already a customer of
Industrial Tooling Corporation (ITC – www.
is.gd/acepar) for more than a decade, when it
came to the cutting of thin plastic sheets on
its Biesse Klever routing machine, the
Tamworth-based cutting tool manufacturer
was on hand with advice.
Says Dawson: “The PETG visor is the most
“In little more than a weekend,
Board and we now have a rm order from
Bridgend County Council for another 5,000
masks for its care workers. Additionally, we
are currently awaiting testing and certi cates
required by NHS Wales to supply all Wales’
health boards. With demand rapidly rising, we
are aiming to start a second shift so we can
increase production from 700 to 1,400
masks per day.”
The facemask consists of a 0.5 mm PETG
visor, an elasticated strap that is pre-cut to
length and foam padding that is applied to the
visor to create an element of comfort for the
healthcare user.
Of the cutting tools, Dawson offers:
“We initially ordered one 6 mm diameter solid
carbide 180 Clearcut Series routing tool, and
with a high number of facemask orders we
also ordered an additional six tools. However,
we have produced over 1,000 visors and the
rst cutting tool hasn’t even started to wear.
The edge nish on the visor is still of the
utmost quality with no sign of the plastic
burring or creating rough edges.
“The reason we buy cutting tools from ITC
is for their superior quality and the technical
support and advice we get from their
engineering team. With the facemasks for the
numerous Welsh health boards and councils,
we really were in a race against the clock to
produce the goods. In such instances, you do
need the best technical partners and solution
providers around you and we certainly have
this with ITC. Even during a national crisis, it
is reassuring to know that technical solution
providers like ITC are still manufacturing
quality cutting tool solutions here in the UK to
support British manufacturers – in particular
the hundreds of companies like us that are
meeting critical infrastructure and healthcare
provisions.”
critical part of the facemask
assembly, as we knew that the
masks had to be burr-free. With
high production volumes and rapid
turnaround times, we couldn’t
afford to be hand- nishing the
masks. I called Sally Hunt at ITC, as
her technical advice and support
down the years has been
invaluable. Sally considered the
working parameters of our Biesse
machine, as well as the material
and thickness, and she
subsequently recommended the
Clearcut 180 Series of solid-carbide
single- ute down-cut routing tools.
we have produced over 1,000
masks for the Hywel Dda Health
The WTX HFDS
from Ceratizit
is “the fi rst and
only four-edged
high-feed drill on
the market” –
see box, below
Industry & product news in brief
Ceratizit Group has assigned signi cant additional capacity to
the supply of special tools that can complete multiple tasks, which
are seeing high demand linked to the drive for shorter cycle times.
www.is.gd/ebigih
Europa Tool is offering free tooling to those engaged in the effort
to produce NHS medical ventilators. www.is.gd/agiwoj
Ceratizit UK & Ireland reports “a tremendous uptake” of its offer
for free test tools, heavily discounted production tools and
technical support for those companies involved in the manufacture
of ventilator and other related diagnostic equipment.
www.is.gd/ukopif
Industrial Tooling Corporation (ITC) has published the latest
edition of its annual product catalogue. www.is.gd/axejuz
Sandvik Coromant has embarked on a unique venture with
Microsoft to drive forward the development and digitalisation of the
manufacturing industry. www.is.gd/besere
Tooling Corporation (ITC) has changed all of the packaging on its
UK-manufactured cutting tools to 100% recyclable material.
www.is.gd/asunoc
The WTX HFDS from Ceratizit is “the rst and only four-edged
high-feed drill on the market”. It offers “impressive cutting data
and tool life in steel and cast iron materials”. www.is.gd/laquna
Seco Tools has expanded its Jetstream Tooling Integrated (JETI)
technology by adding a complete range of holders for general ISO
turning. www.is.gd/kaduqu
The new Accure-tec vibration damping technology from tooling
expert Walter GB ensures vibration-free and low-noise cutting in
dif cult-to-machine turning and milling applications, up to 10x and
5x diameter respectively. www.is.gd/onodes
Kyocera MECHT indexable insert milling cutters offer positive,
light cutting that achieves perfect 90° shoulders and smooth
surfaces. www.is.gd/irapuh
Horn’s range of face-grooving products has been expanded to
include new holder variants for its S224 double-edged system for
producing axial grooves from 38 mm to 1 m in diameter.
www.is.gd/woloha
The advanced -GM geometry for Sandvik Coromant’s CoroDrill
860 range offers high-performance drilling across a wide range of
materials and applications, as well as signi cantly improved tool
life. www.is.gd/piquwa
Kennametal has introduced the B21*SGL solid-carbide drill with
through-coolant, designed for stainless steel, nickel and cobaltbased
alloys. www.is.gd/exureg
34 May/June 2020 | www.machinery.co.uk | MachineryMagazine | @MachineryTweets
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