11
FIVE-AXIS MACHINING SUPPLEMENT
PRODUCTION MACHINING
Y and Z travels of 350 by 350 by
610 mm and an A-axis range of -120° to
+30°. Integrex J200 Smooth has an 8”
chuck, 51 mm bar, 600 mm machining
diameter by 500 length. It has a 200
mm Y-axis stroke and swivelling B-axis.
Says Dean Thomas, engineering
manager at AE Aerospace: “By being there
when we need them, the Mazak team
have continued to show a commitment to
our business, particularly with the
standard of aftercare and service support,
which has been outstanding. When there
have been machine issues, Mazak has
responded quickly, with both service
and replacement parts support, to
ensure that we have minimised downtime
and got production back up and running
very quickly”.
The manufacturer’s long-term ambition
is to become a ‘glass factory’, giving
customers access to a fully servitised
model of machining by the hour.
Customer-focused cells are already in
operation and the new machines will link
to AE’s EdgeCAM CAD/CAM system
(Hexagon Production Software, https://is.
gd/uciway). This will feed into a new
Valuechain DNA SME ERP system that will
give access to live data and allow
customers to track their jobs at every
stage of the production process.
Alan Mucklow, managing director, UK
and Ireland sales and service at Yamazaki
Mazak, comments: “AE Aerospace is a
shining example of a major aerospace
subcontractor that is willing to invest in
state-of-the-art machinery to enhance its
production capabilities and its competitive
position.
“Aerospace is an extremely demanding
sector, requiring a combination of speed
and precision that only the most advanced
machining techniques can deliver.
AE Aerospace’s continued commitment
to excellence in all of their manufacturing
activities is being rewarded by a premium
position in the aerospace supply chain
and Mazak is very proud of the close
relationship that has developed between
the two companies.”
Adds AE Aerospace managing director
Peter Bruch: “We now operate 21 Mazak
machines with an average age of under
ve years. Investing in new technology is a
key component of our business strategy.
These new Mazak machines feed into our
ongoing business improvement
programme, increasing capacity, extending
production capabilities and helping take
us on the next stage of our journey to
servitisation. We will continue investing in
people, plant and machinery to ensure we
can take the business to the next stage of
growth.”
Lightweighting drives machining
investment at Alucast
Casting expert Alucast is a supporting the
automotive sector in its journey to
‘lightweighting’ to help it meet global
requirements for cars that produce fewer
emissions.
It is paying off for the Black Country
rm, with over £3 million of new orders
taken over the 12 months, involving 96
new products that it has started to tool up
for before delivering the subsequently
machined parts in medium to high
volumes.
“We had two choices…resist it and fall
behind or embrace it and try to maximise
the opportunity,” explained Tony Sartorius,
chairman of Alucast.
“Everyone who knows us will know it
was a simple decision and we quickly
identi ed the need to increase the
capacity of our machine shop, working
with Engineering Technology Group
https://is.gd/ulufay to purchase two
new Quaser MF630Cs, giving us ve
5-axis machines.”
He continues: “To achieve the required
‘lightweighting’, a lot of companies are
moving away from welding assemblies in
heavy materials to machining using
aluminium. In order to give it the strength
and diversity, the shapes are more
complex and that’s where the additional
control and accuracy offered by a 5-axis
comes into play.”
The latest two, 4+1-axis Quaser
machining centres, which come equipped
with state-of-the-art Siemens 828D
control, join existing Quaser ‘400’, ‘500’
and ‘630’ machines in the expanded
machining shop.
Having the additional 5-axis technology
will help Alucast machine many of the 96
www.machinery.co.uk @MachineryTweets September 2019
parts in either one or two ops. Engineers
working on the new products are
suggesting cycle times have been reduced
by 50% in some cases.
Engineering Technology Group has a
long-standing relationship with Alucast
that goes back to 2012. Continues
Sartorius: “You always know what you are
getting with a Quaser – a high
performance machining centre that is
extremely reliable and represents good
value for money.
“It also offers a very economical
footprint, meaning we can maximise the
space in our machine shop to get the last
drop of productivity out of it.”
After discussions with ETG, the two
Quaser MF630Cs were identi ed as giving
Alucast the bed size, control and speed
required to deliver the new contracts. The
machines have X, Y and Z travels of 800,
700 and 610 mm, with a 500 mm
diameter table held in a trunnion.
It took just four months from the order
being placed to the machining centres
being delivered, installed and
commissioned, with training on optimising
the programming currently being given to
the casting specialist’s engineers.
Martin Doyle, managing director of
ETG, went on to add: “We have seen a
major increase in the number of enquiries
for 5-axis CNC machines, mainly driven by
the UK manufacturing sector positioning
itself as an expert in more complex,
deeper parts.
“Companies want to be able to work
on parts from ve-sides in a single
operation, reducing tool vibration,
increasing speed and cutting down on
material handling time.
“The Quaser machining centres are
ideal for subcontractors looking to
enhance their 5-axis capability or for
suppliers considering taking on more
challenging projects.”
AE Aerospace has invested
in 5-axis Mazak machinery
Alucast is putting ETGsupplied
Quaser machines
to work on new projects
/is
/www.machinery.co.uk