7
FIVE-AXIS MACHINING SUPPLEMENT
PRODUCTION MACHINING
with staff able to move seamlessly
between the twin-screen WinMAX
controls powering the larger machining
centres and the single-screen MAX
controls on the smaller VM1 machining
centre and TM8 lathe. The
subcontractor’s hyperMILL of ine CAM
system (Open Mind, https://is.gd/
gatuno) is used mostly for programming
more complex 3+2 axis cycles to reduce
set-ups and improve accuracy on the
5-axis machines and to create some fully
interpolative cycles as well.
Managing director Chris Smith says
he favours the Hurco VMX42SRTi-style of
5-axis machining centre over the
trunnion-mounted rotary table
arrangement, due to its versatility for
tackling a greater variety of work,
including 4-axis machining of large
components.
The VMX42SRTi has X, Y and Z
travels of 1,067 by 610 by 610 mm,
a table of 1,270 by 610 mm and boasts
a B-axis range of ±90°.
First 5-axis machine drives down cycle
times, opens up new design possibilities
Traditionally a 3-axis vertical machining
centre (VMC) user, Singer Instruments in
Watchet, on the north coast of
Somerset, installed its rst 5-axis CNC
machine at the start of 2019 to
streamline the manufacture of aluminium
components.
The machine, a German-built Spinner
U5-630, is a 40-taper, nominally halfmetre
cube machine supplied through
sole UK agent Whitehouse Machine
Tools (https://is.gd/iyiqug). It is
equipped with high pressure coolant
through the spindle and a separate clean
tank, as well as Blum spindle-mounted
workpiece probing and a tool setting
probe.
Cycle time savings have been
dramatic and there has been a
considerable reduction in the number of
set-ups needed across a raft of different
parts. It is a result of using the two
additional rotary CNC axes provided by
the swivelling trunnion and rotary table to
reposition components automatically.
In one case, a table for Singer
Instruments’ world-leading ROTOR
automated screening instrument used in
the biological sciences sector is
produced in three set-ups, whereas
previously it required nine separate
prismatic machining operations on a
3-axis VMC.
More typically, components previously
needing six operations are now produced
in two. In one such example, for
producing another integral part for the
same genomic screening instrument,
machining cycles totalling three-quarters
of an hour have been reduced to eight
minutes.
In addition to higher production
output, other bene ts of fewer set-ups
include less handling, lower xturing
costs, and enhanced accuracy through
fewer clampings. Furthermore, with
average batch size in the range 10- to
20-off, a lot of work in progress is
eliminated.
Investment in 5-axis capacity was
instigated by Steve Maconnachie, CNC
machinist at Singer Instruments. He
previously ran his own subcontract
machining business in the Midlands with
his brother and had used 5-axis
technology for many years. He was
familiar with all the leading makes of
machine, many of which were reviewed
before deciding on the Spinner purchase.
He says: “Some of our components
are tightly toleranced to ±5 microns, so
we maintain the temperature of our
production area to within a couple of
degrees Celsius.
“It is true that many of the 5-axis
machines we considered could hold this
tolerance, as does the Spinner, whose
price was also competitive. It was little
more than half the cost of one of the
other production centres we shortlisted.”
He singled out for praise the service
provided by Whitehouse, which included
helping to remove the 54-pocket tool
www.machinery.co.uk @MachineryTweets September 2019
magazine and Z-axis motor so that the
machine would pass through the door to
the building. On the shop oor, the U5-
630 has a compact footprint of a little
over 2.7 by 2.4 m, which is bene cial, as
space is limited in the factory.
Every component used in Singer
Instruments’ products is designed inhouse
using SolidWorks. Based on the
models created, programming is carried
out in Autodesk’s FeatureCAM (https://
is.gd/litoha) on a PC, with data
transferred to the Spinner’s Heidenhain
TNC 620 control via the latter’s TNCremo
software. All the other machining centres
on the shop oor also have Heidenhain
controls similarly linked to the CAM
system.
Currently, all 5-axis cycles involve
3+2-axis cutting strategies, as
components have historically been
designed for production on 3-axis
machining centres. However, the Spinner
machine is capable of fully interpolative
5-axis machining, so parts being
designed for new electronic workstations
and laboratory automation equipment,
used worldwide for research into
genetics, neuroscience, cancer, biofuel
engineering and microbiology, will be
designed more ef ciently with the
Spinner machine’s enhanced capability
in mind.
Analysis reveals need for more 5-axis
machining capacity
Precision subcontractor Thomas Brown
Engineering, Hudders eld, has installed
a Mikron MILL P 500U supplied by GF
Machining Solutions (https://is.gd/
nofata). Installed in January 2019, it is
being used to machine components for
customers operating in the aerospace,
medical, automotive, robotics, food
processing, oil and gas, and steel
manufacturing/processing sectors.
Parts are characterised by their
accuracy and surface nish
requirements, with a 20 micron
geometric tolerance and a Ra 0.2 micron
surface nish being the rule rather than
the exception.
Explains Tom Brown, founder and
managing director: “The sectors where
we operate are competitive and
demanding. Quality is non-negotiable and
ever-stringent delivery times are
increasingly prevalent. To meet customer
demands and survive in these
Almond Engineering
is using Hurco
5-axis machinery
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