Lean Manufacturing: Liberate Your Machining Processes

Lean manufacturing is the answer for companies to stay profitable in today's competitive market. Tool paths are are at the heart of any manufacturing company with a tremendous amount of opportunity hidden in them, which can be tapped with correct digital tools. Read the following feature story to learn more about what you can do to maximize your productivity with little investment

Feature Story: Liberate Your Machining Processes

Uniting Forces for Blade Machining

In the recent years, 4-axis blade machining has started to be replaced more and more by continuous 5-axis machining. 5-axis machines allow maximum flexibility and versatility which significantly increase the functionality of standard cutting tools, and reduce the need for multiple set-ups.

Improved Positional Five Axis Machining with NC Program Optimization

Background
Positional Five Axis Machining refers to 3-axis machining with part indexed using fourth and fifth axes. This technique has long been in practice due to its ability to save time by machining complex or multi-faceted features in a single set-up. Some other benefits to positional five axis machining are the effective use of short cutter due to greater reach capability; improved machining parameters (faster cutting, longer tool life); and increased accuracy simply by creating a series of orientation workplanes.

An example of Position Five Axis Machining. All six sides of this part are finished  in a single set-up.

President Obama Launches Advanced Manufacturing Partnership

Today, at Carnegie Mellon University, President Obama launched the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP), a national effort bringing together industry, universities, and the federal government to invest in the emerging technologies that will create high quality manufacturing jobs and enhance our global competitiveness. Investing in technologies, such as information technology, biotechnology, and nanotechnology, will support the creation of good jobs by helping U.S. manufacturers reduce costs, improve quality, and accelerate product development.

An SME saves 32% on a mass production part with MACHpro NC Program Optimization

Our objective in this project was to develop a best practice method for an SME to improve their production processes and make them cost-efficient. We used MACHpro software as a platform to evaluate an existing G-Code. Our first analysis of the tool path showed that the tool - part engagement was constantly varying along the path, which meant that tool was used at its full capacity only at small sections of the program, which indicated an opportunity for process improvement. In addition, we realized that single feed value was used for the entire tool path (which is a typical CAM procedure) even though the tool wasn't even removing material.

A new era in jet engine design?

Passenger planes will have propeller type engines starting from 2025. This new engine design called Propfan is essentially similar to a jet engine with the fan placed outside the engine cover (housing) on the same axis as the compressor blades. Aircraft with propfan type engines are estimated to reduce carbon emission by 70% and fuel consumption by 30%.

Titanium Machining: The Effect of the Cutting Parameters

Titanium having a density only about 60% of steel has a far greater strength than many steel alloys. However, titanium has many difficulties in machining. It has a low conductivity and therefore heat due to cutting does not dissipate quickly. This results in concentration of heat on the cutting edge and hence greatly limits the machinability of this material. 


In titanium machining tool life is greatly affected by the following cutting parameters listed in the order of decreasing effect, i.e., the least influential one for tool life is the one at the bottom of the list:

• surface cutting speed
• radial depth of cut
• feed per tooth (chip thickness)
• axial depth of cut

Chatter: Root Cause and Tap Testing

Chatter vibration is one of the biggest headache of production engineers, machinists, and NC programmers. Chatter degrades part quality, reduces productivity and shortens tool life. Without getting to the bottom of the problem, production engineers can only rely on trial and error to eliminate this problem. But what is it that causes chatter?

MACHpro: Analyze, Verify and Optimize NC Programs

Boeing is Awarded a $35 Billion Contract

After a decade of delays, Pentagon awarded one of the biggest defense contracts ever to build airborne refueling tankers (flying gas stations) - to Boeing Company. These new airplanes will replace their peers from 1950s. Boeing will base the tanker on its 767 aircraft. The contract will mean 50,000 jobs.

Boeing Defeats EADS for $35 Billion Air Force Tanker Program - Businessweek

Machine Tool Sales (finally) Back to Normal

Statistics from 2010 looks promising. Manufacturing industry is finally back on track and companies have started to make investment.
Machine Tool Sales Return to “Normal” – Up 75% in December

Volume Based Feed Rate Optimization: Can We Rely On It?

Feed rate optimization of NC programs has started to become a hot topic for the past 5 years. Most CAM companies have developed some type of an optimization tool to adjust feed rate along the tool path. The idea behind feed rate manipulation is to dynamically change feed rate along tool paths where geometry varies. This way, a long G01 command with one feed value can be split into a number of shorter G01 commands with different feed rate. The fundamental assumption that such systems are based on, called Volume Based Optimization, is that 

Process outputs such as spindle power/torque, cutting forces, tool deflection, etc... are directly proportional to the material removal rate (or the volume of material removed)... 

Since CAM based systems only have the geometric information obtained from tool path simulation and workpiece geometry update, this assumption seemed valid at the time. However, researchers specialized in metal cutting prove this assumption wrong! It is very likely that two different cutting configurations with identical material removal rate may result 50%-100% difference in peak cutting forces, spindle power/torque, etc...

MACHpro: How to Reduce Cycle Times

It takes only three simple steps to set up MACHpro to analyze and optimize tool paths.

MACHpro: Basics of Part Program Optimization

Combining your expertise in machining with MACHpro's unique Virtual Machining technology, parts can be optimized prior to actual machining and productivity can be increased. MACHpro takes three inputs namely CAD model of the stock; original part program (tool path); and cutting tool geometries, and analyzes quality of the actual machining process. MACHpro automatically corrects feed rates of NC blocks when machining problems such as chatter vibrations and spindle overloading are detected. Corrected feed rates are inserted into the original part program and a new optimized part program is generated automatically.

MACHpro Virtual Machining is released!

The most comprehensive machining process analysis and optimization software, MACHpro Virtual Machining, is released. 

MACHpro is an integrated, science-based engineering software that notably improves competitiveness of manufacturing companies by significantly reducing overall cost per component through high performance machining.

Modeling and Simulation among U.S. Manufacturers: The Case for Digital Manufacturing

In partnership with Intersect360 Research, the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) conducted a broad-based survey of U.S. manufacturers regarding the current state of digital manufacturing technologies and the drivers and barriers to expanding adoption. This study reveals the desire and potential benefits of digital manufacturing for a broad range of companies, particularly the assistance needed by small and medium-size manufacturers (SMMs) and the partnerships they would seek.

An SME Finds the "Sweet Spot" and Achieves an Overnight Success

A progressive BC manufacturing company, Redline Pro Manufacturing, has always invested into new technologies, and they have benefited greatly over the years. They transformed 450 sq. ft. garage shop with a single low end machine tool into a successful, fully automated, state-of-the-art job shop that is running around the clock and making parts for the high tech sector.

Impressive Cycle Time Optimization in Stamping Die Machining

Stamping dies are one of the most time consuming, hard to machine components of the automotive industry. A typical machining strategy for contour surface is to use ball type cutters removing material at varying depths of cut. Long overhangs from the spindle nose puts excessive loading on the tool, and spindle. In addition, constantly varying part geometry and depths of cut make it extremely difficult to maintain a proper chip load on the cutting edges. As a result, process planners typically choose conservative cutting conditions because an error in part program is not affordable when it comes to machining small quantities. 

A striking example of chatter vibration suppression

We wanted to give an example of how to increase productivity by chatter suppression. Below, you will see two videos of machining an aluminum workpiece with two different cutting conditions. The first cutting condition is selected by a process planner based on recommendations of a tool vendor:

How to construct productivity charts

Productivity of a milling operation is directly proportional to the axial depth of cut, radial width of cut, spindle speed and chip load. Traditionally, the industry uses machinability data handbooks as a reference to select cutting conditions leading to a safe but conservative operating point. The most optimum cutting condition; however, can only be obtained by determining the limiting cutting conditions based on workpiece material properties, machine rigidity, cutting tool properties, rigidity of tool/work holding system and spindle capacity. One extremely powerful method to tune cutting conditions for optimum production is dynamic analysis.