Product category:
Milling cutters
News Release from: ITC Tooling | Subject: Slot milling and end milling cutters at Walker
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 08 January 2008
Slot milling cutter reduces machining
time 60%
An 0.6mm slot cutter thas reduced production time in machining 'O'-ring grooves in a titanium component from 4.5h to just over 2h - a saving of over 60%.
Walker Precision Engineering, a leading UK subcontractor, had a cutter life problem in slot milling grooves in a titanium component Calling in ITC Tooling not only solvd the tool life problem but also reduced slot machining time by 60%
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 6 Feb 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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The job was a medical component for a renowned medical manufacturer.
The titanium part consisted of 13 O-ring grooves per component.
Machined with a 0.6mm diameter cutter at a depth of 0.6mm the grooves were causing considerable difficulty for Walker Precision as manufacturing engineer, Brian Ronald explained: "We were machining the titanium parts and after machining 14 rings the cutter would break - that was the equivalent to one cutter per complete part.
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Two flute solid carbide cutter has a 50 degree right hand helix, specifically designed for machining aluminium at extremely high speeds and feeds as well as plastics and brass.
We really needed to improve the situation and immediately asked our ITC representative to get involved".
Beside tool breakage, the problem that Walker Precision encountered was identifying the breakage - a common issue with small cutting tools, said ITC to manufacturingtalk.com.
This often meant the broken cutter would continue its cycle long after breaking, wasting valuable production time.
Following consultation with ITC's regional engineer, Gary Heaney, the company was introduced to the Hanita VariMills and the Hanita Vision slot cutters from ITC.
ITC's 0.6mm diameter Vision slot cutter was put to work on the O-ring slots and immediately delivered results.
The ITC Vision 0.6mm slot cutter treduced the production time from 4.5h to just over 2h.
This remarkable saving of over 60% on this new job is set to have a considerable impact upon Walker Precision as the company currently produces 40 parts/week with plans for 200/month when it builds up to full scale production.
Ronald continued: "The ITC Vision cutter has been amazing on this application.
It has virtually eliminated tool breakages by improving tool life beyond all expectations.
Beside this, the cutter is running at faster speeds and feeds and taking deeper cuts to deliver exceptional productivity gains.
We are also witnessing improved surface finishes with the cutter eliminating any burrs - a common problem with the previous cutters".
* End milling - with a number of projects in hand at any one time, ITC is often asked to provide solutions to any cutting tool issues that may arise.
Another project that required support from ITC was an aluminium enclosure that had issues with accuracy and surface finish on the wall of a slot.
Gary Heaney suggested the introduction of the ITC 6031Cyber Series end mill.
The 6031 Series cutter with a 90mm length of cut machined the part in one pass to depth as opposed to multiple passes with the previous tool.
This not only improved productivity but also improved accuracy and surface finish of the wall considerably credit to the rigid nature of the 6031 Series.
"We use ITC cutters for a wide variety of applications on steel, aluminium, titanium and nickel alloy projects and the tools always perform extremely well.
If we ever encounter potential issues with tooling we call in our ITC representative and it never takes long to find the solution.
The cutters have been so successful that we now have a ToolVend vending machine stocked with ITC tooling.
This guarantees we always have stock of ITC tools - and if we ever need special cutters, ITC will deliver with a rapid turnaround," concluded Ronald.
* About Walker Precision Engineering - manufacturing intricate components with a combination of high specification machine tools and high performance cutting tools has enabled Walker Precision Engineering to build an enviable reputation as Glasgow's leading subcontract manufacturer.
Working to ISO9001:2000, EN9100 and TS157, the company supplies worldwide aerospace, defence, telecoms, medical, electronics, space and general engineering markets.
Servicing such demanding industries requires the ability to manufacture complex components with on short lead times.
Established in 1979 and now employing over 150 skilled personnel over three sites, the company now manufactures RF/microwave assemblies, radar wave guide products, aircraft turbines and blades, valve bearings and compressors as well as titanium parts and diagnostic equipment.
Walker Precision works with some of the most prestigious names in industry including Motorola and the MIRRI Space project, the successor to the Hubble.
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