Product category:
Probes and sensors
News Release from: Mike Page - editor's feature articles | Subject: Probing and VMC
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 27 February 2008
Mould and tool maker invests in probing
and VMC
A five-man tool making firm recently described how it is keeping abreast of technology and coping with overseas competition, writes Mike Page.
Located near Stansted Airport, UK, BK Tooling employs five in producing tooling and plastics injection moulds and dies Managing director, Bob Tunks, said, at a recent Renishaw press event in London, that his company was not in a position to acquire, for example, expensive high speed machining (HSM) centres, advanced coordinate measuring machines (CMM) or robotic handling systems
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 29 Oct 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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"We therefore had to take a different approach and so got into hybrid CNC, using 2-axis and 3-axis Protrak systems (XYZ Machine Tools)," explained Tunks.
"It gave us vision on mould tool manufacture".
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He explained that BK Tooling had had a long association with XYZ and had asked the machine tool company if it could match another supplier's low-cost offer on a vertical machining centre (VMC) plus Renishaw probing equipment package.
"For us, it was our first HSM machine equipped with a probing system," said Tunks.
The XYZ VMC is programmed through Vero's Visicam CAD/CAM system, to which BK Tooling has added software for FEM analysis and Moldflo simulation.
He said that BK Tooling uses probing on the VMC for positioning, such as specifying where a machining cycle start point is on a work piece and being able to return to it each time.
Tunks explained that it cut set-up downtime and increased mould machining accuracy.
He added that the VMC is used only for milling, including 3D profiling.
"We have to match one form with another, and now, we could not do without using the (Renishaw) TS27 probe".
Tunks explained that probing has enabled the company to tighten up its moulding dies' split-line accuracy.
Lately, BK Tooling has added on a Systems 3R table and work handling equipment to the XYZ machining centre.
Tunks explained: "You can't compete against China or Eastern Europe on labour costs, so the answer is to transfer labour to machine tools".
Another point to consider is that BK Tooling has a standard metal cutting tool library stocked only with new tools.
As Tunks commented: "You have to know that the machine tool is up to the job," inferring that re-ground tools can be inconsistent in performance.
The company also has a practice to replace machine tools every five years.
Tunks commented that the XYZ VMC had been working for a year now, consistently and accurately, at cutting feed rates of 3-5m/min.
Tunks said that he is now helping other small companies to understand the benefits of the way in which BK Tooling manages its operations.
Unfortunately, said Tunks, there are many small company owners who are too self-centred to listen.
He continued: "The way for small, highly specialised tool makers is to out-perform the competitors and be able to deal with every aspect of tool making".
At BK Tooling, it tries to do as much as possible 'in-house' so, effectively the company has a grip on those factors that influence lead-time from order to delivery.
BK Tooling now has on board FEM, Moldflo, CAD/CAM, 3D machining on a VMC backed by probing and work handling systems, tool assembly, tool trials and, latterly, pre-production too.
Tunks said that small companies should have no fear of technology like FEM as the 'learning curves' these days are not that painful.
The only work now subcontracted out is surface treatment (such as plating of mould tool form surfaces) and heat treatment.
These are operations for which BK Tooling demands a 24h turn-round.
As for the future, BK Tooling intends to expand its plastics injection moulding production facility.
It has also been keeping a close watch on rapid prototyping systems.
As Tunks said: "Every year metal deposition rates (by laser sintering or laser metal deposition) is getting better." He said the attraction of building mould tools up in this way would enable more efficient incorporation of cooling channels or galleries and reduce machining content.
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