Product category:
Manufacturing dealerships, agencies and acquisitions
News Release from: S D Tooling UK | Subject: S D Tooling UK and SP3 Cutting Tools
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 03 August 2006
UK agent appointed for US diamond
tooling
S D Tooling UK has been appointed exclusive UK agent for the range of cost-effective and highly productive diamond cutting tools manufactured in the USA by SP3 Cutting Tools.
S D Tooling UK, the Chelmsford, Essex-based technical tooling solutions specialist, has been appointed exclusive UK agent for the range of cost-effective and highly productive diamond cutting tools manufactured in the USA by SP3 Cutting Tools The agreement means that the widely-acclaimed benefits of SP3's diamond coated and fabricated PCD and TFd tooling can now be easily accessed by UK companies of every size in all types of production applications - in particular those involved with high-volume and difficult-to-machine abrasive materials where extended tool wear is critical to both bottom line costs and component quality
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 17 Mar 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Engineering information website launched
Providing access to a broad spectrum of engineering information - research grants and academic publications through to business and product news - www.cyana.co.uk website is on-line.
Losing tricks of the trade - prevent it happening
Trainer and researcher, Andy Pallit, seeks details of 'useful tricks of the trade' from practising and retired skilled machinists and toolmakers to pass on to today's students.
Indeed, in terms of carbon fibre machining, diamond tooling is often the only practical solution.
In the USA, SP3 tooling is consistently generating substantial benefits in the machining of silicon aluminium diecastings (cylinder heads and engine blocks) for first and second tier automotive suppliers to companies such as GM, Ford, Chrysler, Honda and Toyota.
Commenting on the development, Steve Dunster, managing director of S D Tooling - an established tooling distributor with an impressive blue chip client list - said: "SP3's exciting portfolio will appeal to every company that has an eye on reduced cycle times, extended tool life and improved surface finish, and that means every manufacturer and sub-contractor, especially high-volume machinists." He explained: "The highly-abrasive nature of certain machining operations - for example, as encountered with the carbon fibre composites increasingly being used in the motor sport, aerospace and automotive sectors - are very testing, and we know that the significant benefits being enjoyed by the leading edge UK users of SP3 tooling will soon become a de facto standard throughout these UK industry sectors, as well as in tool and mouldmaking." Erik Koik, president of SP3, added: "Testament to the dramatic reductions in terms of tooling costs achieved through reduced cycle times and increased parts per cutting edge with diamond tooling is a transfer line that formerly stopped for tool change every three hours after producing just 300 components".
Further reading
Supply chain specialist refreshes on 'lean'
Supply chain management specialists for electronics manufacturers have invested in 'refresher' courses to re-enforce the lean culture that has proven successful in recent years.
New event: Plastic Bottles 2005
AMI is pleased to announce the launch of its Plastic Bottles 2005 conference.
ASTM International supports DOC standards findings
ASTM International has announced that it supports the assessment on standards issued by the U.S.
Department of Commerce to reduce standards-related trade barriers.
"Now, with SP3 tooling, more than 13,000 parts are being produced before any changeover is required." Koik added: "The tooling is particularly effective on non-metallic materials such as graphite, green ceramics, filled plastics and carbon fibre, ceramic matrix, glass fibre and Kevlar composites, as well as non-ferrous metals like high-silicon aluminiums, metal matrix composites, copper, brass and bronze." SP3's extensive standard stock range of 500 products embraces indexable inserts, profiling inserts, grooving, cut-off and threading inserts, as well as ball nose and square end mills, profiling end mills, mouldmaking cutters, drills and routers.
In addition to also manufacturing the Ultra-Mill family of face milling bodies, as well as industry-standard cutter bodies, 40 per cent of SP3's output is accounted for by special-purpose tooling.
The company employs three main diamond application technologies to suit users' production demands and budgets: * Thin-film - DIAbide carbide tools are coated with up to a 50 microns thickness of diamond via chemical vapour deposition - ideal for aluminium, ceramic and carbon fibre machining.
* Thick film - TFD, a 750 microns layer is laser-cut into tool tips and carbide and steel-based tools - targeted at high-volume/high-accuracy machining.
* PCD - polycrystalline diamond inserts and cartridges - ideal for automotive sector milling, for example.
* CBN tooling can also be supplied.
"SP3 offers the broadest range of tools and the most material-specific applications knowledge of any tooling company in the world," said Koik.
"We are all about solving machining problems and helping customers reduce costs and make better components".
"We look forward to working with UK companies to achieve the kinds of gains that we have helped US companies obtain.".
• S D Tooling UK: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Manufacturingtalk email newsletter
• Manufacturingtalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
