What Is Cnc Machanical Part?
For Honscn Co.,Ltd, finding the right materials for cnc machanical part that align with our commitment to quality is just as important as creating great design. With an intimate knowledge of how upstream items are made, our team has built meaningful relationships with material suppliers and spend a considerable amount of time in the trenches with them to innovate and solve the possible problems from the source.
Quality is at the core of HONSCN's culture. Our team has deep expertise in providing the high quality products. Based upon a proven track record, we have been praised by customers in the industry, which helps foster our growth. We continue to work with different companies to acquire new concepts of products, creating higher customer satisfaction.
Follow up service has been highlighted in Honscn. During the shipment, we closely monitor the logistics process and set up contingency plans in case of any accident. After the goods are delivered to the customers, our customer service team will keep contact with the customers to learn their demands, including warranty.
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Shenzhen Honscn is a professional manufacturer of CNC Machine Parts, Auto Lathe Machine Parts, and Screw Fasteners. We offer OEM and ODM service with any related products for customers. We have a professional team of product design and engineers, as well as a professional QC team, our sales and documentation and logistics departments can finish the requirements of presentation of documents under various payment methods and different transportation modes.
• We can make offcial drawings based on customer request, or customer will provide their drawings for us to quote price and make samples for approval.
• After receiving the samples, customers will do a test for the material, size and tolerance. If customer need to change the size or material, we can arrange second samples for approval. Until customer approved the samples, then we will confirm large order.
Meantime, we will test it before shipping samples. And all tests are strictly carried out according to industry standards.
• If confirmed the sample okay, the customer needs us to provide the Mill Test Crtificate of this product conforming to EU standards, such as CE, RoHS, REACH before placing order. All of our products are in accordance with all the European certification, such as CE, RoHS, REACH, etc., and all of them have prepared standard documents for customers checking.
• We start to prepare the order materials when customer confirm all the details such as material, size, tolerance, surface finish and other details of the final sample.
After the package such as qty, label, shipping mark etc. are provided by customer, we starts to arrange the mass production. After all the goods finished, send pictures to customer for approval. We promise the packag is same as customer requested, mass products are exactly the same as the final samples. The following photos of the shipment, the passing rate of the third-party inspection of our company is 100%.
• After receiving shipment of whole order, customer put it on the market immediately and became the most popular product in the market quickly, no matter from the traditional market, the market of high-end professional fasteners or the online sales in Amazon. We always pay much attention to the quality of our products, which is recognized by customers and repurchased constantly.
• We can make offcial drawings based on customer request, or customer will provide their drawings for us to quote price and make samples for approval.
• After receiving the samples, customers will do a test for the material, size and tolerance. If customer need to change the size or material, we can arrange second samples for approval. Until customer approved the samples, then we will confirm large order.
Meantime, we will test it before shipping samples. And all tests are strictly carried out according to industry standards.
• If confirmed the sample okay, the customer needs us to provide the Mill Test Crtificate of this product conforming to EU standards, such as CE, RoHS, REACH before placing order. All of our products are in accordance with all the European certification, such as CE, RoHS, REACH, etc., and all of them have prepared standard documents for customers checking.
• We start to prepare the order materials when customer confirm all the details such as material, size, tolerance, surface finish and other details of the final sample.
After the package such as qty, label, shipping mark etc. are provided by customer, we starts to arrange the mass production. After all the goods finished, send pictures to customer for approval. We promise the packag is same as customer requested, mass products are exactly the same as the final samples. The following photos of the shipment, the passing rate of the third-party inspection of our company is 100%.
• After receiving shipment of whole order, customer put it on the market immediately and became the most popular product in the market quickly, no matter from the traditional market, the market of high-end professional fasteners or the online sales in Amazon. We always pay much attention to the quality of our products, which is recognized by customers and repurchased constantly.
Now many industries of precision parts will use CNC machining production, but after CNC machining is completed, many products surface is still relatively rough, this time you need to carry out secondary surface finishing treatment.
First of all, surface treatment is not suitable for all CNC processing products, some products can be directly used after processing, and some need to be hand-polished, electroplating, oxidation, radium carving, screen printing, powder spraying and other special processes. Here are some things you should know about surface treatment.
1, improve product accuracy; After the product processing is completed, some products have a rough surface and leave a large residual stress, which will reduce the accuracy of the product and affect the precision of the match between the parts. In this case, the product surface treatment is required.
2, provide product wear resistance; If the parts usually use scenarios are interacting with other parts, long-term use will increase part wear, which also requires processing of the product surface to extend the service life of the parts.
3, improve the corrosion resistance of the product; Parts used for a long time in highly corrosive places require special surface treatment, requiring polishing and spraying of anti-corrosion materials. Improve corrosion resistance and service life of the product.
The above three points are the prerequisites for surface processing after CNC precision parts processing, and several surface treatment methods will be introduced below.
What is electroplating? What are the types and applications of electroplating?
01. What is electroplating?
Electroplating refers to the surface engineering technology of obtaining a solid metal film on the surface of the substrate by electrolysis in a salt solution containing the metallized group, with the metallized group as the cathode and the metallized group or other inert conductor as the anode under the action of direct current.
02. Why electroplate?
The purpose of electroplating is to improve the appearance of the material, while giving the surface of the material a variety of physical and chemical properties, such as corrosion resistance, decorative, wear resistance, brazing and electrical, magnetic, optical properties.
03. What are the types and applications of electroplating?
1, galvanized
The galvanized layer is of high purity and is an anodic coating. The zinc layer plays a mechanical and electrochemical protective role on the steel matrix.
Therefore, galvanized layer is widely used in machinery, hardware, electronics, instruments, light industry and other aspects, is one of the most widely used plating species.
2. Copper plating
The copper coating is a cathode polar coating, which can only play a mechanical protection role on the base metal. The copper plating layer is usually not used as a protective decorative coating alone, but as the bottom or middle layer of the coating to improve the adhesion between the surface coating and the base metal.
In the field of electronics, such as through hole copper plating on printed circuit boards, as well as hardware technology, crafts, furniture decoration and other fields.
3. Nickel plating
Nickel plating layer is a negative polarity protective layer, which only has a mechanical protection effect on the base metal. In addition to the direct use of some medical devices and battery shells, the nickel-plated layer is often used as the bottom or middle interval layer, which is widely used in daily hardware, light industry, home appliances, machinery and other industries.
4. Chrome plating
The chromium-plated layer is a negative polarity coating, which only plays a mechanical protection role. Decorative chrome plating, the bottom layer is generally polished or electrodeposited bright coating.
Widely used in instruments, meters, daily hardware, household appliances, aircraft, automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles and other exposed parts. Functional chrome plating includes hard chrome plating, porous chrome, black chrome, opal chrome and so on.
Hard chrome layer is mainly used for various measuring calipers, gauges, cutting tools and various types of shaft, loose hole chrome layer is mainly used for cylinder cavity piston failure; The black chrome layer is used for parts that need a dull surface and wear resistance, such as aviation instruments, optical instruments, photographic equipment, etc. Opalescent chromium is mainly used in various measuring tools.
5. Tin plating
Compared to the steel substrate, tin is a negative polar coating, while compared to the copper substrate, it is an anode coating. The tinning layer is mainly used as the protective layer of thin plate in the can industry, and most of the malleable iron skin is made of iron plate tinning. Another major use of tin coatings is in the electronics and power industries.
6, alloy plating
In a solution, two or more metal ions are co-precipitated on the cathode to form a uniform fine coating process called alloy plating.
Alloy electroplating is superior to single metal electroplating in crystal density, porosity, color, hardness, corrosion resistance, wear resistance, magnetic conductivity, wear resistance and high temperature resistance.
There are more than 240 kinds of electroplating alloys, but less than 40 kinds are actually used in production. It is generally divided into three categories: protective alloy coating, decorative alloy coating and functional alloy coating.
Widely used in aviation, aerospace, navigation, automobile, mining, military, instruments, meters, visual hardware, tableware, Musical Instruments and other industries.
In addition to the above, there are other chemical plating, composite plating, non-metal plating, gold plating, silver plating and so on.
What is polishing?
The surface of the items processed by CNC machining or 3D printing is sometimes rough, and the surface requirements of the products are high, so they need to be polished.
Polishing refers to the use of mechanical, chemical or electrochemical action to reduce the surface roughness of the workpiece in order to obtain a bright, flat surface processing method.
Polishing can not improve the dimensional accuracy or geometric accuracy of the workpiece, but for the purpose of obtaining a smooth surface or mirror gloss, and sometimes to eliminate gloss (extinction).
Several common polishing methods are described below:
01. Mechanical polishing
Mechanical polishing is by cutting, plastic deformation of the surface of the material to remove the polished convex and smooth surface polishing method, the general use of whetstone strip, wool wheel, sandpaper, etc., mainly manual operation, surface quality requirements can be used to super-fine polishing method.
Super finishing polishing is the use of special grinding tools, in the polishing liquid containing abrasive, tightly pressed on the workpiece to be machined surface, for high-speed rotation. This method is often used in optical lens molds.
02. Chemical polishing
Chemical polishing is to dissolve the microscopic protruding part of the surface of the material in the chemical medium preferentially than the concave part, so as to obtain a smooth surface.
The main advantage of this method is that it does not require complex equipment, can polish the workpiece with complex shape, and can polish many workpieces at the same time, with high efficiency.
The core problem of chemical polishing is the preparation of polishing liquid.
03. Electrolytic polishing
The basic principle of electrolytic polishing is the same as that of chemical polishing, that is, the surface is smooth by selectively dissolving small protruding parts on the surface of the material.
Compared with chemical polishing, the effect of cathode reaction can be eliminated and the effect is better.
04. Ultrasonic polishing
The workpiece is put into the abrasive suspension and placed together in the ultrasonic field, and the abrasive is ground and polished on the workpiece surface by relying on the oscillation of the ultrasonic wave.
Ultrasonic processing macroscopic force is small, will not cause workpiece deformation, but tooling production and installation is more difficult.
05. Fluid polishing
Fluid polishing relies on high-speed flowing liquid and the abrasive particles it carries to wash the surface of the workpiece to achieve the purpose of polishing.
Common methods are: abrasive jet processing, liquid jet processing, hydrodynamic grinding and so on. Hydrodynamic grinding is driven by hydraulic pressure to make the liquid medium carrying abrasive particles flow through the surface of the workpiece at high speed.
The medium is mainly made of special compounds with good flow under low pressure and mixed with abrasives, which can be silicon carbide powder.
06. Magnetic grinding polishing
Magnetic grinding and polishing is the use of magnetic abrasive under the action of magnetic field to form an abrasive brush, grinding the workpiece.
This method has the advantages of high processing efficiency, good quality, easy control of processing conditions and good working conditions.
The above are 6 common polishing processe.
HONSCN Precision has been a professional CNC machining manufacturer for 20 years. Cooperation with more than 1,000 enterprises, deep technology accumulation, senior technician team, welcome to consult customized processing!Customer service
First of all, surface treatment is not suitable for all CNC processing products, some products can be directly used after processing, and some need to be hand-polished, electroplating, oxidation, radium carving, screen printing, powder spraying and other special processes. Here are some things you should know about surface treatment.
1, improve product accuracy; After the product processing is completed, some products have a rough surface and leave a large residual stress, which will reduce the accuracy of the product and affect the precision of the match between the parts. In this case, the product surface treatment is required.
2, provide product wear resistance; If the parts usually use scenarios are interacting with other parts, long-term use will increase part wear, which also requires processing of the product surface to extend the service life of the parts.
3, improve the corrosion resistance of the product; Parts used for a long time in highly corrosive places require special surface treatment, requiring polishing and spraying of anti-corrosion materials. Improve corrosion resistance and service life of the product.
The above three points are the prerequisites for surface processing after CNC precision parts processing, and several surface treatment methods will be introduced below.
What is electroplating? What are the types and applications of electroplating?
01. What is electroplating?
Electroplating refers to the surface engineering technology of obtaining a solid metal film on the surface of the substrate by electrolysis in a salt solution containing the metallized group, with the metallized group as the cathode and the metallized group or other inert conductor as the anode under the action of direct current.
02. Why electroplate?
The purpose of electroplating is to improve the appearance of the material, while giving the surface of the material a variety of physical and chemical properties, such as corrosion resistance, decorative, wear resistance, brazing and electrical, magnetic, optical properties.
03. What are the types and applications of electroplating?
1, galvanized
The galvanized layer is of high purity and is an anodic coating. The zinc layer plays a mechanical and electrochemical protective role on the steel matrix.
Therefore, galvanized layer is widely used in machinery, hardware, electronics, instruments, light industry and other aspects, is one of the most widely used plating species.
2. Copper plating
The copper coating is a cathode polar coating, which can only play a mechanical protection role on the base metal. The copper plating layer is usually not used as a protective decorative coating alone, but as the bottom or middle layer of the coating to improve the adhesion between the surface coating and the base metal.
In the field of electronics, such as through hole copper plating on printed circuit boards, as well as hardware technology, crafts, furniture decoration and other fields.
3. Nickel plating
Nickel plating layer is a negative polarity protective layer, which only has a mechanical protection effect on the base metal. In addition to the direct use of some medical devices and battery shells, the nickel-plated layer is often used as the bottom or middle interval layer, which is widely used in daily hardware, light industry, home appliances, machinery and other industries.
4. Chrome plating
The chromium-plated layer is a negative polarity coating, which only plays a mechanical protection role. Decorative chrome plating, the bottom layer is generally polished or electrodeposited bright coating.
Widely used in instruments, meters, daily hardware, household appliances, aircraft, automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles and other exposed parts. Functional chrome plating includes hard chrome plating, porous chrome, black chrome, opal chrome and so on.
Hard chrome layer is mainly used for various measuring calipers, gauges, cutting tools and various types of shaft, loose hole chrome layer is mainly used for cylinder cavity piston failure; The black chrome layer is used for parts that need a dull surface and wear resistance, such as aviation instruments, optical instruments, photographic equipment, etc. Opalescent chromium is mainly used in various measuring tools.
5. Tin plating
Compared to the steel substrate, tin is a negative polar coating, while compared to the copper substrate, it is an anode coating. The tinning layer is mainly used as the protective layer of thin plate in the can industry, and most of the malleable iron skin is made of iron plate tinning. Another major use of tin coatings is in the electronics and power industries.
6, alloy plating
In a solution, two or more metal ions are co-precipitated on the cathode to form a uniform fine coating process called alloy plating.
Alloy electroplating is superior to single metal electroplating in crystal density, porosity, color, hardness, corrosion resistance, wear resistance, magnetic conductivity, wear resistance and high temperature resistance.
There are more than 240 kinds of electroplating alloys, but less than 40 kinds are actually used in production. It is generally divided into three categories: protective alloy coating, decorative alloy coating and functional alloy coating.
Widely used in aviation, aerospace, navigation, automobile, mining, military, instruments, meters, visual hardware, tableware, Musical Instruments and other industries.
In addition to the above, there are other chemical plating, composite plating, non-metal plating, gold plating, silver plating and so on.
What is polishing?
The surface of the items processed by CNC machining or 3D printing is sometimes rough, and the surface requirements of the products are high, so they need to be polished.
Polishing refers to the use of mechanical, chemical or electrochemical action to reduce the surface roughness of the workpiece in order to obtain a bright, flat surface processing method.
Polishing can not improve the dimensional accuracy or geometric accuracy of the workpiece, but for the purpose of obtaining a smooth surface or mirror gloss, and sometimes to eliminate gloss (extinction).
Several common polishing methods are described below:
01. Mechanical polishing
Mechanical polishing is by cutting, plastic deformation of the surface of the material to remove the polished convex and smooth surface polishing method, the general use of whetstone strip, wool wheel, sandpaper, etc., mainly manual operation, surface quality requirements can be used to super-fine polishing method.
Super finishing polishing is the use of special grinding tools, in the polishing liquid containing abrasive, tightly pressed on the workpiece to be machined surface, for high-speed rotation. This method is often used in optical lens molds.
02. Chemical polishing
Chemical polishing is to dissolve the microscopic protruding part of the surface of the material in the chemical medium preferentially than the concave part, so as to obtain a smooth surface.
The main advantage of this method is that it does not require complex equipment, can polish the workpiece with complex shape, and can polish many workpieces at the same time, with high efficiency.
The core problem of chemical polishing is the preparation of polishing liquid.
03. Electrolytic polishing
The basic principle of electrolytic polishing is the same as that of chemical polishing, that is, the surface is smooth by selectively dissolving small protruding parts on the surface of the material.
Compared with chemical polishing, the effect of cathode reaction can be eliminated and the effect is better.
04. Ultrasonic polishing
The workpiece is put into the abrasive suspension and placed together in the ultrasonic field, and the abrasive is ground and polished on the workpiece surface by relying on the oscillation of the ultrasonic wave.
Ultrasonic processing macroscopic force is small, will not cause workpiece deformation, but tooling production and installation is more difficult.
05. Fluid polishing
Fluid polishing relies on high-speed flowing liquid and the abrasive particles it carries to wash the surface of the workpiece to achieve the purpose of polishing.
Common methods are: abrasive jet processing, liquid jet processing, hydrodynamic grinding and so on. Hydrodynamic grinding is driven by hydraulic pressure to make the liquid medium carrying abrasive particles flow through the surface of the workpiece at high speed.
The medium is mainly made of special compounds with good flow under low pressure and mixed with abrasives, which can be silicon carbide powder.
06. Magnetic grinding polishing
Magnetic grinding and polishing is the use of magnetic abrasive under the action of magnetic field to form an abrasive brush, grinding the workpiece.
This method has the advantages of high processing efficiency, good quality, easy control of processing conditions and good working conditions.
The above are 6 common polishing processe.
HONSCN Precision has been a professional CNC machining manufacturer for 20 years. Cooperation with more than 1,000 enterprises, deep technology accumulation, senior technician team, welcome to consult customized processing!Customer service
With the advent of the Industry 4.0 era, CNC processing technology is also changing step by step, in addition to the pursuit of quality breakthroughs, many entrepreneurs are also pursuing automated production! Automation is a future trend in manufacturing. However, as we all know, the cost of manufacturing machine iteration is very expensive, under normal circumstances, the same series of machines do not appear the quality of the general process span will not be iterated machine. So we can avoid the heavy way to improve the production capacity and efficiency of CNC machine tools, and then take a look!
With the change of the development process environment, today's CNC machining machine tool technology has been constantly improving, today's we are already different from yesterday's we, the new era has put forward new challenges to us. What do we need to change to meet the challenge? What is needed is for us to continuously improve our perceptions, our capabilities, our methods and our actions.
1
/
The importance of product processing technology
The process of the internal structure of the product is closely related to the processing cost. The processing technology used by the product directly determines the production cost, and the processing efficiency and production capacity will also be affected by it.
From the perspective of product design, if the manufacturing threshold of processing technology can be fundamentally reduced, on this basis, certain processing costs can be reduced, and the processing CT time of CNC machine tools can be shortened, and the processing quality and processing quality can be improved. Efficiency can be improved. Can greatly improve the CNC machining capacity.
2
/
Tool life management control in CNC machining
The life management control of the tool by the CNC system is to calculate the number of tool machining, or to determine the processing time. Therefore, when the tool life reaches the expected number of machining times or time of the system, the CNC automatically stops the action. It is assumed that when manual supervision is not in place, or when the tool is not able to stop changing in the expected situation, the CNC machining process will be affected. Therefore, tool life is a key factor affecting CNC production capacity.
Especially when the CNC machining process of a workpiece is too much, the processing amount is cumbersome, and the dimensional accuracy of the processing is relatively strict, the tools to be used will be more. At this time, the CNC tool library automatically changes the tool, and the knife action is more frequent, and the tool wear is larger, so that the manual tool change and machine adjustment are more frequent.
Therefore, tool wear is an important indicator that affects the normal production rhythm and capacity of CNC. Through technical measures to improve the process, improve the overall life of the tool, not only can save the cost of the tool, but more importantly, can reduce the stopping time of the CNC spindle, so as to improve the efficiency of CNC processing, improve the production quality and capacity.
3
/
CNC optimization program and process parameters
In the process of confirming the product processing technology, it is necessary to fully consider all the functions of CNC CNC machine tools, to shorten the processing route, reduce the number of tool walking and tool changing times, so as to ensure that the processing capacity is improved.
By choosing a reasonable and appropriate cutting amount, give full play to the cutting performance of the tool, optimize the processing parameters of the CNC, ensure the high-speed machining of the spindle, reduce the CT time of parts processing, and ultimately improve the processing efficiency of the product and improve the production quality.
4
/
CNC machining process improvement
When writing CNC machining process, it is not only necessary to focus on the feasibility of processing, but also to consider whether the process of the processing process will have a negative effect on the processing efficiency. Effectively shorten the processing time of CNC CT and improve production capacity can be achieved by arranging a reasonable processing sequence and reducing the number of tool changes.
5
/
The production site is strictly controlled
The development and strict implementation of production SOP is an indispensable part of CNC machining production process. Manual operation behavior should be reasonably standardized to reduce employees' negative emotions and unnecessary waste of time efficiency. Formulate incentive policies to improve the enthusiasm of technicians, so as to achieve the purpose of improving production capacity and product processing quality.
6
/
CNC machining abnormal problem elimination
The inspection work needs to be comprehensive, such as the use of the cylinder, solenoid valve, motor and other electrical parts in the oil environment on the equipment and fixture condition, and the investigation of these parts before the operation can effectively avoid the situation that the production of CNC spindle is forced to stop, so as to improve the utilization rate of the spindle.
Machine iteration is expensive, but there are other methods we can use to do it at a very small cost in exchange for a high yield.
The high-quality management of CNC machining production should be put in the first place, and the above six points can effectively improve the production performance and capacity of the machine tool.
Six industries that rely on cnc machining
Modern CNC (computer numerical control) machines enable the manufacture of precision parts quickly and efficiently. CNC machines manufacture millions of parts around the world every day. All of these parts vary in size, material and purpose.
CNC machining is often used for metal parts and assemblies with complex designs and tight tolerances. Because of the precision and capability of CNC machining, it is one of the most demanding manufacturing methods.
These industries rely heavily on CNC machined parts: automotive, Aerospace & Defense, medical, construction equipment, Power & Energy, and industrial. In this article, we will share how each industry uses precision machined parts.
Automobile industry
The automotive and transportation industry is one of the largest users of CNC machined parts. Cars, trucks, vans and motorcycles all use precision metal parts. Vehicles require thousands of parts, which require high precision and durability.
CNC machining is ideal for many automotive parts because the parts need to be the same and made of hard metals such as steel and stainless steel. Many engine and transmission parts are CNC machined. Few manufacturing processes can match the precision and repeatability offered by CNC machining.
Electric vehicles play an important role in the development of CNC machining, as they require a large number of precision-machined parts.
Medical industry
Similar to the automotive industry, the medical industry requires parts with extremely tight tolerances. There is no room for error in the manufacture of life-saving equipment.
CNC machining provides the medical industry with precision parts, required materials, and fast manufacturing. CNC machines can use specific materials required by the medical industry, such as stainless steel, titanium and copper parts.
CNC machining is also an ideal choice to support crisis response. In early 2020, many CNC workshops shifted part of their work to manufacturing basic medical equipment such as parts for ventilators. CNC machines have a wide range of functions and can be easily programmed to make new parts.
Industrial equipment industry
CNC machines make parts for other manufacturing operations. The industrial sector includes packaging equipment, electronics and other general industrial equipment. Overall, the industry accounts for about 25% of CNC machined parts.
Industrial equipment often requires high-precision parts that can operate in high-stress environments. The consistency and custom machining capabilities offered by CNC machining are necessary for the industry.
Aerospace and defense industries
The aerospace industry is worth an estimated $300 billion and shows no signs of slowing down. We usually think of aerospace as = airplanes, but there are also thousands of satellites and rockets that require thousands of precision parts.
The aerospace and defense industry relies on CNC machining to manufacture complex precision parts that leave no margin for error. The tight tolerances, rapid prototyping and scalability of CNC machines are ideally suited to meet the needs of this industry.
Construction industry
The construction industry needs reliable, high-strength parts that can operate in harsh environments. CNC machine tools can process large and small metal parts needed for construction equipment.
CNC machining is the best manufacturing method for difficult metal alloys. High-strength steel alloys are commonly used to make parts for cranes, lifting equipment, bulldozers and other construction equipment. Gears, pump equipment, and high-strength fasteners are just a few examples of NC machined parts.
Energy industry
The gas, oil and energy industry is another huge market that relies on many #CNC machined components. Precision valves, bushings and sensor devices all require precision machined parts.
To keep vital energy infrastructure operating at peak efficiency, components need to fit perfectly together.
Parts used in harsh environments require high precision and high corrosion and heat resistance. Salt water and chemicals can destroy many metal parts, so the industry needs metals such as Hastelloy, which often require modern CNC machine tool cutting tools.
In general, CNC machining process plays an irreplaceable role in modern manufacturing industry, and its high precision, high efficiency and flexibility bring great development opportunities and competitive advantages to all walks of life. With the continuous progress of technology and the continuous expansion of applications, CNC machining technology will continue to play an important role in the future manufacturing industry, and make new contributions to the progress and development of human society.#Honscn #cnc
With the change of the development process environment, today's CNC machining machine tool technology has been constantly improving, today's we are already different from yesterday's we, the new era has put forward new challenges to us. What do we need to change to meet the challenge? What is needed is for us to continuously improve our perceptions, our capabilities, our methods and our actions.
1
/
The importance of product processing technology
The process of the internal structure of the product is closely related to the processing cost. The processing technology used by the product directly determines the production cost, and the processing efficiency and production capacity will also be affected by it.
From the perspective of product design, if the manufacturing threshold of processing technology can be fundamentally reduced, on this basis, certain processing costs can be reduced, and the processing CT time of CNC machine tools can be shortened, and the processing quality and processing quality can be improved. Efficiency can be improved. Can greatly improve the CNC machining capacity.
2
/
Tool life management control in CNC machining
The life management control of the tool by the CNC system is to calculate the number of tool machining, or to determine the processing time. Therefore, when the tool life reaches the expected number of machining times or time of the system, the CNC automatically stops the action. It is assumed that when manual supervision is not in place, or when the tool is not able to stop changing in the expected situation, the CNC machining process will be affected. Therefore, tool life is a key factor affecting CNC production capacity.
Especially when the CNC machining process of a workpiece is too much, the processing amount is cumbersome, and the dimensional accuracy of the processing is relatively strict, the tools to be used will be more. At this time, the CNC tool library automatically changes the tool, and the knife action is more frequent, and the tool wear is larger, so that the manual tool change and machine adjustment are more frequent.
Therefore, tool wear is an important indicator that affects the normal production rhythm and capacity of CNC. Through technical measures to improve the process, improve the overall life of the tool, not only can save the cost of the tool, but more importantly, can reduce the stopping time of the CNC spindle, so as to improve the efficiency of CNC processing, improve the production quality and capacity.
3
/
CNC optimization program and process parameters
In the process of confirming the product processing technology, it is necessary to fully consider all the functions of CNC CNC machine tools, to shorten the processing route, reduce the number of tool walking and tool changing times, so as to ensure that the processing capacity is improved.
By choosing a reasonable and appropriate cutting amount, give full play to the cutting performance of the tool, optimize the processing parameters of the CNC, ensure the high-speed machining of the spindle, reduce the CT time of parts processing, and ultimately improve the processing efficiency of the product and improve the production quality.
4
/
CNC machining process improvement
When writing CNC machining process, it is not only necessary to focus on the feasibility of processing, but also to consider whether the process of the processing process will have a negative effect on the processing efficiency. Effectively shorten the processing time of CNC CT and improve production capacity can be achieved by arranging a reasonable processing sequence and reducing the number of tool changes.
5
/
The production site is strictly controlled
The development and strict implementation of production SOP is an indispensable part of CNC machining production process. Manual operation behavior should be reasonably standardized to reduce employees' negative emotions and unnecessary waste of time efficiency. Formulate incentive policies to improve the enthusiasm of technicians, so as to achieve the purpose of improving production capacity and product processing quality.
6
/
CNC machining abnormal problem elimination
The inspection work needs to be comprehensive, such as the use of the cylinder, solenoid valve, motor and other electrical parts in the oil environment on the equipment and fixture condition, and the investigation of these parts before the operation can effectively avoid the situation that the production of CNC spindle is forced to stop, so as to improve the utilization rate of the spindle.
Machine iteration is expensive, but there are other methods we can use to do it at a very small cost in exchange for a high yield.
The high-quality management of CNC machining production should be put in the first place, and the above six points can effectively improve the production performance and capacity of the machine tool.
Six industries that rely on cnc machining
Modern CNC (computer numerical control) machines enable the manufacture of precision parts quickly and efficiently. CNC machines manufacture millions of parts around the world every day. All of these parts vary in size, material and purpose.
CNC machining is often used for metal parts and assemblies with complex designs and tight tolerances. Because of the precision and capability of CNC machining, it is one of the most demanding manufacturing methods.
These industries rely heavily on CNC machined parts: automotive, Aerospace & Defense, medical, construction equipment, Power & Energy, and industrial. In this article, we will share how each industry uses precision machined parts.
Automobile industry
The automotive and transportation industry is one of the largest users of CNC machined parts. Cars, trucks, vans and motorcycles all use precision metal parts. Vehicles require thousands of parts, which require high precision and durability.
CNC machining is ideal for many automotive parts because the parts need to be the same and made of hard metals such as steel and stainless steel. Many engine and transmission parts are CNC machined. Few manufacturing processes can match the precision and repeatability offered by CNC machining.
Electric vehicles play an important role in the development of CNC machining, as they require a large number of precision-machined parts.
Medical industry
Similar to the automotive industry, the medical industry requires parts with extremely tight tolerances. There is no room for error in the manufacture of life-saving equipment.
CNC machining provides the medical industry with precision parts, required materials, and fast manufacturing. CNC machines can use specific materials required by the medical industry, such as stainless steel, titanium and copper parts.
CNC machining is also an ideal choice to support crisis response. In early 2020, many CNC workshops shifted part of their work to manufacturing basic medical equipment such as parts for ventilators. CNC machines have a wide range of functions and can be easily programmed to make new parts.
Industrial equipment industry
CNC machines make parts for other manufacturing operations. The industrial sector includes packaging equipment, electronics and other general industrial equipment. Overall, the industry accounts for about 25% of CNC machined parts.
Industrial equipment often requires high-precision parts that can operate in high-stress environments. The consistency and custom machining capabilities offered by CNC machining are necessary for the industry.
Aerospace and defense industries
The aerospace industry is worth an estimated $300 billion and shows no signs of slowing down. We usually think of aerospace as = airplanes, but there are also thousands of satellites and rockets that require thousands of precision parts.
The aerospace and defense industry relies on CNC machining to manufacture complex precision parts that leave no margin for error. The tight tolerances, rapid prototyping and scalability of CNC machines are ideally suited to meet the needs of this industry.
Construction industry
The construction industry needs reliable, high-strength parts that can operate in harsh environments. CNC machine tools can process large and small metal parts needed for construction equipment.
CNC machining is the best manufacturing method for difficult metal alloys. High-strength steel alloys are commonly used to make parts for cranes, lifting equipment, bulldozers and other construction equipment. Gears, pump equipment, and high-strength fasteners are just a few examples of NC machined parts.
Energy industry
The gas, oil and energy industry is another huge market that relies on many #CNC machined components. Precision valves, bushings and sensor devices all require precision machined parts.
To keep vital energy infrastructure operating at peak efficiency, components need to fit perfectly together.
Parts used in harsh environments require high precision and high corrosion and heat resistance. Salt water and chemicals can destroy many metal parts, so the industry needs metals such as Hastelloy, which often require modern CNC machine tool cutting tools.
In general, CNC machining process plays an irreplaceable role in modern manufacturing industry, and its high precision, high efficiency and flexibility bring great development opportunities and competitive advantages to all walks of life. With the continuous progress of technology and the continuous expansion of applications, CNC machining technology will continue to play an important role in the future manufacturing industry, and make new contributions to the progress and development of human society.#Honscn #cnc
Surveying and mapping of mechanical parts
Project introduction
Customer products
This product is a mechanical part, and the processing structure is complex, so the size and relative position requirements are high. Therefore, the accessory needs to scan the data of the first industrial part in 3D, detect the quality error between the data and the design document, and analyze the mapping cost of mechanical parts to ensure the smooth progress of production.
Customer difficulties
After the customer's castings are processed, how to detect them has become a difficult problem. The customer has no way to detect the complex structure, many internal dimensions, important processing positions and relative positions.
Nanjing Ningrui handheld 3D laser scanner
The customer recognizes that the measuring equipment
The customer learned about our hand-held 3D laser scanner of Nanjing Ningrui metrology through the introduction of a friend, and checked the relevant knowledge on the Internet. He thought it was too suitable for the mapping of mechanical parts they wanted, so he found us.
Introduction to 3D laser scanner
When the portable 3D scanner T-scan works, the six beam laser is used to obtain the three-dimensional point cloud on the object surface. The operator can hold the equipment in his hand and adjust the distance and angle between the instrument and the measured object in real time. The operation is flexible, convenient and easy to learn. When scanning large volume objects, it can cooperate with the global photogrammetry system to eliminate the cumulative error and scan the size, shape and working environment of the scanned objects efficiently and accurately.
Operation of handheld 3D laser scanner and photogrammetry on products
Solution
The hand-held three-dimensional scanner is a mechanical mapping equipment. Firstly, the positioning mark points should be quickly pasted on the scanned products, and then the three-dimensional data of workpiece surface shape can be obtained quickly and accurately by using the mark points pasted on the workpiece surface through non-contact three-dimensional laser scanning; After the scanner obtains the high-precision data, the obtained data is compared with the existing digital analog, so as to obtain the product deviation and carry out cost analysis.
Scanning process
It takes 7 minutes to paste the marked points;
Data post-processing and comparison for 45 minutes.
Process display
3. Data comparison
summary
The grooved parts of the rotor body in the machine conform to the fit of the rotor gear and change the old comparison method. The use of 3D laser scanner is not only convenient and fast, but also can more accurately grasp the accuracy of each position, which brings better service to customers.
Reverse / comparative product presentation LW
Project introduction
Customer products
This product is a mechanical part, and the processing structure is complex, so the size and relative position requirements are high. Therefore, the accessory needs to scan the data of the first industrial part in 3D, detect the quality error between the data and the design document, and analyze the mapping cost of mechanical parts to ensure the smooth progress of production.
Customer difficulties
After the customer's castings are processed, how to detect them has become a difficult problem. The customer has no way to detect the complex structure, many internal dimensions, important processing positions and relative positions.
Nanjing Ningrui handheld 3D laser scanner
The customer recognizes that the measuring equipment
The customer learned about our hand-held 3D laser scanner of Nanjing Ningrui metrology through the introduction of a friend, and checked the relevant knowledge on the Internet. He thought it was too suitable for the mapping of mechanical parts they wanted, so he found us.
Introduction to 3D laser scanner
When the portable 3D scanner T-scan works, the six beam laser is used to obtain the three-dimensional point cloud on the object surface. The operator can hold the equipment in his hand and adjust the distance and angle between the instrument and the measured object in real time. The operation is flexible, convenient and easy to learn. When scanning large volume objects, it can cooperate with the global photogrammetry system to eliminate the cumulative error and scan the size, shape and working environment of the scanned objects efficiently and accurately.
Operation of handheld 3D laser scanner and photogrammetry on products
Solution
The hand-held three-dimensional scanner is a mechanical mapping equipment. Firstly, the positioning mark points should be quickly pasted on the scanned products, and then the three-dimensional data of workpiece surface shape can be obtained quickly and accurately by using the mark points pasted on the workpiece surface through non-contact three-dimensional laser scanning; After the scanner obtains the high-precision data, the obtained data is compared with the existing digital analog, so as to obtain the product deviation and carry out cost analysis.
Scanning process
It takes 7 minutes to paste the marked points;
Data post-processing and comparison for 45 minutes.
Process display
3. Data comparison
summary
The grooved parts of the rotor body in the machine conform to the fit of the rotor gear and change the old comparison method. The use of 3D laser scanner is not only convenient and fast, but also can more accurately grasp the accuracy of each position, which brings better service to customers.
Reverse / comparative product presentation LW
Seven diverse wood products application reflect the diverse capabilities of CNC machining centers.
For a machine that not so long ago did not even exist, the uses for CNC machining centers have quickly become vast and continue to grow.
Woodworkers today are using these versatile machines for a variety of uses ranging from high-speed, flat-panel production work to very intricate carvings. Combining high speed boring with routing, profiling, cutting and other features, these computer-controlled marvels are being successfully utilized in shops that produce everything from beautiful high-end architectural woodwork to flanges for take up reels.
In the following pages, WOOD & WOOD PRODUCTS interviews woodworkers from around the country who have increased their productivity and accuracy while reducing labor costs through investments in CNC technology. Following are their stories.
SPEAKER MAKER USES CNC MACHINERY TO MAKE IT'S DIVERSE PRODUCT As an OEM supplier of audio speakers, the products that Tiffin, Ohio-based Ameriwood Industries International Inc. manufactures vary in size from small bookshelf-size speakers to large symphonic speakers.
Jim Harrington, plant manager of Ameriwood, said, "We do a variety of sizes and styles. We work with different types of materials, with different thicknesses and locations of holes. No two things are alike." Because of this product diversity, Ameriwood Industries (formerly Tiffin Enterprises) used to perform multiple machining operations for every item. Multiple operations meant that several workers had to handle each part, "and the more you handle it, the more opportunity there is for the product to be damaged," Harrington said.
To minimize parts handling -- and thus reduce their labor costs -- the company made an investment in a CNC machining center from Roger Stiles & Associates.
MACHINING CENTERS Vinyl overlayed particleboard is trimmed, cut-to-size, drilled and routed on the machining center. Computer programs are downloaded from a computer system directly into the machine's controller.
"We used CNC routers for a number of years," Harrington said. "The machining center is taking the place of routing and vertical-type drills." The machining center allows the company to do up to 12 workpieces at a time, Harrington said. After all the machining operations have been completed it is a "totally finished part" without need of further machining, Harrington added.
EFFICIENT PLANT HELPS COMPANY CONTROL COSTS In the past two years, Warvel Products-North Carolina has experienced dramatic price increases for the raw materials used to produce curved plywood components. These components are then sold to contract furniture manufacturers such as Haworth.
"We had 30 percent increases in our raw material costs," said sales manager Robbie Wiltcher, "so we have improved plant efficiency by purchasing machinery and technology that would allow us to absorb as much (of the price increase) as possible without passing these costs on. It is important for us as a vendor to help our customers be as competitive in their markets as possible." One of the ways Warvel did this was through the purchase of a multiple-station, four-axis CNC machining center from C.M.S North America. The machining center allows the company to mount up to six components at a time, and complements the company's existing three and five axis machining centers, Wiltcher said.
This is important, considering the amount of product which is shipped from the company's plant in Linwood, N.C. Approximately 100,000 parts a month are produced at the facility, the majority of which are customized. The company has a catalog with standard components, but Wiltcher said that 80 percent of the company's orders are made per customers specifications.
"The machine is capable of multiple machining tasks," Wiltcher said. "In most cases all that's left to do is light sanding and tee-nut installation where required." Another benefit, Wiltcher added, is the very tight tolerances obtained with the machine. The company supplies curved plywood which must integrate with plastic and steel components in ergonomic chairs.
"It is essential to be able to maintain tight tolerances in the various required operations such as drilling on angles, profiling and notching so that all of the different chair components fit together the way they were engineered. This machine provides all of these things," Wiltcher said.
To increase productivity even further, the company purchased machines and software that complement the machining center, including a digitizing machine. The digitizer will read a template part and the software will create a program which is downloaded into the machining center. The company also uses the system to internally produce its own compound tooling.
"The system has reduced the lead time on new tooling from months to days," said Wiltcher. "All of these capabilities assists our customers in bringing many new products to market rapidly and competitively." HIGH-TECH HELPS HIGH-END ARCHITECTURAL FIRM Powell Cabinet & Fixtures of Sparks, Nev., is a high-end architectural woodworking company whose work ranges from luxurious residences to glistening casinos.
The 42-year-old company, which bills itself as the oldest architectural woodworking company in the state of Nevada, is owned by the father/son team of Roger and Bill Powell.
One of the company's most recent projects was for the new Luxor Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas. The company did a variety of work at the hotel, including a 3 1/2-inch thick, 13-inch wide, solid-mahogany handrail that was built on a 255-foot radius. The handrail also featured solid-cast bronze support pieces and etched glass.
The handrail was manufactured utilizing a Komo VR 512 CNC machining center the company got in January 1993. Prior to that, the company had been doing everything with multiple machines. "The machining center is exceptional on irregular shapes and curves," Bill Powell said.
"It is more adaptable than to have a journeyman do it by hand. The radius work takes more time to program, but instead of having a journeyman woodworker spend several days on something, the machine will produce the same product in significantly less time." Powell added that there is a learning curve to the machine. "The purchase of the machine is just the first step," Powell said.
"The time that it takes to learn how to program and operate it is a major expense, as is the tooling and all the programming updates that are needed to keep up-to-speed." But while these factors need to be taken into account, Powell said he thinks it is becoming essential for companies to invest in high-technology equipment. According to Powell, one of the reasons the company purchased the machining center was because "the quantity of qualified, journeyman cabinetmakers that can produce this type of work is diminishing. You have to rely on the technical aspects of the industry to help fill that void," he said.
COMPANY GROWS A STEP AT A TIME When Denny Beuter and Bob Bloss formed Diamond Cut Inc. eight years ago they had a plan. The two men wanted their South Bend, Ind.-based company to become a leader in the field of commercial sound equipment. A daunting task made all the more difficult considering they did not own any sophisticated equipment.
"We went on the premise that we needed extremely good equipment to make a really good product," said Beuter. "But in order to get good equipment you have to have a product with enough volume to keep the machine running." What Beuter and Bloss did was to start slowly, acquiring equipment and producing parts for other companies. "We would do cutting and edging, anything to get work into the plant," Beuter said. "To sell machine time you have to do everything a little bit better than what the (source) companies can do in their own shop. We got real good, real fast, because otherwise we had to eat the cost of the job." From doing this job-shop-type-work, the next step was doing contract work. "My partner (Bloss), whose background is in the speaker business, went out (to speaker companies) and said, 'We can make speakers boxes for you and we can do them with high precision,'" Beuter said.
Diamond Cut began producing speaker cabinets for such companies as JBL and Panasonic. The product Panasonic wanted the company to produce necessitated an equipment upgrade. "The Panasonic people wanted a (speaker) box that was trapezoid shape," Beuter said. "This product would have been almost impossible to make with the router we were using." Beuter and Bloss chose a U-26 Morbidelli machining center from Tekna Machinery. The machine not only allows them to produce the trapezoidal shapes, it also has reduced labor costs. "For example, we had one full-time worker on the payroll whose only job was to make jigs, Beuter said. "I have no more jigs." While Diamond Cut has grown, with sales projected to reach around $2 million in 1994, the company continues to move toward that plan. In 1993, the company started a proprietary line of heavy-duty commercial sound equipment under the moniker, Bull Frog.
The Bull Frog equipment is sold throughout the United States and a number of countries around the world. "For 24-hours a day, for the last three months, we have been so busy with our own proprietary work that we have not been able to do any outside work, Beuter said.
"Hopefully by the end of the year we will be completely out of contract work." BOOTH MAKER FINDS SIGN TO SUCCESS Utilizing a variety of materials, Farmington Displays of Farmington, Conn., creates trade show displays for companies in industries as diverse as food, computers and guns.
Farmington Displays, which was founded in 1973 by Paul DiTommaso Sr., counts 278 companies as its clients. On average, Farmington Displays' clients update their booths every three to five years.
"We have a pretty good job flow," said general manager Sal DiTommaso, son of Paul Sr. and one of three sons and a daughter currently working for the company. "Not everybody is building their booth at the same time." Farmington Displays boasts an impressive client list, including General Electric, NEC and gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson. In the traditionally very labor-intensive field of display manufacturing, the company stands out for its use of high-technology equipment. More than three years ago, after extensive research on available machinery, the company began its investment in CNC machinery.
"The first thing that sparked my interest in obtaining CNC machinery was watching one of my men cutting out an eight-foot circle," said Sal DiTommaso. "It was so archaic, I just said there had to be another way to do it." Farmington Display's plant now features two Heian CNC routers and a computerized panel saw from Stiles Machinery, as well as a computerized graphic/design laboratories linked together as a Local Area Network.
The Heian machining centers have allowed the company to branch out into areas such as manufacturing signage and store fixtures. Farmington Displays had always created graphics for signs, but the CNC routers allow the company to manufacture them in-house. Additionally, the company is now doing contract machining for other, non-competing manufacturers.
To create their distinctive products, the company utilizes a variety of materials. On its CNC routers, the company utilizes everything from acrylics to solid woods. On a separate metal machining center the company works with brass and other metallic alloys. "We don't farm anything out," DiTommaso said. "We try to keep everything in-house so that we have complete quality control over the finished product." FAMILY-OWNED LUMBER YARD SEIZES CHANCE TO DIVERSIFY ITS BUSINESS In 1922, Hans Lars founded Hansen Lumber in Galesburg, Ill. Over the next 70 or so years, the business would be handed down from family-member to family-member, and would remain a traditional lumber yard.
It remained solely a lumber yard until two years ago when Hansen Lumber seized an opportunity to diversify. The company was asked to do some circular panel cutting for a Galesburg-based manufacturer of wooden reels. Approximately a year later that manufacturer, who believed the reel industry was going to dominated by the use of plastics, first contemplated shuttering the facility and then offered to sell the business -- and its client list -- to Hansen Lumber.
The family-owned company, currently being run by Shard Hansen, the founder's grandson, with help from his daughter Karen (the fourth-generation family member in the business), decided to purchase the company, and quickly realized the need to upgrade its equipment.
"Taking up wire or rope around a reel must be done at very high feed rates, especially if it is a small diameter wire, because unless your doing it at a 1,000 feel a minute it would take forever to wind," said Hansen, "so the arbor hole has to be exact. If the arbor hole is off center the whole thing will be jerking." A little more than a year ago the company purchased a CNC machining center from Accu-Router. The machine features two vertical routers, which can machine 1 1/2 inch southern yellow pine industrial grade plywood used for the flanges on the reels and maintains tight tolerances.
Prior to working with the machining center, the company would have to cut out a square and in subsequent steps radius the panel down to the required size and shape.
Having a high-technology machining center not only provides for accuracy, it also helps to utilize the plywood. "Our flanges range in size from eight inches to 48 inches round," said Hansen.
"When we are cutting the circles, we can nest them in such a fashion that we get great yield and waste is very nominal." CNC EQUIPMENT HELPS CARVING COMPANY MAKE BEAUTIFUL MUSIC Investing, not only in new equipment, but also in the training of its workforce has helped this Thomasville, N.C.-based carving company increase its capacity while reducing its overhead.
Founded in 1968, Piedmont Carving carves furniture parts -- specializing in chair parts -- and parts for such musical instruments as the cello and guitar.
Over the last few years, the company has sold some of its older carving machines and invested that money in computerized machinery including CNC Robot Carvers from Thermwood Corp.
"We used to have 13 carving machines and we would run all of them in one shift," said Gay Jones, who along with her twin brother Ray, and her father, company-founder Jimmy, own the business. "We sold three carving machines and still are projecting to triple our capacity with the robotic carvers." The company has reduced its labor costs in part by computerizing its carving, but also by cross training its 29 employees so that they can work on other machines in the shop.
Learning to efficiently use the CNC robot was a difficult challenge for the company, Gay Jones said, "but I'm glad we did because it gives us an advantage over companies who are just now getting into robotic carving." Piedmont Carving bought its first robotic carver four years ago. The company is planning to purchase additional machines.
One of the benefits of computerized machinery is consistency. This is important when Piedmont is crafting its furniture and musical instrument components.
"Chair parts have to fit together perfectly when they're sent to the manufacturer," Jones said. "With the robotic carving everything stays so consistent. This consistency is also very important when we are doing the musical instruments because the craftsmanship that goes into the part can affect the sound." CARVING WOOD PARTS 20 AT A TIME Intricate handcarvings are being quickly and accurately duplicated by Carving Research Inc. of Huntersville, N.C., using a 20-head Kitako CNC Machining Center distributed by Tekmatex Inc.
Carving Research is a 2-year-old, 12-employee company with projected 1994 sales of $840,000. The company supplies intricate wood carvings to such major residential furniture makers as Henredon Furniture Industries Inc. and Baker Furniture Co.
What once had to be done one at a time by master handcarvers can now be done 20 at a time by the company. This results not only in time savings but cost savings as well, without sacrificing the look of the product, according to company owner Tom Bowker. An example of the speed of the machine is a rice carved bed post; typically it would take a master handcarver approximately six to eight hours to complete, "while we can do it in an hour," Bowker said.
To produce the carvings, an initial handcarved template is made. This carving is sent to Tekmatex, where a digitizing machine creates a computer program which can be downloaded into the machining center. Once this program is completed, an infinite number of a given carving can be created with precision.
There are certain "essential ingredients" to creating the carvings, said Bowker. Tooling is one of the most important. Because of the nature of the product, the Carving Research utilizes unique tooling, including a razor-sharp veining bit developed by Oertli Woodworking Tools Inc. that leaves such a clean cut, that secondary carvings are not necessary, Bowker said. Another example is a 1/16-inch flat-bottom or straight router bit which is used on many of the carvings.
"Nobody else uses anything like that," Bowker said.
"Because of the intricacies of many of the carvings, we have to use a wider variety of tooling including some carbide tooling, than what you would use if running a normal carving operation. Many of our bits have to be small because you have to get in and do a cut and make it look like it was done with a chisel.
For a machine that not so long ago did not even exist, the uses for CNC machining centers have quickly become vast and continue to grow.
Woodworkers today are using these versatile machines for a variety of uses ranging from high-speed, flat-panel production work to very intricate carvings. Combining high speed boring with routing, profiling, cutting and other features, these computer-controlled marvels are being successfully utilized in shops that produce everything from beautiful high-end architectural woodwork to flanges for take up reels.
In the following pages, WOOD & WOOD PRODUCTS interviews woodworkers from around the country who have increased their productivity and accuracy while reducing labor costs through investments in CNC technology. Following are their stories.
SPEAKER MAKER USES CNC MACHINERY TO MAKE IT'S DIVERSE PRODUCT As an OEM supplier of audio speakers, the products that Tiffin, Ohio-based Ameriwood Industries International Inc. manufactures vary in size from small bookshelf-size speakers to large symphonic speakers.
Jim Harrington, plant manager of Ameriwood, said, "We do a variety of sizes and styles. We work with different types of materials, with different thicknesses and locations of holes. No two things are alike." Because of this product diversity, Ameriwood Industries (formerly Tiffin Enterprises) used to perform multiple machining operations for every item. Multiple operations meant that several workers had to handle each part, "and the more you handle it, the more opportunity there is for the product to be damaged," Harrington said.
To minimize parts handling -- and thus reduce their labor costs -- the company made an investment in a CNC machining center from Roger Stiles & Associates.
MACHINING CENTERS Vinyl overlayed particleboard is trimmed, cut-to-size, drilled and routed on the machining center. Computer programs are downloaded from a computer system directly into the machine's controller.
"We used CNC routers for a number of years," Harrington said. "The machining center is taking the place of routing and vertical-type drills." The machining center allows the company to do up to 12 workpieces at a time, Harrington said. After all the machining operations have been completed it is a "totally finished part" without need of further machining, Harrington added.
EFFICIENT PLANT HELPS COMPANY CONTROL COSTS In the past two years, Warvel Products-North Carolina has experienced dramatic price increases for the raw materials used to produce curved plywood components. These components are then sold to contract furniture manufacturers such as Haworth.
"We had 30 percent increases in our raw material costs," said sales manager Robbie Wiltcher, "so we have improved plant efficiency by purchasing machinery and technology that would allow us to absorb as much (of the price increase) as possible without passing these costs on. It is important for us as a vendor to help our customers be as competitive in their markets as possible." One of the ways Warvel did this was through the purchase of a multiple-station, four-axis CNC machining center from C.M.S North America. The machining center allows the company to mount up to six components at a time, and complements the company's existing three and five axis machining centers, Wiltcher said.
This is important, considering the amount of product which is shipped from the company's plant in Linwood, N.C. Approximately 100,000 parts a month are produced at the facility, the majority of which are customized. The company has a catalog with standard components, but Wiltcher said that 80 percent of the company's orders are made per customers specifications.
"The machine is capable of multiple machining tasks," Wiltcher said. "In most cases all that's left to do is light sanding and tee-nut installation where required." Another benefit, Wiltcher added, is the very tight tolerances obtained with the machine. The company supplies curved plywood which must integrate with plastic and steel components in ergonomic chairs.
"It is essential to be able to maintain tight tolerances in the various required operations such as drilling on angles, profiling and notching so that all of the different chair components fit together the way they were engineered. This machine provides all of these things," Wiltcher said.
To increase productivity even further, the company purchased machines and software that complement the machining center, including a digitizing machine. The digitizer will read a template part and the software will create a program which is downloaded into the machining center. The company also uses the system to internally produce its own compound tooling.
"The system has reduced the lead time on new tooling from months to days," said Wiltcher. "All of these capabilities assists our customers in bringing many new products to market rapidly and competitively." HIGH-TECH HELPS HIGH-END ARCHITECTURAL FIRM Powell Cabinet & Fixtures of Sparks, Nev., is a high-end architectural woodworking company whose work ranges from luxurious residences to glistening casinos.
The 42-year-old company, which bills itself as the oldest architectural woodworking company in the state of Nevada, is owned by the father/son team of Roger and Bill Powell.
One of the company's most recent projects was for the new Luxor Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas. The company did a variety of work at the hotel, including a 3 1/2-inch thick, 13-inch wide, solid-mahogany handrail that was built on a 255-foot radius. The handrail also featured solid-cast bronze support pieces and etched glass.
The handrail was manufactured utilizing a Komo VR 512 CNC machining center the company got in January 1993. Prior to that, the company had been doing everything with multiple machines. "The machining center is exceptional on irregular shapes and curves," Bill Powell said.
"It is more adaptable than to have a journeyman do it by hand. The radius work takes more time to program, but instead of having a journeyman woodworker spend several days on something, the machine will produce the same product in significantly less time." Powell added that there is a learning curve to the machine. "The purchase of the machine is just the first step," Powell said.
"The time that it takes to learn how to program and operate it is a major expense, as is the tooling and all the programming updates that are needed to keep up-to-speed." But while these factors need to be taken into account, Powell said he thinks it is becoming essential for companies to invest in high-technology equipment. According to Powell, one of the reasons the company purchased the machining center was because "the quantity of qualified, journeyman cabinetmakers that can produce this type of work is diminishing. You have to rely on the technical aspects of the industry to help fill that void," he said.
COMPANY GROWS A STEP AT A TIME When Denny Beuter and Bob Bloss formed Diamond Cut Inc. eight years ago they had a plan. The two men wanted their South Bend, Ind.-based company to become a leader in the field of commercial sound equipment. A daunting task made all the more difficult considering they did not own any sophisticated equipment.
"We went on the premise that we needed extremely good equipment to make a really good product," said Beuter. "But in order to get good equipment you have to have a product with enough volume to keep the machine running." What Beuter and Bloss did was to start slowly, acquiring equipment and producing parts for other companies. "We would do cutting and edging, anything to get work into the plant," Beuter said. "To sell machine time you have to do everything a little bit better than what the (source) companies can do in their own shop. We got real good, real fast, because otherwise we had to eat the cost of the job." From doing this job-shop-type-work, the next step was doing contract work. "My partner (Bloss), whose background is in the speaker business, went out (to speaker companies) and said, 'We can make speakers boxes for you and we can do them with high precision,'" Beuter said.
Diamond Cut began producing speaker cabinets for such companies as JBL and Panasonic. The product Panasonic wanted the company to produce necessitated an equipment upgrade. "The Panasonic people wanted a (speaker) box that was trapezoid shape," Beuter said. "This product would have been almost impossible to make with the router we were using." Beuter and Bloss chose a U-26 Morbidelli machining center from Tekna Machinery. The machine not only allows them to produce the trapezoidal shapes, it also has reduced labor costs. "For example, we had one full-time worker on the payroll whose only job was to make jigs, Beuter said. "I have no more jigs." While Diamond Cut has grown, with sales projected to reach around $2 million in 1994, the company continues to move toward that plan. In 1993, the company started a proprietary line of heavy-duty commercial sound equipment under the moniker, Bull Frog.
The Bull Frog equipment is sold throughout the United States and a number of countries around the world. "For 24-hours a day, for the last three months, we have been so busy with our own proprietary work that we have not been able to do any outside work, Beuter said.
"Hopefully by the end of the year we will be completely out of contract work." BOOTH MAKER FINDS SIGN TO SUCCESS Utilizing a variety of materials, Farmington Displays of Farmington, Conn., creates trade show displays for companies in industries as diverse as food, computers and guns.
Farmington Displays, which was founded in 1973 by Paul DiTommaso Sr., counts 278 companies as its clients. On average, Farmington Displays' clients update their booths every three to five years.
"We have a pretty good job flow," said general manager Sal DiTommaso, son of Paul Sr. and one of three sons and a daughter currently working for the company. "Not everybody is building their booth at the same time." Farmington Displays boasts an impressive client list, including General Electric, NEC and gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson. In the traditionally very labor-intensive field of display manufacturing, the company stands out for its use of high-technology equipment. More than three years ago, after extensive research on available machinery, the company began its investment in CNC machinery.
"The first thing that sparked my interest in obtaining CNC machinery was watching one of my men cutting out an eight-foot circle," said Sal DiTommaso. "It was so archaic, I just said there had to be another way to do it." Farmington Display's plant now features two Heian CNC routers and a computerized panel saw from Stiles Machinery, as well as a computerized graphic/design laboratories linked together as a Local Area Network.
The Heian machining centers have allowed the company to branch out into areas such as manufacturing signage and store fixtures. Farmington Displays had always created graphics for signs, but the CNC routers allow the company to manufacture them in-house. Additionally, the company is now doing contract machining for other, non-competing manufacturers.
To create their distinctive products, the company utilizes a variety of materials. On its CNC routers, the company utilizes everything from acrylics to solid woods. On a separate metal machining center the company works with brass and other metallic alloys. "We don't farm anything out," DiTommaso said. "We try to keep everything in-house so that we have complete quality control over the finished product." FAMILY-OWNED LUMBER YARD SEIZES CHANCE TO DIVERSIFY ITS BUSINESS In 1922, Hans Lars founded Hansen Lumber in Galesburg, Ill. Over the next 70 or so years, the business would be handed down from family-member to family-member, and would remain a traditional lumber yard.
It remained solely a lumber yard until two years ago when Hansen Lumber seized an opportunity to diversify. The company was asked to do some circular panel cutting for a Galesburg-based manufacturer of wooden reels. Approximately a year later that manufacturer, who believed the reel industry was going to dominated by the use of plastics, first contemplated shuttering the facility and then offered to sell the business -- and its client list -- to Hansen Lumber.
The family-owned company, currently being run by Shard Hansen, the founder's grandson, with help from his daughter Karen (the fourth-generation family member in the business), decided to purchase the company, and quickly realized the need to upgrade its equipment.
"Taking up wire or rope around a reel must be done at very high feed rates, especially if it is a small diameter wire, because unless your doing it at a 1,000 feel a minute it would take forever to wind," said Hansen, "so the arbor hole has to be exact. If the arbor hole is off center the whole thing will be jerking." A little more than a year ago the company purchased a CNC machining center from Accu-Router. The machine features two vertical routers, which can machine 1 1/2 inch southern yellow pine industrial grade plywood used for the flanges on the reels and maintains tight tolerances.
Prior to working with the machining center, the company would have to cut out a square and in subsequent steps radius the panel down to the required size and shape.
Having a high-technology machining center not only provides for accuracy, it also helps to utilize the plywood. "Our flanges range in size from eight inches to 48 inches round," said Hansen.
"When we are cutting the circles, we can nest them in such a fashion that we get great yield and waste is very nominal." CNC EQUIPMENT HELPS CARVING COMPANY MAKE BEAUTIFUL MUSIC Investing, not only in new equipment, but also in the training of its workforce has helped this Thomasville, N.C.-based carving company increase its capacity while reducing its overhead.
Founded in 1968, Piedmont Carving carves furniture parts -- specializing in chair parts -- and parts for such musical instruments as the cello and guitar.
Over the last few years, the company has sold some of its older carving machines and invested that money in computerized machinery including CNC Robot Carvers from Thermwood Corp.
"We used to have 13 carving machines and we would run all of them in one shift," said Gay Jones, who along with her twin brother Ray, and her father, company-founder Jimmy, own the business. "We sold three carving machines and still are projecting to triple our capacity with the robotic carvers." The company has reduced its labor costs in part by computerizing its carving, but also by cross training its 29 employees so that they can work on other machines in the shop.
Learning to efficiently use the CNC robot was a difficult challenge for the company, Gay Jones said, "but I'm glad we did because it gives us an advantage over companies who are just now getting into robotic carving." Piedmont Carving bought its first robotic carver four years ago. The company is planning to purchase additional machines.
One of the benefits of computerized machinery is consistency. This is important when Piedmont is crafting its furniture and musical instrument components.
"Chair parts have to fit together perfectly when they're sent to the manufacturer," Jones said. "With the robotic carving everything stays so consistent. This consistency is also very important when we are doing the musical instruments because the craftsmanship that goes into the part can affect the sound." CARVING WOOD PARTS 20 AT A TIME Intricate handcarvings are being quickly and accurately duplicated by Carving Research Inc. of Huntersville, N.C., using a 20-head Kitako CNC Machining Center distributed by Tekmatex Inc.
Carving Research is a 2-year-old, 12-employee company with projected 1994 sales of $840,000. The company supplies intricate wood carvings to such major residential furniture makers as Henredon Furniture Industries Inc. and Baker Furniture Co.
What once had to be done one at a time by master handcarvers can now be done 20 at a time by the company. This results not only in time savings but cost savings as well, without sacrificing the look of the product, according to company owner Tom Bowker. An example of the speed of the machine is a rice carved bed post; typically it would take a master handcarver approximately six to eight hours to complete, "while we can do it in an hour," Bowker said.
To produce the carvings, an initial handcarved template is made. This carving is sent to Tekmatex, where a digitizing machine creates a computer program which can be downloaded into the machining center. Once this program is completed, an infinite number of a given carving can be created with precision.
There are certain "essential ingredients" to creating the carvings, said Bowker. Tooling is one of the most important. Because of the nature of the product, the Carving Research utilizes unique tooling, including a razor-sharp veining bit developed by Oertli Woodworking Tools Inc. that leaves such a clean cut, that secondary carvings are not necessary, Bowker said. Another example is a 1/16-inch flat-bottom or straight router bit which is used on many of the carvings.
"Nobody else uses anything like that," Bowker said.
"Because of the intricacies of many of the carvings, we have to use a wider variety of tooling including some carbide tooling, than what you would use if running a normal carving operation. Many of our bits have to be small because you have to get in and do a cut and make it look like it was done with a chisel.
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