Lightweighting’s New Phase September 3, 2019 Earlier this decade, the auto industry moved to lighten cars and trucks. It was supposed to be a competition between steel, long the dominant vehicle material, and aluminum. The latter got a boost when Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., bet big on aluminum, making aluminum bodies for its F-150 and Super Duty pickups.
Putting Machinery on a Strong Fitness Plan Starts with Real-Time Monitoring August 16, 2019 Having a plan for maintaining and improving the performance and reliability of every machine on a shop floor is vital to manufacturing operations. Reliable machines make short-notice production runs possible. And the more flexible manufacturers are, the more new customers they’ll attract.
Go Off the Charts for Toolholder Torque Settings October 10, 2019 For years, collet-type toolholder assembly and setup have relied on cumbersome, error-prone manual methods that waste time and money.
5 Books for Tool & Die Makers October 14, 2019 Machinists and toolmakers are often confused for one another. Their expertise and job descriptions might seem similar to an outsider, but as Practical Machinist’s forum members like to point out, there is a significant difference between them.
ARCH Global Precision Acquires Siem Tool Co. July 10, 2019 ARCH Global Precision, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., a Jordan Company platform company focused on manufacturing cutting tools, machined components and medical implants and instruments, has acquired Siem Tool Co., Latrobe, Pa. Siem Tool is a manufacturer of custom solid-carbide drills, end mills, reamers, thread mills and form tools. Siem Tool will join ARCH’s Cutting Tools division.
Deep Hole Drilling Aids Change in Auto Manufacturing September 9, 2019 The future of the auto industry is interesting but uncertain. No one knows how quickly electric vehicles are going to replace gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles, how completely it will happen, and when it will occur in passenger cars as opposed to SUVs and heavy trucks.
Adapting Metal Cutting to Higher Power, Higher-Speed Lasers October 25, 2019 Using lasers to cut metal, especially sheet metal or tubes, continues to show its value. The market is becoming dominated by the newer solid-state fiber laser over its CO2 gas rival. Fiber’s advantages in ease of operation, packaging and efficiency are clear.
Better Tool Life through Advanced Chemistry August 9, 2019 Tool coating is ubiquitous. The variations are dizzying. And, we’re at an inflection point in the technology in the U.S. So, whether you’re a tool user or a tool manufacturer, it’s a good time to dive into this topic.
More Profitable Toolpaths August 7, 2019 Adaptive Milling. Dynamic Motion. hyperMILL. Profit Milling. VoluMill. Waveform machining. If you’re one of the lucky people who machines parts for a living, chances are about 50-50 that you’re using one of these or a comparable high-performance programming technology.
Shops Continue to Rethink Brass and HSM August 14, 2019 The Copper Development Association (CDA) is eager to help shops discover and tap into the high-speed machining advantages of brass. The substantial benefits of doing so have an increasing number of shops rethinking their part materials and, when possible, converting those parts to brass.