Two-Man Shop Runs Unattended With Automated Turning Center  06/01/08
After investing in a gantry-loaded turning center equipped with machine-mounted gaging system, this two-man shop nearly tripled its productivity.       

Gantry-Loaded CHuckers Turn Up Productivity  05/01/08
Faced with a bottleneck in its turning operation, this manufacturer of tapered bearings for railcars invested in automated, twin-spindle CNC chuckers. In addition to increasing productivity and improving safety, moving from a manual to an automated turning freed workers for reassignment to other tasks throughout the plant. 

Turning Is Optional  05/01/08
The part requires only milling and drilling, but it is still run on a lathe. Except for the cutoff tool, all of the turret positions on this lathe hold rotating tools. In other words, turning is not essential for using a lathe effectively. This application illustrates the productive possibilities of a modern turn-mill machine.

Continuous Turning On Turn-Mills  02/01/08
A new CAM feature continuously manages B-axis head rotation to allow turn-mills to completely turn inner and outer workpiece profiles using a single tool.

Lean Manufacturing For The Job Shop  01/01/08
Lean practices are not just for predictable production. Here are the common-sense ways this low-volume job shop has implemented a leaner process.

Milling Chuck Pumps Up Productivity  01/01/08

Rigid toolholding offers a platform for productivity on this pump manufacturer's mill-turn center.


Turn, Mill And Laser-Harden In One Setup  01/01/08
A new turn-mill platform combines turning and four-axis milling with integral laser hardening and laser welding in one workpiece setup. This enables shops to bring often-outsourced laser treatment in-house to reduce lead times.

Beat The Heat With High-Pressure Coolant  12/01/07

In lieu of traditional flooding measures, multitasking machine operators can use high-pressure coolant strategically to improve chip control and tooling life while enhancing overall productivity. 

Consider L:D When Choosing A Lathe For Small Parts  12/01/07

Should shops always defer to Swiss-type lathes to process small, long and often complex parts? Not necessarily. As a general rule, a Swiss-type is most appropriate for machining workpieces with L:D ratios of 4 to 1 or greater. Parts with lower L:D ratios may be machined economically on turn-mills.

   

Double-Sided Productivity  09/01/07

Having a bar feeder on one side and a parts carrousel on the other side ensures that a turn-mill machine will achieve maximum productivity, whether the workpieces are mostly milled or mostly turned. In general, smaller parts are machined from bar stock, even if only milling operations are involved. Larger parts are loaded an unloaded by a transfer device fed by the carrousel.

Let Assembly Be The Inspection  09/01/07

This shop realized single-setup machining on a multitasking turning center, but there was still more efficiency to be found. When all of the part's machining had been consolidated, the shop realized that assembly operations could be performed at the same station as well.

More Turrets, More Tools, Less Cycle Time  09/01/07
On this model, the builder is arranging spindles and tool turrets to reduce cycle time, although flexibility stands to gain as well. The result, the company says, is a turn-mill that can offer cycle times comparable to those acheived on a multi-spindle automatic.

A Tour Through Partners In THINC  08/01/07
Leading technology companies have gathered under one roof to provide one source for creative manufacturing solutions.

Automatic Monitoring And Adjustment System Matches Coolant Pressure To Tool Needs  08/01/07
Sponsored by Okuma. Custom software has been developed to automatically identify the tool currently in a machine's spindle and adjust the coolant pressure to the appropriate level.

Eliminating Redundancy Through Tool Data Management  08/01/07
Sponsored by Okuma. A paperless tool management system allows equipment to communicate with each other to share cutting tool information.

Introducing Partners In THINC  08/01/07
Okuma's Larry Schwartz explains the philosophy that led to the creation of the Partners in THINC facility where leading companies have teamed to creatively problem solve and develop solutions for the manufacturing industry.

Oil Drill Coupling Production Gets Automated  08/01/07
Sponsored by Okuma. A manufacturing cell combines lathes, gantry robot and conveyor system to enable automated production of oil drill couplings.

Turning Center With Ample Tool Positions  08/01/07
This multi-axis machine extends beyond the capabilities of a turning center, offering the tooling capacity similar to that of a machining center. As a result, it enables efficient machining of complex-shaped workpieces in large quantities.

From Out Of The Lab  06/01/07
Disruptive technology's  purpose is to disrupt the way machining is done. This article includes some of the developments to come out of the Machining Technology Laboratory (MTL), an R&D initiative dedicated to finding innovations in metalworking processes.

Screw Machine Shop Modernizes As It Moves To Medical  06/01/07
CAD/CAM software has been key for this shop to meet the tight lead times necessary to move into the medical market.

A Fresh Face In Machining  03/01/07
It's late Friday night. While other 19-year-olds may be enjoying a movie or perhaps just hanging out with friends, Michael Goetz is programming a job on a mill-turn. The owner of Lombard, Illinois-based Goetz Industries is no stranger to hard work. In fact, in addition to completing coursework, he worked at least 50 hours per week while enrolled in high school.

Realizing Large-Scale Savings On Large-Scale Parts  01/01/07
Converting big square bars to largely round tie bars used to require 24 hours per piece at Oak Products. The Sturgis, Michigan, company can now complete the same job in 8 hours. How did the company slash its machining times and realize substantial cost savings? Oak attributes the turnaround to process re-engineering involving aggressive mill-turning and tooling geared to stand up to the challenge.

Simulation Saves Cost By Balancing Workflow  12/04/06
Although CAM programming had been automated for many years within the Morton Grove, Illinois, facility of the John Crane Inc. (JCI) Seals Division, the shop here found a way to make the process even more efficient. It found a way to get new, complex, multi-axis turning centers into production quickly, and to maximize the productivity of these CNC machine tools in cellular manufacturing.

Succeeding Beyond A Specialty  07/01/06
This shop watched its chosen niche become less profitable. Its response was a dramatic investment in new equipment, along with an information-related change that has made all of the shop's equipment more cost-effective.

Turning Without Rotating The Part  05/01/06
For large or unbalanced parts, this machining center can perform turning or boring operations using its programmable U axis.

The Multi-Process Machine Mindset  01/01/06
Installing a machine tool that combines milling, turning, boring and other processes changed this job shop's outlook.

Cylinder Head Porting On A Turn/Mill Machine  11/01/05
This complex milling operation is performed effectively on a machine that does turning.

As The Turn/Mill Concept Evolves, Is New Terminology Needed?  09/26/05
This series of turn/mill machines combines the full turning capability of a pure turning center and the full millig capability of a machining center. Design features address critical issues of vibration and heat.

Making A Flexible Machine Tool More Flexible  09/01/05
Multitasking cutting tools can maximize the flexibility of multitasking machines.

Re-envisioning Automation  08/01/05
The Future of Machining - 2005 Add vision systems to robots, and fundamental aspects of the process deserve a second look.

The Prescription For Making Orthopedic Parts  05/15/05
This shop entered the medical machining field and succeeded there.

A Quick Look Inside Internal Thread Whirling  05/01/05
Using choreographed movement of workpiece and oscillating tool, internal thread whirling can produce difficult helical threads inside parts such as ballscrew nuts.

Mold Machining On The Move  04/01/05
Rethinking the mold machining process leads to concepts worth considering, even for applications outside mold making.

Swiss-Type Turning Without A Guide Bushing  10/01/04
The traditional CNC Swiss-type machine is well suited to parts that are long and slender. Here is an alternative for other types of turned parts. 

Applying Turn-Milling  09/01/04
Combining a rotating tool with rotating work produces a machining operation that is distinct from standard turning or milling.

New Turning Center Design Aims At Maximum Turning And Milling Rates  07/01/04
With this new series of turning centers, the builder was determined to take a fundamental approach, reexamining the dynamics of both the turning and milling processes performed by the machine. In all, a 15-person team spent 2 and a half years on the project, and the company believes the results were well worth the effort.

Making It In Medical  06/01/04
Examining this shop's healthy medical machining business shows that both medical components and medical customers require special care.

Investing In New Business  02/01/04
When this South Carolina screw machine shop started losing jobs to China, it looked for ways to replace the lost business with more challenging jobs where labor costs are not the only consideration. The firm invested in a pair of turn-mill machines that run 24/7, producing parts complete in one setup. The new machining capability has attracted new business that more than compensates for that which was lost.

U Axis Expands Internal Multitasking Machining  01/25/04
The promise of multitasking or complete machining continues to be realized in shops applying the technology. Driven by a need to manufacture workpieces complete in a single handling, machine tools that efficiently blend the operational capabilities of turning, milling and drilling in a single platform continue to evolve.

B-Axis Turn/Mills Have Their Place  09/15/03
The additional rotary milling axis on these machines allows them to complete many types of complex parts in a single setup, but these machines have gained a reputation for being difficult to program. Today's CAM software, however, eases the programming challenge significantly.

Rolling Threads Has Advantages  09/15/03
With macros and canned cycles resident in the CNC on most contemporary turning centers, single point turning of OD threads can seem like almost a default process decision. However, for numerous applications, OD thread rolling has inherent advantages as an alternative to cutting threads.

Turning Center Helps Medical Company Reduce Cycle Times  07/15/03
Keen competition in a growing market segment and maintaining necessary standards of quality make the medical implant industry a challenging business. This shop designs, develops, manufactures and markets products used primarily by orthopaedic medical specialists in both surgical and non-surgical therapy.

Prototyping Productivity  05/15/03
A manufacturer of hermetic compressors proves out a new strategy based on multi-process machining.

Up To 12 Tools In One Holder  06/15/02
Imagine a single cutting toolholder that can be used to perform 12 distinct metalcutting operations without a tool change. That's the concept behind a new cutting tool innovation designed and built by Mazak.

Merging Functions For Better Efficiency  12/15/01
By eliminating extra steps, a multi-process machine enables a medical manufacturer to streamline its production time and conserve shop space.

Multi-Station Repeatability Enhances Quality For Complex Parts  12/15/01
Flexible automation is making production machining a new opportunity for shops that traditionally did not seek this kind of work. At the same time, automated machining systems are taking new shapes and configurations that favor this trend. A recently introduced example is the Turn 6 LC from ATS.

One Stop Milling, Drilling, Turning And Grinding  12/15/01
Many shops, in an effort to reduce the handling of workpieces and get takt times (time spent in the cut) as low as possible, are looking to streamline this traditional hurry-up-and-wait process scheme.

Is It Time For Bar Fed Machining Centers?  10/15/01
When we think of bar feeders, usually they are associated with turning operations. Recently though, some builders have developed machining centers that incorporate bar fed raw stock. It's an interesting idea for the right applications and one that can economically reduce material handling and fixturing requirements on machining centers. Here's a look at how they work.

Prototypes . . . And Then Some  09/15/01
Turn-mill machines have made this prototype shop competitive for large-volume orders too.

Using CAM To Unlock Your Turning Machine's Potential  09/15/01
Armed with multiple spindles, multiple turrets, C-axis control and powered tooling capable of moving in the Y axis, production turning machines today are powerhouses of productivity.

FAQs About Software For Multi-Axis Lathes  04/15/01
Many shops and manufacturing firms are considering the purchase of their first multi-axis lathe with live tooling. Field editor Leo Rakowski puts some questions to Hanan Fishman, vice president of PartMaker/IMCS Inc., maker of CAM software, that may shed some light on programming requirements for that machine.

Making Short Work Of Small Lots  04/15/01
Multi-tasking is a word typically associated with the consequences of ever-changing human job descriptions. For the people at Mazak Corporation, however, the word applies equally to metalworking machines.

Programming Multi-Axis Lathes  04/15/01
You're going to need more than the CAM program you're currently using for your standard CNC lathes and mills.

Small Shop, Mighty Machines  02/15/01
Multitasking machines capable of completely machining complex, milled and turned parts in a single setup are powering this Chicago-area job shop's growth.

Manufacturer Takes Innovative Approach To Advanced Manufacturing Processes  05/15/00
Thousands of contract manufacturing shops across North America that produce commodity parts such as shafts, arbors, bearing races, gear splines, and so on, have one problem in common: how to do it faster and less expensively.

Unique's Approach To Mold Making  04/15/00
This Canadian mold making shop, Unique Mould Makers, is aptly named. Virtually every multi-cavity injection mold set made for the manufacture of caps, closures, vials and other packaging applications is indeed unique. One might think that automation and standardization would not be of interest to such a shop. Think again!

Job Shop Cuts Processing Time 60 Percent  03/01/99


Consider Milling On Your Turning Center  09/15/98
Most shops are looking to reduce throughput time. One sensible method is to eliminate multiple part handlings and work-in-process time. Advances in machine tool capability and programmability enable more job shops and general-purpose manufacturers to take advantage of turn/mill machines. Here's a look at the state-of-the-art.

What About Programming Turn/Mill?  09/01/98
Programming turn/mill machines is generally more challenging than programming an individual turning center or machining center. Now there are programs that simplify the process, such as this visual CAM system which uses multi-face programming and knowledge-based machining.

Turning Three Days Of Work Into Three Hours Of Work  04/15/98
Read how the Arbor Department of this major manufacturer greatly reduced set-up time to deal with increased capacity.

The High-Automation/Low-Labor Formula  04/01/98
This Michigan job shop owner explains how his business moved from a high labor to a high automation business model.

Setting Up For Single Setups  03/01/96
This California shop doesn't just consolidate operations, it consolidates machines--using a lathe that doubles as a cutoff saw and machining center.

On A CNC Turning Center, One Answer Might Be 'Y'  09/01/95
A fourth axis, in this case a 'Y' axis, is said to come close to transforming this machining center into an almost universal metalcutting machine tool.

Why Y-Axis For Turn/Mill Machines?  09/01/95
Live tooling on turning centers greatly expands multiple processing capability. With the addition of Y-axis, turning and machining process integration takes a significant step further. Here's how the technology works.