Maximising 5-axis potential
CAD/CAM software from DMG technology partner Open Mind improves programming and delivers growth for aerospace subcontractor.
You really can’t get away from 5-axis machining if you’re serving the aerospace, defence, medical and F1 industries. But its introduction brings some new challenges, and Long & Marshall’s experience provides a good example. The Havant-based subcontractor’s 5-axis investment started with a tilt and turn Mazak machine in 1999. As more machines were acquired, bottlenecks developed in programming complex components, and it became clear that improved CAD/CAM software was needed to resolve the situation.
Managing Director Vince Long comments: 'Over four years we have invested considerably in 5-axis machining technology to maintain our competitive edge in industry sectors that demand ever increasingly difficult and complex parts. We have acquired 13 CNC machine tools including a DMG EVO Linear, a CMZ 35Y turning centre and a Mikron HPM800U.' This high technology philosophy led Long in 2007 to attend a DMG Open House that was co-hosted by DMG technology partner Open Mind. At the event, an application specialist from an F1 engine manufacturer delivered a presentation on how Open Minds' HyperMILL had improved production and processing times. This endorsement, followed by demonstrations at Long & Marshall’s site prompted Long to acquire two seats of HyperMILL V9.7 in October 2007.
He recalls: 'We witnessed immediate benefits. We produce a number of different complex drill heads for the oil and gas industry and each type has a programming time of between 10 to 20 hours with manual geometry creation. However, the HyperMILL system has feature recognition and it allows us to program 50 holes at any geometry in minutes as opposed to hours. We have taken the programming time for drill heads from 10-20 hours to less than 6-8 hours with the feature recognition tool.' HyperMILL machining strategy has further enhanced productivity by generating an on-machine cycle improvement of an additional 15%. From drawing to complete part the drill heads previously took over 30 hours; overall production time has been cut by around 50%. The feature recognition tool has been implemented on additional parts such as aerospace brackets where compound angles, holes, and faces can also be easily machined.
Programming off-line is also possible; the system enables the company to verify its tool paths and watch the part being cut on-screen and in sufficient detail to highlights any issues prior to the program being loaded to the machine. Less time spent programming on the shop floor means the machine tools spend more time machining. In addition HyperMILL has enabled Vince Long to address a programming backlog which had forced the company to subcontract programming of some aerospace brackets to a specialist programming house - at a cost of over £7,500.
