Die operations are often named after the specific type of die that performs the operation. For example a bending operation is performed by a bending die. Operations are not limited to one specific die as some dies may incorporate multiple operation types… […]
Forming dies are typically made by tool and die makers and put into production after mounting into a press. The die is a metal block that is used for forming materials like sheet metal and plastic. For the vacuum forming of plastic sheet only a single form is used, typically to form transparent plastic containers [...]
New manufacturing requirements are forcing CAM companies to take a closer look at their software development processes and sales distribution networks in order to deliver their products and software support to all countries where manufacturing plants are located. Traditionally, […]
Five-axis manufacturing techniques have long been used in the aerospace and power generation fields. This may be due to component geometry as found in gas turbine engines or automotive turbochargers, or complex and critical components such as landing gear on an aircraft. Or it may be an artifact of new computer-aided designs that use monolithic [...]
Most of the five-axis “magic” is managed by software in the CNC control and CAM software systems. The machine tool should be selected for sizes, speeds and capacities. And five-axis machine costs are coming down, and quality is improving with the implementation of CAD and simulation in the design process. […]
For those customers who refuse to pay for Moldflow analysis, First-rate Mold engineers and its customers mutually agree upon gate locations.if the gate location is not accurate, First-rate Mold more often than not absorbs the costs to rework the gating. That situation alone makes me more of a Moldflow advocate, […]
Runner sizing is a very important decision for a moldmaker. In hot runners, the moldmaker may seek to minimize the runner diameters in order to reduce melt residence time, reduce color change cycles or allow tighter pitch for drops. In cold runner molds, smaller runners mean lower material wastage. However, smaller runners in hot and [...]
A common challenge faced by moldmakers is to produce acceptable parts with minimum cycle time. As cooling time accounts for most of the cycle time, reducing the cooling time of a part will considerably reduce the cycle time. However, reducing the cooling time also may result in problems, such as excessive part warpage, high part [...]
The goal of tool engagement controlled milling is to achieve the highest possible productivity. This requires gaining complete control of the cutting environment in order to cut optimally everywhere along the toolpath. To cut optimally means to create chips with the optimal geometry for the particular tool being used and the particular material being cut. [...]
All the time spent tweaking and re-tweaking the CAM program is a hidden cost, typically absorbed into general shop overhead where it cannot be accurately accounted for. In addition, the out-of-spec parts created during the tweaking process lead to costly scrap and rework. […]