Shop design is as subjective a topic as the tools in a craftsman’s box. Past experience and personal preference are the main ingredients to a floor plan that is normally dictated by the space you have been allotted and the machine tools and other equipment you have to include into the layout. […]
Taking the powder metallurgical process even further are new developments in antigalling tool steels. These steels have taken the concept of a lubricious coating and brought it to the powder stage of manufacture. Nitrogen is diffused throughout the tool steel cross-section in the form of nitrides. […]
There have been many topics posted in the Random Musings forum about asking tips & advices when buying a desktop or laptop. So I thought it would be nice to summarize all the useful info here, with fantastic support on this article from Cyberdemon who has already given some great advice on hardware and software [...]
These all meet the dictionary definition of “optimization”. However, one of the fastest ways for a moldmaker to achieve a dramatic improvement in efficiency and reduce NC program cycle time is to automatically optimize their NC program feedrates. […]
NC verification and simulation software has been available to manufacturers for more than 20 years, yet most NC programmers do not take full advantage of the benefits it can offer. However, some resourceful companies have discovered that simulation software can be used to benefit their shop in ways that others overlook—and in ways that may [...]
Some CAM vendors refer to optimized software as the software best suited for the types of machines, processes or parts being programmed. […]
At its inception, rapid tooling was the ability to generate core and cavity inserts as a product of a rapid prototyping technology. Rapid tooling was the result of an additive process driven by 3-D CAD – a process that requires little or no machining or EDMing. For some, rapid tooling continues to be described in [...]
Everyone intuitively understands that milling machines, holders and tools are difficult to scale down to the microscopic dimensions and extreme accuracy needed for micro-milling. At first glance, software might seem to be an easier fit. […]
In order to achieve the quality and accuracy required in micro-milling while meeting economic constraints, the entire manufacturing chain must be optimized and synchronized. Vendors of CNC machines, cutting tools, holders, clamping tools and quality control equipment are all required to provide the right solution at a competitive cost. […]
Over the years, and more times than can probably be counted, customers call from all over to order various surface treatments for their molds, without knowing what is truly needed to make their molds run better and more efficiently. It’s surprising how many customers are talked down on services because it’s not good business to [...]