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“It depends on the market when you buy used machines, but you can save at least 50 percent,” Roy said.Īfter purchasing the VMC, which has a 15 ' X-axis travel, 8 ' Y-axis, 3 ' Z-axis and tilting A and B axes, Votaw realized it needed to tighten its tolerances to meet its customers’ requirements. “If it’s off, we compensate to make it more accurate.”Īlthough Votaw focuses on obtaining new high-accuracy machines, it did purchase a used Viper 5-axis vertical machining center from a company that was going out of business based on the machine’s capabilities and cost savings. To maintain a high level of machine accuracy, Votaw checks its machines’ travels using laser calibration every 12 months, according to Roy. “However, as conditions such as ambient temperature and part weight change, the skill of the machinist is needed to produce extremely tight tolerances that are outside of the standard volumetric tolerances of large-envelope machines.” “The volumetric tolerance on a machine the size of a Toshiba BP130R.22 can be as close as a couple of thousandths, which is sufficient for most applications,” Nelson said. The shop also has a host of 5-axis Makino machining centers for its smaller-envelope workload. and 4-axis, 30-hp Toshiba horizontal boring mills, with the largest boring mill having a 140 " X-axis travel, 90 " of Y travel, 70 " of Z travel and a 360,000-position rotary table. To manufacture these large-envelope components, MSM uses 2-axis vertical turning centers from O-M Ltd. Mid-State Machine produces large components that weigh up to 10 tons for both the industrial gas turbine and wind energy markets. “For the extremely large units, lead times can extend outward from a year and a half to 2 years,” he said. Kevin Nelson, vice president of operations, Mid-State Machine Products, Winslow, Maine, concurred that it takes patience to wait for a large-envelope machine tool, with 1 year being a common lead time. “Our company’s priority is to obtain equipment that is able to perform to the highest standard in size, speed and accuracy the aerospace industry requires,” he said. Roy noted that the lead time for obtaining a machine can be long but the company won’t sacrifice size or accuracy to obtain equipment quicker. “We have overhead cranes in our shop to handle parts that weigh up to 30 tons,” Roy said, adding that cycle time for the larger work ranges from 1 to 2 days to 2 weeks. The starting weight of typical workpieces for the SNK is 1,000 to 20,000 lbs., of which up to 70 percent is turned into chips. Workpiece materials include aluminum, titanium, steel and magnesium. The Santa Fe Springs, Calif., job shop produces an array of aerospace parts, such as ones for Raptor fighter planes, the Mars Land Rover, Aries 1 rockets and various satellites.
#FAIRBANKS MORSE SCALE 700# FULL#
“This knucklehead will go to a horizontal position and rotate a full 360°,” he said. Those include a 5-axis Cincinnati and a 5-axis SNK, which has travels of 700 " in the X-axis, 16 ' in Y and 6 ' in Z, as well as a rotary table for A- and B-axis movements. The company targets tolerances of 0.0004 " and tighter when producing parts even on its biggest machines, according to Richard Roy, maintenance manager. Votaw Precision Technologies is another large-part manufacturer that focuses on maintaining accuracy. Otherwise, an end user won’t buy its equipment. When evaluating a large machine for purchase, the builder is supplied with a tolerance specification and a blueprint, and the builder must be capable of making that block. Large-engine crankshafts are often from 25 ' to 30 ' long and have tolerances of 0.0018 " to 0.0019 ", according to Fairbanks Morse. Just because the parts are massive doesn’t mean the tolerance requirements are loose. The spokesperson noted that a big engine block, which is typically made of GGG40 cast iron, weighs up to 17 tons, measures about 100 " tall × 6 ' wide × 33 ' and takes 13 to 18 months to complete from fabrication to machining, assembly and testing. Fairbanks Morse also produces engine blocks for stationary applications. The Beloit, Wis., company machines engine blocks, including ones for Navy ships, using its Ingersoll, Puma and Cincinnati Gilbert machine tools. With big machines, there is always business even during downturns because there are so few companies that can invest in this kind of equipment, according to a spokesperson for Fairbanks Morse Engine. The trend in precision metal part production may well be toward miniaturization, but the demand for massive components perseveres. Votaw Precision Technologies produces a range of critical aerospace parts on its Viper vertical machining center.Īpplications, accuracy issues and infrastructure requirements for large-part machine tools.