At the seminar, representatives from multiple companies discussed strategies for making orthopedic devices accurately and efficiently.
Practical work has served Bridgerland Technical College both in preparing its current students for manufacturing jobs and in appealing to new generations of potential machinists. Precision Machine Shops
With many machine shops anticipating long-term growth in demand from the semiconductor industry, it is worth the time to heed the advice of manufacturers who have already been servicing this end-market for years.
Decade-long, multiphase automation investments lower operating costs and maintain technology lead in an increasingly competitive global market.
Cumberland Additive’s CNC programmer in Pennsylvania spends most of his time writing programs for machine tools in Texas.
Pairing a shoulder mill with a five-axis machine has cut costs and cycle times for one of TTI Machine’s parts, enabling it to support a niche racing community.
At the seminar, representatives from multiple companies discussed strategies for making orthopedic devices accurately and efficiently.
With many machine shops anticipating long-term growth in demand from the semiconductor industry, it is worth the time to heed the advice of manufacturers who have already been servicing this end-market for years.
Decade-long, multiphase automation investments lower operating costs and maintain technology lead in an increasingly competitive global market.
Alpha Precision Group (APG) has developed an innovative workholding design for faster spindle speeds through sinter-based additive manufacturing.
Pairing a shoulder mill with a five-axis machine has cut costs and cycle times for one of TTI Machine’s parts, enabling it to support a niche racing community.
A study in repeatable and flexible workholding by one OEM for another.
At the seminar, representatives from multiple companies discussed strategies for making orthopedic devices accurately and efficiently.
EPTAM Precision Plastics has achieved multiple years of 15% YoY growth by effectively applying Datanomix’s benchmarking and machine monitoring features.
Practical work has served Bridgerland Technical College both in preparing its current students for manufacturing jobs and in appealing to new generations of potential machinists.
Shops need to look at their people, processes and technology to get the most of out their automation systems.
Controlling variability in a closed-loop manufacturing process requires inspection data collected before, during and immediately after machining — and a means to act on that data in real time. Here’s one system that accomplishes this.
Wolfram Manufacturing showcased its new facility, which houses its machine shop along with space for its work as a provider of its own machine monitoring software and as an integrator for Caron Engineering.
Structured light scanning is used to create a digital twin of a manufactured part, but we must understand the measurement reproducibility to best use the data.
At the seminar, representatives from multiple companies discussed strategies for making orthopedic devices accurately and efficiently.
Verisurf will offer complete metrology solutions that combine its model-based inspection and measurement software, training and live technical support with Hexagon CMMs.
Understanding the differences between measurement methods means their discrepancies can be explained and used as an advantage to produce better correlation.
Zeiss Quality Innovation Days brings together quality and metrology experts from all over the world to take part in industry-specific sessions.
Understanding all the things that contribute to a machine’s full potential accuracy will inform what to prioritize when fine-tuning the machine.
DMG MORI’s Chicago Innovation Days event featured technologies designed to address the difficulties manufacturers face today.
With the help of a 3D vision system and robotic arms from FANUC, MetalQuest was able to automate a physically challenging bin-picking task.
Christopher Clark will provide sales, service and support for the full range of Stäubli customers in North America.
Decade-long, multiphase automation investments lower operating costs and maintain technology lead in an increasingly competitive global market.
Robotic applications are expanding thanks to rubber and silicone-based systems that can handle fragile materials or parts in varying sizes and shapes.
Shops need to look at their people, processes and technology to get the most of out their automation systems.
Across a range of technical presentations aimed at small and mid-sized job shops, the first-ever Automated Shop Conference (TASC) offered insights into several automated technologies, implementation strategies, shopfloor training tips, and even the untapped power of automated coolant delivery.
Automation is no longer a luxury in manufacturing today – it’s a necessity. The Automated Shop Conference (TASC) will connect job shops with experts who offer advice and considerations for this process.
The Automated Shop Conference (TASC) will give shops of all sizes and production volumes key insights and practical guidance on how to implement automation.
Looking to automate your shop floor? The Automated Shop Conference (TASC) will connect shops with experts who can advise them through this transition.
Attend TASC, The Automated Shop Conference, in Novi, Mich on Oct. 11, 2023 for a comprehensive look into how to use automation to transform your machine shop.
Staying adaptable and leading through change for 95 years and counting, Modern Machine Shop celebrates its 95th Anniversary since its first publication in 1928.
The advance toward increasingly automated machining can be seen in the ways tooling, workholding, gaging and integration all support unattended production. This is the area of innovation I found most compelling at the recent International Manufacturing Technology Show.
The renewal of collaborations, partnerships and networking opportunities created a new level of excitement at IMTS 2022 for 86,307 registrants.
Manufacturing has a multi-talented bunch of people, but who knew so many were adept in the facial hair industry? Check out the best of the beards at IMTS!
This year’s show celebrates 10 years of co-location between IMTS and Hannover Messe.
Brent Donaldson of Modern Machine Shop sits down with Supertec's Don Staggenborg to discuss what the IMTS veterans brought to this year's show.
Meet NASA mission system engineer Mike Menzel and learn more about the James Webb Space Telescope at Mitsui Seiki USA’s booth (338700) in the South Hall from 11:00 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. on Thursday, September 15.
When revising part designs, investigate the 3D CAD, the 2D drawing and the part’s functional requirements to determine which details should be tightened up.
Machine tool industry stalwart and friend Barry Rogers will be remembered for his passion, kindness and community spirit. A reflection on Barry’s remarkable career and the impact he had on countless individuals.
Modern electronic height gages are computer-based, touchscreen-operated systems that enable automated measuring routines, error correction and multiple probe offsets, much like a CMM.
These oddities in the way a CNC naturally behaves can help explain some rather unusual situations that may occur during machining.
As part of its commitment to replace its aging submarine fleet, the U.S. Navy is investing heavily in building America’s manufacturing base, including free education and assisting suppliers in modernizing their facilities.
The choice between buying a new machine or refurbishing the current one will become clear after a thorough assessment of the machine.
In the latest episode of our View From My Shop series, MMS Editor-in-Chief Brent Donaldson visited the JN Shapiro Watches headquarters and production facility where Founder Joshua Shapiro—a history teacher turned watchmaker—realized his dream of "making a watch from scratch and everything in it."
Legacy Precision Molds takes us on a tour of their moldbuilding facility. They've recently implemented two automated 5-axis cells for metal and graphite machining that run lights out during nights and weekends.
Take a look inside James Engineering, a high-end CNC Deburring OEM that became a job shop when they decided to produce their own parts in-house.
Tool-holder-spindle-machine combinations each have a unique dynamic response in the same way that each person has a unique fingerprint, which can be revealed using modal testing.
Explore Tech-Max, a CNC machine shop that specializes in precision machining large and complex parts ranging from 10 in. to over 10 ft.
Jrlon, Inc. is recognized as a dependable source and leading supplier of plastic and specialty metal products. They are one of the premier PTFE processors in the United States. Jrlon's expertise also covers a wide range of other performance plastic materials and alloy steels for custom molding, machining, gear manufacturing, technical industrial coatings, welding, and sheet metal fabrication. Driven by innovative designers and engineers, Jrlon manufactures unique products vital to a wide variety of industries.
In this episode of Made in the USA, several executives and senior staff at Hardinge give their first-person account of how they formulated the plan to shift the manufacturing of its milling and turning product lines from its Taiwan plant to its plant in Elmira, New York, the major challenges they encountered and the rewards that made it worth the effort.
The L.S. Starrett Co. has been manufacturing precision measurement tools in Athol, Massachusetts, since 1880. Attention to U.S. manufacturing often focuses on reshoring manufacturing from other countries, but Starrett never left. The facility in Athol employs hundreds and produces thousands of tools that remain vital for measurement in machining and other fields.
The latest episode “Made in the USA” podcast explores a company that uses collaborative robots, one of the key tools helping US machine shops and other manufacturers compete with lower cost countries by automating production.
When Puneet and Neelam Neotia moved from India to the United States several years ago, they brought with them a family background in manufacturing and CNC machining. Now the couple is working to get their startup machine shop off the ground, sourcing new customers and getting the word out about their shop in Clarksville, Indiana. The couple — proud to publicize their "Made in the USA" parts — is leveraging family connections and manufacturing capabilities back in India, but not in the way that some people assume.
Entrepreneur Scott Colosimo found early success in China producing parts for his Cleveland-based motorcycle company in the mid-2000s. This is the story of how IP theft issues overwhelmed the business, prompting Colosimo and his team to start over from scratch — and move production back to the United States.
So far, Made in the USA has looked into system-wide effects of broken supply chains, automation, skilled workforce issues and our perception of manufacturing jobs — examining each topic through a prism of individual experiences. For this final episode for Season 1, let’s look at one more system-wide question and bring it back to personal perspectives: Is there today a new dawn, a new moment for American manufacturing?
The Top Shops 2024 survey for the metalworking market is now live, alongside a new homepage collecting the stories of past Honorees.
To combat the skilled labor shortage, this Top Shops honoree turned to partnerships and unique benefits to attract talented workers.
Doubling sales requires more than just robots. Pro Products’ staff works in tandem with robots, performing inspection and other value-added activities.
From cobots to machine monitoring, this Top Shop honoree shows that machining technology is about more than the machine tool.
Deciding to narrow down its jobs and customers was a turning point for 2023 Top Shops Business Strategies honoree Manda Machine that has led to improvements in the front office and on the shop floor.
Thousands of people visit our Supplier Guide every day to source equipment and materials. Get in front of them with a free company profile.
In the latest episode of our View From My Shop series, MMS Editor-in-Chief Brent Donaldson visited the JN Shapiro Watches headquarters and production facility where Founder Joshua Shapiro—a history teacher turned watchmaker—realized his dream of "making a watch from scratch and everything in it."
Legacy Precision Molds takes us on a tour of their moldbuilding facility. They've recently implemented two automated 5-axis cells for metal and graphite machining that run lights out during nights and weekends.
Take a look inside James Engineering, a high-end CNC Deburring OEM that became a job shop when they decided to produce their own parts in-house.
Tool-holder-spindle-machine combinations each have a unique dynamic response in the same way that each person has a unique fingerprint, which can be revealed using modal testing.
Explore Tech-Max, a CNC machine shop that specializes in precision machining large and complex parts ranging from 10 in. to over 10 ft.
Jrlon, Inc. is recognized as a dependable source and leading supplier of plastic and specialty metal products. They are one of the premier PTFE processors in the United States. Jrlon's expertise also covers a wide range of other performance plastic materials and alloy steels for custom molding, machining, gear manufacturing, technical industrial coatings, welding, and sheet metal fabrication. Driven by innovative designers and engineers, Jrlon manufactures unique products vital to a wide variety of industries.
Ryan Delahanty, Don Hammer, Brian Starnes and Steve Schermann join the company’s leadership team to drive growth and innovation.
IMTS 2024: ANCA celebrates 50 years through the introduction of the MicroX Ultra grinding machine and AIMS Connect software, with live demonstrations.
Kaiser’s ThinBit offerings include over 100,000 precision cutting tools.
IMTS 2024: Mitutoyo America Corp. announces an addition to its linear height gage product line, providing simpler, more repeatable accuracy in measurement.
Hexagon delivers the SmartScan VR800 structured light scanner, providing the flexibility for 3D part inspection via a software-adjustable variable resolution functionality.
Sunnen Products Company receives the President’s “E Star” Award for the furthering of U.S. exports.
One of the hardest steps for most shops moving toward a zero-point system is: where do I begin? I have my machine and I have my application, but how can I effectively add a zero-point system to my machine and speed up my setups? In this webinar, Lang Technovation will discuss how to best approach adding a zero-point system and will share some ideas on how to plan for your best investment. Agenda: What is a zero-point system? Key questions to ask when evaluating best applications How to implement once you have made the decision
Join Hexagon to learn how you can transcend traditional CAM systems to revolutionize your discrete part programming. Hexagon's comprehensive approach integrates design, manufacturing and inspection processes to streamline production workflows and achieve operational excellence. Discover how its advanced suite of CAD/CAM, process optimization and automation technologies empowers manufacturers — from medical to aerospace — to seamlessly transition from prototyping to full-scale production. This session is designed for professionals seeking to enhance precision, efficiency and quality in CNC machining operations, providing valuable insights into the latest advancements in manufacturing technology. Agenda: Optimizing part preparation for error-free manufacturing Simplifying complex part machining through advanced CNC programming Enhancing safety and efficiency with collision avoidance and process verification Leveraging shop-floor production intelligence with automated machine monitoring Driving manufacturing success through effective automation and collaboration
First article inspection (FAI) creation is an essential element of quality control programs but can consume a significant amount of time. In this webinar, Rebecca Keller will discuss a tool that consolidates all requirements into an accountability checklist, keeping drawing and inspection sheets in sync. Automatically capture sheet and zone and identify bill of materials (BOM) and specifications for a complete and accurate report. This software exports a professional ballooned print as a PDF and can output to your customized Excel spreadsheet. In this session, Discus Software will go over how to reduce quality escapes that occur from overlooking requirements. Failing results are flagged in real time and any missing FAIR AS9102 data is also flagged for compliance to the standard. Easily renumber balloon sequencing and change between imperial and metric unites as required by your customers. Learn how to seamlessly import your coordinate-measuring machine (CMM) data to validate each result and easily flag non-conformances. Use any CMM in your shop to create result data and automatically populate the designed tooling. The tool to discuss will assist you in keeping up with the growing prevalence of 3D modeling in manufacturing. Using the product manufacturing information (PMI) of the model, this software extracts the geometry and notes from the model to create views with ballooned data and exports to the inspection sheet. Agenda: Error-proof each FAI for accuracy and customer approval Eliminate the need for manual data entry Use your CMM output to populate FAI actuals Address your customer's requirement for model-based definition (MBD)
In a rapidly-evolving manufacturing landscape, the integration of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies into CNC machining operations is not just an innovation but a necessity for staying competitive. Phillips Corporation invites you to this insightful webinar that sheds light on the transformative impact of 3D printing in CNC shops. Join the presenters as they delve into real-world applications, financial insights and the future of manufacturing. Join Phillips for this engaging webinar on how 3D printing can revolutionize your CNC operations from enhancing design flexibility and operational efficiency to securing significant financial advantages. Whether you’re just starting to explore the potential of additive manufacturing or looking to optimize its integration, this session will provide valuable insights and practical advice for leveraging AM technology to its fullest potential. Agenda: Learn how AM streamlines production processes. drastically reducing lead times and the need for extensive inventory while optimizing labor costs Explore the design flexibility that AM offers, allowing for complex geometries and customization options not feasible with traditional CNC machining Review the compelling financial rationale for integrating AM now, detailing cost savings, efficiency improvements and the competitive edge it provides
See how combining metrology and microscopy technologies can increase efficiency and reduce costs. The growing demand for miniaturization and high-density interconnects make it increasingly difficult to identify defects, meaning a need for inspection technology that can do traditional metrology applications and optical inspection tasks in microscopy. Printed circuit boards (PCB) and printed circuit assemblies (PCA) need advanced metrology and inspection systems to build high reliability devices that are important for new energy vehicles (NEV), aerospace, spacecraft and medical device creation. Both metrology and microscopy technologies combine to fulfill high-end geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T) tasks along with image analysis techniques required for new product development and failure analysis inspection. This trend helps manufacturers increase efficiency while saving on service costs and space. Agenda: Understand how trends in electronics and medical manufacturing affect quality assurance Learn how microscopy inspection and metrology work together to support electronics manufacturing Application experts offer inspection tips and example workflows Understand savings made on service costs and space
Learn about the benefits of using fully integrated CAD and CAM software and the automation tools available. Agenda: Learn how to start using the CAM software included with SolidWorks See how a fully integrated CAD/CAM system saves significant amounts of programming time Watch presentations of the automation tools available Gather information on the levels of fully integrated CAD/CAM to fit your machining needs Gain an understanding of how other machine shops have benefitted by using a fully integrated system
RAPID + TCT is returning to the west coast after a decade away! For more than 30 years, RAPID + TCT has defined the crucial role of additive manufacturing and empowered the establishment of an industry that continues to conceive, test, improve and manufacture new products at a faster, more cost-efficient pace. SME and Rapid News Publications have teamed up to produce the annual RAPID + TCT event, which takes place June 25-27 in Los Angeles, California. The event is for those who provide technology and for those who need to understand, explore and adopt 3D printing, additive manufacturing, 3D scanning, CAD/CAE, metrology and inspection technologies.
Laser powder bed fusion is the most widely used additive manufacturing method for metal part production, and electron beam melting is a closely related technology. For metalworking facilities contemplating a move into metal AM using technologies such as these, here is a road map for success. Speakers will cover materials, safety, part design, production workflow and differences between laser and electron beam metal powder bed fusion systems.
FABTECH 2024 will be held October 15-17, 2024, in Orlando, Florida, at the Orange County Convention Center. FABTECH provides a convenient ‘one-stop shop’ venue where you can meet with world-class suppliers, discover innovative solutions, and find the tools to improve productivity and increase profits. There is no better opportunity to network, share knowledge and explore the latest technology, all here in one place. Future U.S. Show Dates and Locations 2025 – September 8-11 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL 2026 – October 21-23 at Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV 2027 – September 13-16 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL
Formnext Chicago is an industrial additive manufacturing expo taking place April 8-10, 2025 at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. Formnext Chicago is the second in a series of Formnext events in the U.S. being produced by Mesago Messe Frankfurt, AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology, and Gardner Business Media (our publisher).
When revising part designs, investigate the 3D CAD, the 2D drawing and the part’s functional requirements to determine which details should be tightened up.
The choice between buying a new machine or refurbishing the current one will become clear after a thorough assessment of the machine.
Understanding all the things that contribute to a machine’s full potential accuracy will inform what to prioritize when fine-tuning the machine.
While there are many changes to adopt when moving to five-axis, they all compliment the overall goal of better parts through less operations.
Consider what types of implementation your shop prefers when deciding between workpiece-handling and pallet-handling automation solutions.
When getting a grip on stainless steel, make sure you are very specific in how you talk about it and understand the pertinent information you need.
Forget “additive versus subtractive.” Machining and metal additive manufacturing are interconnected, and enhance the possibilities for one another. Here is a look at just some of the ways additive and machining interrelate right now.
A donut-shaped machine tool component called the AKZ FDS adapter illustrates the increasingly intricate links between additive manufacturing (AM) and CNC machining.
A version of this article was our cover story in the December 2022 issue of Modern Machine Shop. If you are arriving here from that issue, scroll down to find links to articles and video related to each of the 10 points in this piece.
The adapter is part of a high-end machining center from DMG MORI capable of not just cutting operations such as milling and drilling, but also grinding within the same machining cycle. The adapter’s purpose is to redirect coolant to the engagement area of a full-size grinding wheel, which needs very different coolant flow placement and flow shape relative to the smaller-diameter milling and drilling tools used in the same spindle.
DMG MORI’s DMC 125 FD duoBLOCK machining center capable of precision grinding delivers coolant effectively for operations using a grinding wheel thanks to an adapter component made through laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing. This photo and the drawing below courtesy of DMG MORI.
The adapter’s internal coolant passages used to be made via machining. These passages were intersecting holes drilled at different angles, and drilled precisely enough to connect inside the part to create the direction-changing course around the annular shape. The holes were then sealed off at the surface of the part. In all, 46 sealing points were involved. The result was assembly work for all this sealing plus the risk of leaking if any of these seals should fail over time.
Here is the 3D printed adapter. Because this part is now made additively, what used to be an assembly of 71 components now is an assembly of five. Learn more about the design and manufacture of this 3D printed machine tool component.
But now the adapter is made in a way that reduces assembly work and ensures tighter containment. Additive manufacturing, via laser powder bed fusion 3D printing (LPBF) in 316L stainless steel, allows the body of the adapter to be made in a single piece, with internal coolant channels all grown into the solid part. What used to be an assembly of 71 components now is an assembly of five, thanks to all the assembly consolidation into this 3D printed piece, and leaking out of the main body of the adapter is essentially impossible now. In addition, coolant flow is improved because 3D printing allows for contoured, optimized passages, not straight holes joining at corners. Plus, the new version of the part is lighter; lattice forms in regions of the component where solid material is not needed realizes a weight reduction of about 50 percent.
Channels for coolant delivery are now grown within the solid part, rather than being drilled from outside then sealed.
So, is the AKZ FDS adapter a case of additive manufacturing triumphing over machining? It’s not that simple. The adapter still gets machined. 3D printing delivers advantages related to internal passages and part weight, but it cannot deliver a completed part; critical tolerances for mating surfaces and fastening holes are still achieved through milling and drilling.
Is this part an example of 3D printing making what used to be a complex subassembly an easy part to produce? It is not even that, company engineers say, because realizing an efficient process based on additive manufacturing involved its own process engineering. In addition to providing for the downstream machining operations, another challenge was quickly removing loose metal powder from the within the part’s channels after 3D printing. (Part of the fast, reliable system the company found for doing this involves a 3D printed vacuum attachment custom-made for this part — more in this video.)
All of this is valuable to consider because of what it shows about the place additive manufacturing, particularly in metal, is finding relative to machining. In the case of the AKZ FDS adapter, additive manufacturing does all of this: It enables more capable machining by improving the design of a machining center; it replaces machining by realizing a part design superior to what machining alone was capable of producing; and it relies on machining, because 3D printing alone can’t attain the necessary tolerances. All this is true at once. Meanwhile, additive manufacturing achieved a solution that is simpler in some respects, while also entailing a sophisticated process.
I have devoted what has now come to be an extensive passage of my career to considering both of these realms. For the past ten years, I’ve simultaneously written for both Modern Machine Shop and its sister brand Additive Manufacturing. AM technology has advanced rapidly during this time, but machining technology has advanced as well. Each serves a broad range of needs, and a different range of needs. Yet there is an extent to which these two broad ranges touch one another, and overlap. Additive manufacturing is interacting with machining in various ways. Gone is the expectation that they would pervasively compete with one another, and that additive either would or would not displace machining. They do compete to some extent. But to a much greater extent, they are interrelated, serving one another, and combining to expand what manufacturing overall is able to do.
It is worthwhile to take stock of this. Again, additive manufacturing has advanced quickly, and part of that advance has been to advance machining — not just in a case like the adapter, but also more broadly in cases such as cutting tools made through 3D printing.
How are machining and additive manufacturing now interacting with one another? What follows are ten answers to that question — ten links between machining and additive that we have explored in coverage from MMS and AM.
Additive manufacturing allows smaller tools to include effective through-tool channels for coolant delivery. Modular through-tool-coolant drills from Kennametal in sizes 10 mm diameter and smaller are made via laser powder bed fusion. Photo: Kennametal.
Additive manufacturing brings new possibilities to cutting tools for machining. Those possibilities apply to both big and small tools, as the two photos of cutting tools illustrate. Both tools come from Kennametal. For a small tool, AM offers a way to get through-tool coolant channels into a narrow tool body. The company’s KenTIP FS line of modular drills in sizes 10 mm in diameter and smaller are made additively through (LPBF). Drills with such a small cross section previously offered no practical way to machine precise internal passages into the body. With AM, the passages do not have to be machined; they are grown inside as part of the 3D printing, and they can follow a curving path that is conducive to efficient coolant flow.
Additive manufacturing brings lightweighting to large-diameter tools, such as this 3D printed tool for machining the stator bore of an electric car motor. A more advanced version of this tool is now in use in production manufacturing of electric vehicles.
Meanwhile, the large tool is for precisely machining stator bores for the motors of electric vehicles. In this case, additive manufacturing is important for realizing a sufficiently lightweight tool. The length and cutting diameter needed to machine the large stator bore results in a large tool. If this tool had been produced conventionally from solid steel pieces, it would have been too massive for use in the toolchangers of established machining centers used in automotive production. But using 3D printed geometric forms to reduce the mass, combined with polymer composite in place of metal for the shaft of the tool, together delivered a weight savings of 40 to 50% compared to what a conventional tool at this size would have required, Kennametal says. Reducing tool weight is valuable even in cases where the toolchanger is not a potential limiting factor. Less mass means less energy used to accelerate the tool up to full rotational speed during machining, and therefore less cost.
[Read: 3D Printing Lightweights Large Cutting Tools]
The post on the as-printed form of this implant made through LPBF exists only to simplify machining. A chuck clamps on this feature, which is machined away once other machining operations are done.
The photo here shows another part developed by DMG MORI. The company makes both metalcutting machine tools and metal additive manufacturing systems (both laser powder bed fusion and directed energy deposition), placing its team members in good positions to explore tactics for using additive and machining in harmony. On this 3D printed medical implant, a cylindrical post is added to the form that is 3D printed. This adds material and adds additive build time, but the payoff is much easier machining to complete the part. The part would otherwise be difficult to hold and locate, but the post provides a feature that the chuck of a turn-mill machine can readily hold for a rapid machining cycle within this machine tool type. The cylinder is then machined away as one of the final steps of that cycle.
The photo illustrates a significant point: Design for additive manufacturing is to a considerable extent design for machining. Production metal parts made additively can have organic, intricate forms that perhaps could not be realized in any other process, but those parts almost always will need machining to get to their final tolerances. An effective additive process needs to anticipate how the part will be held in the machine tool that will complete the part — so to an extent, machining is part of additive manufacturing, and machining knowledge is part of what is necessary to design and engineer the additive build effectively.
[Read: Machining Additively Manufactured Supports: The Tool’s Perspective]
Another capability needed for laser powder bed fusion: milling to resurface build plates.
Machining for metal additive manufacturing goes beyond just finishing the 3D printed part. LPBF is arguably the most widely used and best established process for making metal production parts additively, and machining is used in at least three different, distinctive ways in support of this process.
Final machining of production parts is an additional machining capability needed for metal additive manufacturing. This photo and the two preceding ones all were taken at RMS, a medical device manufacturer established in CNC machining that nevertheless decided to allocate special machining capacity to additive manufacturing.
The photos illustrate this. Seen here is part separation from the build plate used in laser powder bed fusion by means of a wire EDM machine developed for this application; resurfacing of build plates for re-use via face milling of these plates on a vertical machining center; and the setup for finish machining a 3D printed components on a small machining center doing finer work. The point: A fully developed production metal 3D printing operation requires machining infrastructure in various forms.
[Read: An Additive Manufacturing Machine Shop]
As additive manufacturing advances to take on more and more of part production, it will change the kinds of machining that is performed and the role that machining plays. Compared to other types of near-net-shape parts, additive parts need little machining, but the machining needed is particularly critical.
The area above and below the turning line around the OD of the part shows the precision of metal additive manufacturing. The turned section is obviously a truer circle, but the as-printed form is not far off. Because of this precision, machining for additive manufacturing entails light cuts. Part of the expertise of producing this microturbine housing involved forecasting just how much extra stock to add to the printed part for machining.
The part in the photo seen here illustrates this. The 3D printed microturbine housing needs OD finish machining, but it is necessary to look closely to see the difference in precision between the original 3D printed form and the machined section above it. That is, the additive form is not precisely round the way the CNC turned area is, but it is close. 3D printing delivers near-net-shape parts that are near to net shape indeed. Two implications of this are (1) the advance of additive for metal part production will call for greater use of machine tools emphasizing precise multi-axis motion but not necessarily heavy cutting, and (2) machining will increasingly focus on parts that have significant value already built in before they come to the machining. A part like the one seen here is already nearly done, with hours or days of 3D printing to get to this point, plus heat treating. That means the stakes of the final machining operations and the importance of their being performed accurately become high indeed — much higher than they are with practically any other machined part.
[Read: How Does Heat Treating Affect Machining Considerations for a Metal 3D Printed Part?]
Manifold maker Aidro increasingly makes its components through additive manufacturing rather than by drilling intersecting holes into solid blocks. The company 3D prints manifold parts using both LPBF and binder jetting. (Aidro is part of AM technology provider Desktop Metal.)
Some of the best candidates for production via metal AM are parts that require internal fluid flow. The previously mentioned adapter and small cutting tools are examples of this. Another is manifolds. Rather than drilling holes from the part’s exterior so that they intersect to form manifold passages, AM offers the chance to 3D print parts with precisely the internal passages needed, and also with precisely the material needed to contain those passages (an optimized form rather than a block).
This is a potentially significant development as well in terms of the machining operations that will be important as additive manufacturing advances. Today, drilling is the most commonly performed machining operation. In a future in which additive manufacturing for production is more prevalent, that might still be true. However, drilling and other machine tool holemaking operations will be directed toward holes that need to be precisely straight and round. Holes that need to be passages, potentially with a curving path and without regard to the precise shape of the passage, will more often be 3D printed instead.
[Watch: 3D Printed Metal Component for CNC Machining Center: The Cool Parts Show #47]
Effective AM for production often will rely on workholding able to batch many parts for quick finish machining. Metal injection molders are already accomplished at this. This photo was taken at Smith Metal Products, a metal injection molder expanding into metal additive manufacturing via binder jetting.
Another useful production application for metal additive manufacturing, not just powder bed fusion but also binder jetting, is many small odd-shaped parts produced at once in a single build. The “oddness” tends to be a requirement, because very square or simple parts would be easier to machine than print. But if these organic-shaped or complex parts are small enough, easily dozens or hundreds of them could be 3D printed simultaneously in a single build. The challenge then becomes machining these parts, which means engineering workholding to allow for efficient setup in machining is a crucial ingredient of success.
One type of manufacturer that already has experience here is metal injection molders. Users of MIM produce odd-shaped metal parts in high volume that are then in need of machining, so they are already adept at custom workholding and tactics for high-density part setup on machining centers. Similar machining-related process engineering will come to be seen as an increasingly common aspect of metal additive manufacturing.
[Read: The Next New Capability: Binder Jetting Follows in Footsteps of Metal Injection Molding]
This is actually a picture of additive manufacturing. A simple milling step is vital to AM via laser powder bed fusion: returning build plates to precise flatness between builds. This milling step is part of the machining capabilities employed by 3D printed implant maker Tangible Solutions.
This point emphasizes an operation mentioned in point 3 above, but it deserves further notice. It is not just that metal 3D printed parts are finished and brought to final tolerance via machining. It is also true that metal additive manufacturing in a sense begins with machining. Or at least, laser powder bed fusion metal AM begins this way, because the platform for this 3D printing operation is a machined component: the build plate.
Laser powder bed fusion is among the AM processes best suited to precise, complex, elaborately detailed components. But because the build generally needs a precisely flat surface on which to begin, build plates used in this process are milled flat after every use. Complex additive manufacturing thus begins with — and counts on — a simple milling step.
[Watch: View From My Shop, Episode 2: 3D Printing and Postprocessing With Tangible Solutions]
On this large-scale polymer composite form made through additive manufacturing, machining accounts for more of the production time than 3D printing. The part is a nearly complete 3D printed housing for a flight simulator. Making this housing in just a few big 3D printed pieces contributed to an assembly consolidation that reduced the simulator’s part count by thousands.
The smaller an additive manufactured part is, the more precise it can be. As AM parts grow larger, rapid material deposition becomes the higher priority in order to keep the build time of the large part to an acceptable duration. As a result, though AM parts in general are near-net-shape, larger parts stray farther from net shape because material layer heights or layer thicknesses are large to speed the build. This means the amount of material removal needed to complete the part is a higher percentage of the part overall for larger 3D printed parts.
Another way of expressing this: Machining time is a larger share of the process for larger additive parts. For polymer composite structures such as large tools built in room-sized large-format additive systems, the machining needed to complete the part can easily account for more time than the 3D printing.
[Watch: Flight Simulator Made Through Large-Scale 3D Printing: The Cool Parts Show #33]
Energy sector spare part maker Sparox 3D used low-cost metal AM via fused filament fabrication to manufacture these solar panel clips as an alternative to machining.
This efficiency of machining for making a short run of precision components is hard to beat. The vast majority of parts made through machining today will still make sense to be made through machining in the future even after additive manufacturing technology has further advanced.
But low-cost metal 3D printing options provide a cost-effective alternative to machining in a growing range of cases. For example, fused filament fabrication is the extrusion method of 3D printing usually employed for polymer, but the polymer filament can also be a carrier for metal powder, producing a green part that later becomes a solid metal part via sintering after the polymer is heated away. For short-run parts characterized by a bit of geometric complexity, 3D printing the metal part in this way can offer a simple and fast alternative to producing the parts on a CNC machine tool.
[Read: For Polymer 3D Printers, Metal Parts Are Now Within Reach]
Hybrid machine tools combine additive manufacturing with machining. This example was seen at the most recent International Manufacturing Technology Show. Phillips Corp. adds metal-deposition 3D printing heads to existing machining centers to convert them to hybrid machines.
So called “hybrid” machine tools incorporate metal 3D printing, generally via material deposition, into the same CNC machine that performs cutting. The same programmed motion that directs the cutting tool can also direct the nozzle and energy system for additive operations. Once while I was standing beside a long-time, experienced machinist who was overseeing a CNC machine tool performing metal additive manufacturing, he turned to me and said, “I never imagined I’d be ending my career putting the metal back on.”
In this view inside the machine in the previous photo, the metal-deposition head from Meltio can be seen mounted beside the machining spindle. Parts made via printing can therefore be machined within the same CNC cycle.
Bringing additive and machining this close together, into the same machine, does not automatically realize a more efficient process even when both operations are needed. If the time needed for 3D printing is long, then it is likely better to keep the machine tool available for machining. However, one application where hybrid machine tools are proving valuable is in the repair of existing high-value components, such as large tools or shafts. With a hybrid machine, a broken or damaged feature can be machined away, 3D printed back in place, then machined to tolerance — delivering the component back into service through a means that is much faster and less expensive and producing a complete replacement.
[Read: Where Does a Hybrid Metal AM Machine Tool Make Sense? Ask the Marines]
Lathes represent some of the oldest machining technology, but it’s still helpful to remember the basics when considering the purchase of a new turning machine.
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After experiencing process stalls in the finishing stage of production, Bryan Machine Service designed an air-powered twin spindle and indexable rotating base to effectively double its production of small parts.
Larger parts require larger, heavier cutting tools. 3D printing enables Star SU Neher to produce lightweight large tool bodies and add features that improve tool life and performance.
Finish machining additively manufactured implants requires different pacing and workflow than cutting parts from stock — different enough for an experienced manufacturer to warrant a dedicated machine shop.
Machine tool maker DMG MORI improved this coolant delivery adapter by making the part through additive manufacturing instead of machining. One of the viewer-chosen winners of The Cool Parts Showcase.
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