Fast Lane - Milling expert says shops can boost productivity and tool life with high-speed milling

摘要

Lean manufacturing initiatives and solid business practices demand that metalworking shops minimize waste. High-speed milling can help. By applying the principles of high-speed milling while avoiding traditional pitfalls - such as excess cutting forces - shops can increase productivity and reduce waste. A classic waste-reduction strategy involves maximizing the utilization of expendable resources, such as tools. Long-accepted but inefficient tooling application practices are real opportunities to reduce waste. For example, at each of more than 300 machine shops I visited over the last 5-plus years, I examined six worn endmills. My measurements revealed that more than 7.5 percent of the time shops used only half of the cutting edge length of their solid-carbide endmills.