All machine tools and peripheral equipment come with instruction manuals and parts books. These days they may be electronic files in place of or in addition to paper books. The electronic versions are particularly handy as they are easier to store and find. Plus you can usually use them on your PC, laptop, tablet, or other mobile device.
Despite improvements in the overall economy, unemployment in the U.S. remains higher than desirable. Even so there are CNC machine shops that can’t find qualified candidates for available jobs. One reason is that experienced machine operators who are capable of working with today’s advanced manufacturing equipment are hard to find. Another is that many young people have a misconception of what working in a modern manufacturing facility is like. Worse yet, those who have an interest may not have the opportunity to gain experience with today’s sophisticated CNC machine tools and, therefore, are less desirable new hires.
According to a recent survey by Monster.com, nearly half of the employees who responded say they are unhappy in their current jobs and 81% plan to look for a new job this year. That’s a frightening statistic for employers who are likely unaware that they have disgruntled employees.
Dating back to the time when all machine tools were operated manually and part tolerances were more forgiving, the “C” machine design was the industry standard. When CNC came along, dimensional tolerances tightened and manufacturers demanded faster spindle speeds to deal with harder-to-machine alloys, the inherent performance problems with the “C” design became obvious. We asked Jim Endsley, Product Specialist Machining Centers for Okuma, to explain why the company moved from “C” designs to the current double column or bridge design. Here are the facts Jim shared with us:
Gosiger Controls Specialist Jon Weaver shot this video of a Remote Offset application developed for a Gosiger machining cell customer. Using the Okuma Application Program Interface (API) that enables programmers to create Windows®-based APPs for the Okuma OSP operating system, this program provides the cell operators an easy way to adjust tool offsets from outside the cell.
For most manufacturers investing in any CNC machine tool is a major decision, and well it should be. Operating costs continue to rise while competition and customer demands can drive profit margins down. So investing in new equipment is a serious proposition. Yet sometimes, in an effort to keep the initial investment to a minimum, some shops fail to see the bigger picture. Take 5-axis CNC machining centers for example. Some shops see 5-axis as overkill based on the way they’ve always operated. Yet there are many substantial reasons why investing in a 5-axis machine may be the most cost-effective move you can make. Here are 7 of them:
Here are 7 things to keep in mind about gibs:
Most of us first heard the term “horsepower” when we became interested in motor vehicles. As youngsters, the concept was pretty simple: More horsepower meant faster cars. That was before we learned about the other factors that affect automobile performance such as torque and RPM.
Managers and owners of CNC machine shops are always striving for greater productivity through new techniques and technologies. It’s true that more capable machine tools and automating certain functions are keys to improving performance. However, even the most advanced manufacturing facilities need talented, committed people to make the most of these tools. So how do you keep your employees motivated?