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3M Finesse-It Clear Coat Repair Kit. Learn more and order online
GC1040 from Sandvik
New Milling Grade from Sandvik: Extreme tough machining of austenitic stainless and duplex materials requires a grade you can rely on. To perform securely, with consistently sharp cutting edges, low forces and slow wear. When the odds are against you grade GC1040 is tough enough to stay sharp. Request a quote
End Mill Profiling
The problem:
Industrial distributor Engman-Taylor Co. regularly combs customer processes for areas of high-dollar consumption. In probing the practices of Mercury Marine in Fond du Lac, Wis., the distributor located a ¼-inch end mill used to profile drive-lugs on a forward/reverse gear in a CNC machine. Though the end mill did the job, its coating was misapplied.
The solution:
With the help of end mill manufacturer Dura-Mill, Engman-Taylor reduced the length of the flute on the existing tool. This increased rigidity of the tool and helped to increase tool life. This also reduced the price of the tool because there was less flute for Dura-Mill to grind. They also switched from a titanium aluminum nitride coating to a titanium carbo-nitride coating, which also helped to increase tool life.
The result:
The new end mill lasted about 30 percent longer than the original, which increased parts per edge from 146 to 182. The new end mill cost $11.94, while the old end mill cost $19.26. Both factors led to a manufacturing cost-per-part decrease from $0.132 to $0.066. The annual cost to manufacture 500,000 parts fell from nearly $66,000 to about $33,000, a 50 percent savings.
Contact us for more information on any of ETCO’s cost-saving services.
