OPEN MIND Cuts a Path to Success in the UK Aero Industry
At the leading edge of innovation and technology
The global aerospace industry is undoubtedly at the leading edge of innovation and technology. Proving its authority in the sector, OPEN MIND is the leading supplier of CAM solutions in the UK aerospace market.
CAD/CAM developers OPEN MIND Technologies is leading the field in this industry with the innovations developed at its Wessling headquarters in Germany. Working with Dormer Tools whose UK facility is based adjacent to the AMRC, OPEN MIND installed its hyperMILL® and the hyperMILL® MAXX Machining high performance roughing module to enhance the productivity benefits of Dormer cutting tools. Always at the forefront of technology, the Dormer engineers were flabbergasted by the hyperMILL® MAXX Machining high performance roughing cycle from OPEN MIND.
Tool life improvement of over 200%
As Dormer Tools Machining Applications Engineer, Mr Matt Johnson comments: “We are currently machining a structural wing component from titanium for an OPEN MIND and Dormer customer. Like the OPEN MIND customer, we are using the same Dormer S357 12mm carbide cutter with a 3mm radius and we extended tool life from 30 minutes to over 2 hours – a tool life improvement of over 200%. The only difference is that we are using hyperMILL® MAXX Machining.”
hyperMILL® MAXX Machining: Aerospace aluminum structure part
This aerospace aluminum structure part was programmed with hyperMILL® and its innovative and powerful CAM strategies. An incredible machining time of only 2 hours and 15 minutes has been achieved due to our high-performance strategies like 5-axis tangent plane machining, 5-axis helical drilling and Linking-Technology.
Material: Aluminum
Machine: GROB G550
“Then the OPEN MIND engineer turned on the hyperMILL® MAXX Machining roughing cycle and asked me to treble the recommended Dormer Pramet feed and almost double the speed rates for the cutter.“
Matt Johnson, Machining Applications Engineer
Cycle time reduction with hyperMILL® MAXX Machining
With regard to the production of the structural aerospace part, the customer was taking 40 hours to machine two sides of the component, this is now 10 hours with hyperMILL® MAXX Machining. As Mr Johnson states: “The aerospace subcontractor has a contract to produce over 150 parts that was taking close to a week to machine each part. To demonstrate cycle time reduction with hyperMILL® MAXX Machining, one pocket was previously machined in 40 minutes. Dormer is now milling the pocket in 3 minutes. To achieve such a result and simultaneously improve tool life is exceptional.”
The implementation of hyperMILL® MAXX Machining at the test facility within the AMRC is yielding significant benefits for aerospace subcontractors and OEM‘s alike, especially when machining aerospace grade materials such as 6LV-4 titanium, Inconel and other exotic austenitic alloys.
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