Pragmatism and attention to detail when devising methods for workpiece clamping has boosted production efficiency at International Safety Components (ISC) to the point where manufacturing costs at the Bangor factory are comparable with those in the Far East. Applications engineer, Regan Irwin, is responsible for driving forward innovative workholding arrangements on the company’s lathes and […]

Secure, accurate clamping with 40 kN of torque is offered by a new vice from Kitagawa, Japan, designed to suit a variety of uses where compactness is important, such as on 5-axis machining centres. However, the VAX 125 unit is equally suited to multiple fixturing applications on 3-axis machines. The vice is available in the […]

Omicron UHV Technik is a specialist manufacturing company within the Oxford Instruments PLC group, focusing mainly on producing ultra-high vacuum chambers as well as high precision components and subassemblies for the scientific instrument industry. The company works mainly in 304 and 316 stainless steel plus a small range of copper and aluminium alloys. Batch sizes […]

PAUL SWANN, owner and managing director of Chick Workholding Solutions, explains how an innovative approach to clamping can raise productivity and accuracy, sometimes dramatically. Sole UK agent for the US-made products is 1st Machine Tool Accessories, Salisbury. Machinists tend to be highly talented people, but rather conservative when it comes to exploiting workholding technology to […]

The range of work holding products offered by 1st Machine Tool Accessories has been significantly expanded following an agency agreement with BEST GmbH, Filderstadt, Germany. The company is a leading manufacturer of low-profile, centric (self-centring) vices that are particularly suited to clamping components undergoing multi-axis metal cutting applications on machining centres. There are similar products […]

A machine tool is only as good as the other equipment used with it, as tooling suppliers often say, but the same is true of workholding. It can take a long time to wind the movable jaw on an old-fashioned vice to clamp a component and sometimes it can work loose, resulting in loss of […]

Rather than continually send worn twist drills out for refurbishment, instrument manufacturer Bailey & Mackey has bought a drill sharpening machine for its Birmingham factory. The savings will result in the investment of less than £3,000 being repaid within 18 months, according to the company’s production engineer, Alan Boylin. Made in the USA by Darex, […]

1ST MTA TO HIGHLIGHT PRODUCTIVITY ENHANCEMENT OPPORTUNITIES Workholding, drill sharpening and automation equipment specialist, 1st Machine Tool Accessories (1st MTA), will show its extensive range of products for raising production output and maximising return on investment from machine tools. As a special promotion at this year’s MACH exhibition, visitors to the stand will receive discount […]

Chick Workholding‘s One-Lok vices for CNC machine tools represent an evolution in workholding technology in terms of speed, productivity, flexibility and accuracy. The products are available through 1st MTA, UK agent for the US manufacturer. Unlike traditional knee mill vices, which require up to 70 complete revolutions of the handle from fully opened to closed, […]

Companies developing and building lathes with a spindle speed of up to 5,600rpm have the option of fitting a new, hydraulically actuated, rotary chuck cylinder that typically consumes 1.5 kilowatt-hours over a daily shift, compared with 36 kilowatt-hours for a conventional cylinder. The reduction is nearly 96 per cent and equates to a saving of […]