A tough machining decision made easy

Burcas, a Birmingham-based privately owned specialist engineering subcontractor, has invested in a Doosan Mynx 9500/50 with a Doosan-Fanuc control, which was installed at the company’s 32,000ft² facility in October 2020 and is being used, primarily at this moment in time, to machine specialist tooling, prototypes and a range of high-precision components for the nuclear sector – an industry which, owing to its ‘essential’ status, has been largely unaffected by the lockdown and its restrictions.

When not being used to machine parts destined for nuclear applications, the Mynx 9500/50 has also been used to a lesser extent to machine high-precision tungsten carbide and high-speed steel (HSS) Sheeter and Slitter knives and blades for Burcas’ domestic and internationally-based paper and packaging customers.

The nuclear sector - the catalyst

The nuclear sector has always been important to Burcas and, over the last 10 months (since the COVID-19 outbreak), has become even more so owing to a decline in the company’s other major business areas such as aerospace and oil and gas, caused, in large part, by the impact and effects of the pandemic.

In fact it was the increase in demand for Burcas’ high-quality machining services from customers in the nuclear sector that was the catalyst behind the new Doosan machine tool investment.

Mike Burrows, Burcas’ owner and managing director explains: “To capitalise on the growing business opportunities in the nuclear sector we, at the beginning of the year, audited our existing machining capacity and capabilities.

“The results of the audit combined with our knowledge of the sector highlighted a need for us to strengthen our milling capabilities as a matter of some urgency. As a consequence we ‘specced’ out the type of machine we needed in terms of its size and capacity, spindle configuration, speed and torque rating and began researching the market for the ideal machine.

“Although the new machine tool purchase was driven almost entirely by an increase in demand from customers in the nuclear sector we never lost sight that it would also become a major machining asset for our future aerospace and oil and gas business when both returned to something resembling normality.”

To identify the most appropriate and effective machine tool Burcas scoured the marketplace assessing both the machine tools and their suppliers against the following purchase criteria:

• To be able to machine a wider range of larger and longer components (than had been previously the case) the company determined that it needed a machining centre with a bigger working envelope


• Owing to the materials being machined such as stainless steels, Hastelloy, titanium and exotics and their machinability, the type of machining operations likely to be employed – heavy-duty roughing and interrupted cutting – in producing the parts, and the accuracies and surface finishes required, it was clear that the new machine had to have a rigid design and construction, a powerful, high-torque spindle, a generously sized tool changer and a highly-effective swarf management system


• To help optimise machine tool uptime once the selected machine was installed, Burcas looked closely at the depth and breadth of the various machine tool suppliers’ aftersales service and support operations. Other key criteria included the machine’s cost and its availability

Meeting the criteria: the Mynx 9500/50

Having discussed its requirements with a ‘hit list’ of potential machine tool suppliers, Burcas ultimately decided to invest in the Mynx 9500/50 machine. Mills’ reputation in the marketplace for exemplary pre- and aftersales service certainly helped clinch the deal.

It’s a large capacity, rigidly designed and built box guideway machine with an impressive working envelope (X-axis 2,500mm; Y-axis 950mm and Z-axis 850mm), and a large 2,500mm x 950mm worktable that can accommodate parts up to 3,500kg in weight. The machine’s 16m/minute rapids on all axes make it highly productive.

It is equipped with a powerful, two-speed gearbox driven 22kW/10,000rpm high-torque 452Nm spindle, with a BT50 face and taper configuration that makes it ideal for heavy-duty cutting operations, long machining runs and the efficient and accurate machining of difficult materials.

In addition, the Mynx 9500/50 features a 40-position ATC with a fast 2.5 second tool change over time for improved productivity and flexibility, and a high efficiency four row screw chip disposal system that delivers improved efficiency and process reliability.

“The Mynx is our first Doosan machine and since its installation it hasn’t missed a beat,” Mr Burrows adds. “The machine is versatile and reliable, and its cutting performance is impressive.

“We have also been very impressed with Mills as a supplier. From the outset they adopted a proactive role and, even a tricky installation that necessitated the craning in of the machine through the roof, was professionally managed and executed.”

Burcas, established in 1941, is a company run on sound business principles. It is committed to continuous improvement and, as part of its vision and values, strives for perfection and 100% customer satisfaction.

The company has, over many years, built a strong reputation in and across the many markets it serves (both domestic and international) for the quality and accuracy of its machined products, its speed of response and ability to fulfil customer lead-times and delivery schedules and its competitive pricing policies.

Essential to the company’s success and its ability to work across so many industries and sectors has been its progressive attitude to investing in the latest manufacturing and machining technologies as Mike Burrows reveals.

“We constantly monitor and evaluate all aspects of our business. If, and when, we identify an area that needs attention or improvement we act decisively. In recent years this strategic outlook has seen the company invest in a number of advanced machine tools, optimise its processes and systems and integrate an effective ERP/MRP system across its operations to improve efficiencies and effectiveness.”

Burcas is committed to quality and, as well as having ISO 9001 and AS9100 Rev D certification, also holds a number of customer-specific approvals.

Burcas www.burcas.co.uk

Mills CNC www.millscnc.co.uk