Giving machine tool production the edge

Founded in 1919 Yamazaki Mazak has grown to become one of the world's largest suppliers of CNC lathes, machining centres and manufacturing systems.

The multinational company produces a wide variety of machine tools and advanced manufacturing systems designed to undertake a multiplicity of precision machining applications.

Employing over 6,600 people worldwide, Mazak has nine high-tech manufacturing sites across the world, including its advanced European manufacturing plant in Worcester. The facility also houses the company's recently built European Technology Centre, giving customers direct access to support.

To help ensure the highest possible standard of product quality, Yamazaki Mazak's own machine tools are utilised throughout the Worcester factory. Occasionally the need arises to procure a category of machine tool not included within its own range and a recent example of this was the purchase of two advanced Studer grinders from Micronz LLP.

Founded in 1912, Fritz Studer AG manufactures high quality grinding machines for the internal and external cylindrical grinding of small and medium sized workpieces. The Swiss company's core strength is in producing machines for single, small and also medium quantity production runs. Its grinders can be found throughout the world, in areas were high precision grinding is essential.

Having operated two Studer machines for more than 20 years, Mazak's requirement for further capacity prompted a search for additional grinding machines. Although the original Studer machines had given a long, reliable service and remained in operational order, Mazak was mindful of possible technical advancements within the field of grinding. After the qualities of various machines were taken into account, the machine builder's opinion was that Studer again met the company's demanding technical requirements. Now installed in an environmentally controlled, dedicated grinding cell within the Worcester factory, the new Studer grinders are fully operational and delivering the promised benefits.

Mike Green, Yamazaki Mazak's machining supervisor reports: “Our challenging list of technical and operational requirements meant that our new grinders needed to exhibit outstanding performance within the areas of accuracy, concentricity, surface finish, operational flexibility, rapid cycle times and ease and speed of machine set-up.

“Our Studer S40 grinder is used for the grinding of high precision cylindrical parts with typical dimensional tolerances of 2µm, which include machine spindle shafts and housings. As both external and internal features can be ground, sometimes in the same set-up, the S40 has given us excellent concentricity results whilst allowing the grinding of spindles in one operation, compared to three previously.”

Studer's S40, CNC universal cylindrical grinder is specifically designed for grinding complex workpieces in small to large batch production runs, although individual component grinding can also be undertaken. Due to the machine's modular design, it can be precisely adapted to cater for customers' individual requirements. The S40 can also be automated to give around the clock production. With a centre height of 175mm or 225mm and a centre distance of 1,000mm or 1,600mm, the use of Studer's proven pictogramming system allows less experienced users to quickly optimise the machine's potential.

The smaller Studer's S31 twin spindle machine is designed for the grinding of workpieces in individual as well as small and large series production operations. With a centre height of 175mm and a centre distance of 1,000mm, the flexible grinder can be automated and is used extensively throughout industries such as tooling and aerospace.

Micronz
www.micronz.com

Yamazaki Mazak
www.mazak.eu 

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