Subcontractor invests in new technology amid increased demand

A Northamptonshire-based subcontractor has invested over £350,000 in its shopfloor to help cope with a 16% increase in demand.

Scot Bennett Engineering, which supplies milled and turned parts to the automotive, agricultural, lighting and industrial sectors, has purchased its second Nakamura AS200LMYS from the Engineering Technology Group (ETG).

The single turret, 15 station live tool and twin spindle machine will reduce cycle times by up to 25%, as well as removing secondary operations on more than 40 different product lines.

It gives the company extra capacity with its milling work, capacity that will soon be used with a number of projects - including aftermarket motorcycle absorbers for an export customer - growing in volume.

“The Nakamura is a high quality machine and delivers the precision performance, speed and flexibility that we need,” explained Rob Bennett, who took over the business from his father in 2010. “We already have an AS200 on the shop floor and know, first-hand, what it can give you. This second machine will give us extra milling capacity and we have made sure that we have configured it exactly the same and chosen the same workholding and software.”

He continued: “By doing this, we have removed the need for any extra training, whilst also speeding up the install process. ETG is a long-standing supplier and the service we received was second to none - as always.”

Jon Mannion, regional sales manager at ETG, added: “Nakamura is a very popular choice for sub-contact machinists and it’s not difficult to see why.

“The ability to mill and turn on the same machine, with live tooling delivering a 6k rpm spindle, is a real gamechanger for firms who want speed and the ability to manufacture complex components.

“It’s great to supply Scot Bennett with this technology, just three years on from its first purchase with us. We’ve put our industry-leading maintenance, service and repair package in place on this machine to ensure minimal downtime for a customer that is growing fast.”

Engineering Technology Group (ETG) delivers highly productive turnkey solutions to customers involved in automotive, aerospace, domestic goods, high value engineering, medical and oil and gas.

Its portfolio of world class brand includes Bavius, Hardinge Bridgeport, Chiron, Nakamura, Quaser and STAMA.

Recently, the company acquired HK Technologies in a bid to offer its client base a single source solution for 3D printing, EDM, balance systems and profile grinding technology.

Scot Bennett Engineering www.scotbennett.co.uk

Engineering Technology Group www.engtechgroup.com