How do you get the most out of your milling time?
CNC time is expensive and involves many factors, including part complexity and machine run time. For most operations managers, it’s beneficial to strategize to be more productive while the machines run.
If tapping or deburring is needed, one way to be more efficient is to turn the process around. Yes, your CNC operation can actually be more productive by automating deburring inside the CNC and performing the tapping outside it.
Your new CNC drilling and tapping center with Xebec and Roscamat
1. If you add a few minutes to the CNC cycle for deburring using Xebec brushes, you’ll save on overall production time because it’ll automate the deburring process and produce high-quality finished products consistently and reliably. In addition, you’ll no longer have to pile up pieces after milling and wait on manual deburring and inspection before shipping the parts.
2. By placing a Roscamat®USA tapping arm next to your machining center, your CNC center can gain a significant improvement in speed, accuracy and productivity. While the CNC is milling the next part, the operator can tap the holes in the last part.
An example of how this worked for one company:
A CNC operation milled parts that were spec’d with 30 tapped holes. The cycle time for milling, drilling and tapping added up to almost two hours per part in the CNC. By removing the tapping process from the CNC and using a Roscamat tapping arm after milling, the company reduced the cycle time by 11 minutes (a 7.3% decrease). The operator then had time to start running the next part in the CNC, while it took just three minutes to tap out 30 holes with the Roscamat and be done with that part. Tapping with the Roscamat arm not only required less time than the CNC - it shortened the CNC cycle time by 11 minutes, increasing productivity. Saving 11 minutes of cycle time per part in a facility with 10 CNCs can result in the production of more than 500 extra parts per year.
The Roscamat’s standard Bilz®-Style quick change tap adapters make tapping holes of differing sizes fast and easy. It takes seconds to switch adapters, so for a company milling a part with 24 threaded holes of three to four differing sizes, using a Roscamat arm reduced the time to tap the holes. Plus, the ease of changing tap adapters made this project a breeze.
Roscamat’s tapping arms can help operators do the job quickly. See how Roscamat’s Tiger can tap 24 threads per minute on a F 114 steel part.
By adding a few minutes to the cycle time for automated deburring, then externalizing the tapping process, the company reduced cycle time for each part by 10%. With a Roscamat arm and its quick-change tap adaptors, operators could tap all the holes in about five minutes.
Maximize production in your CNC center with a Roscamat Tapping arm
Roscamat builds superior, lightweight, safe and reliable tapping arms. Operators can bring the tap to the work, which is three to four times more efficient than lugging the workpiece to a fixed spindle.
Due to the rigidity and precise movement, tapped holes are very high quality and typically gage with a smooth insertion of the go gage and little, if any, entry of the no-go gage. Do you need to do drilling, countersinking or reaming? It’s easy with Roscamat’s tapping arms with their high-speed motors, speed control variators and seven interchangeable speed modules.
You can also automate the tapping process. See how in this example of a Universal Robot and Roscamat tapping arm collaboration.
Increase Safety and Employee Retention in your CNC Center
We all know that machining centers don’t want to lose skilled employees. One way to do that is to keep employees safer in your CNC center with ergonomic lift assist solutions from 3arm America. These portable ergonomic solutions can decrease employee injuries and damage to expensive parts, especially in industries with heavy tools and parts that need to be transferred in out of the CNC.
Keeping your employees safe is not only cost effective, it allows you to expand your labor pool and facilitates employee retention. Create your own ergonomic plan to protect, retain and attract employees.
Learn more: Enhanced Ergonomics and Productivity for Machining Centers with 3arm.
Pair your CNC with our cutting-edge technologies to be more productive! Learn how we can help you increase quality and revenue with Roscamat tapping arms, 3arm ergonomic solutions and Xebec deburring solutions.
