Tooling Around
Equipment
The design process via CAD
He and Mr Vincent know what they want and work hard at getting it. Part of getting contracts is making sure the business is tooled up for them. They use the best technology available globally and, says Mr Smith, "We have no issue with spending a lot to buy the best machines, software and hardware. We need cutting-edge technology to stay on top".
This includes spending $1.5 million on a German-built DMU200P five-axis machining centre with five-sided, five-access simultaneous machining capabilities and a spindle speed of 10,000 rpm, with a pick-up speed head capable of 42,000 rpm. Imagine a computerdirected mill, the size of a small room, with a CNC head that can more-or-less turn itself inside out to machine metal from five different planes.
"We have no issue with spending a lot to buy the best machines, software and hardware. We need cutting-edge technology to stay on top."
Smith and Vincent's other baby ($500,000) is the Charmilles Robofil 510, a machine that uses electrified wire to machine metal precisely. It can be described as a computerised bandsaw, which uses wire instead of a blade and cuts through metal with the ease of a hot knife through butter. It's kept in a purpose-built, climate-controlled room with a separate floor to eliminate vibration, and provides high accuracy and exceptional surface finishing for components, even tiny ones.
