Imco tool die

A panel discussion at the recent Top Shops Conference focused on various points of view regarding the value of connecting machine tools to a network for monitoring performance and recording results.

Because machine monitoring helps a shop make better decisions about manufacturing processes, it is a good example of data-driven manufacturing in action. Data-Driven Manufacturing. Edited by Evan Doran Assistant Editor.

Since , we have built a reputation for…. The company is a provider of precision molded thermoplastic components. We have…. They have a great turn around time, parts are machined correctly, and they work with use and use their knowledge to help make a part less expensive…. The company has in-house capabilities for product development, mold…. Advances in coating formulations add to the tools' productivity and extended life.

In , the second generation enDURO M was launched with refined geometries for even stronger, more chip-resistant cutting edges and higher metal removal rates. Repeated testing showed enDURO tools were effective in titanium and other hard metals even using low-horsepower machining centers.

This line expansion also marked the appearance of a new engineered coating - aluminum-chromium-nitride or AlCrNX - with improved heat protection. IMCO refined the tool's rake and relief angles and reinforced its cutting edges, which afforded users higher metal removal rates and shorter cycle times.

Better chip resistance along the cutting edges offered the longer tool life shops need to reduce overall tool costs. IMCO tools are designed, tested, sourced and manufactured in the U. The company also performs custom modifications to off-the-shelf cutting tools.

IMCO Carbide Tool products begin with "blanks," or rods of micrograin carbide or ultra-fine micrograin carbide , because of its extreme hardness and favorable heat resistance. IMCO specializes in high-performance end mills designed with variable fluting. Varying flute geometries break up the harmonics , or multiple mechanical frequencies that develop as tools spin and can cause tool instability and failure.

Variable fluting breaks up harmonics and keeps the tool balanced as it turns for optimum tool stability. This, in turn, enables the tool to cut with greater precision. IMCO high-performance tools frequently include an engineered coating that deflects heat away from the tool.

Typical coatings in the industry include titanium nitride TiN , aluminum titanium nitride AlTiN and titanium aluminum nitride TiAlN , although IMCO, like many tool makers, fine-tunes these engineered coatings for better heat protection and longer tool use. This AlCrNX coating was shown in research to provide heightened heat protection and exponentially longer tool life.

Because extreme temperatures are generated in the cutting zone, where the cutting edges shear through the material at very high speeds, coatings are added to deflect the heat away from the tool. Coatings offer varying degrees of heat protection, or hot hardness , as well as other unique performance characteristics, depending on their formulation.

Tools coated with each formulation will work well in some materials and poorly in others. Coatings also provide a degree of lubricity that helps evacuate metal cuttings or chips , from the cutting zone. This prevents clogs and removes chips before they can melt and bond with the tool's cutting edges, which ruins the tool.

Tool geometries, or cutting and fluting angles, are essential to the tool's performance. A minute change in angle or cutting radius can make a significant difference in the tool's balance, chiploads and other performance characteristics. IMCO and other tool manufacturers conduct extensive research to fine-tune these geometries, especially for use in heat-treated alloy steels , Inconel , Hastelloy and other engineered metals.

Through research and testing, IMCO has developed a range of "unique combinations using multiple coating formulas and substrates. There is a list of all authors in Wikipedia.