When a Turn-Mill Doesn’t Turn :: Kirt Johnston pulled up stakes in Indiana to move his family to Montana, where he purchased a small machine shop. He promptly added 4,000 square feet of floor space to the building as well as a diverse array of more advanced CNC equipment. go after more complex medical work. Its second one did as well. The latter is a QuickTech 9-axis S42ATM turn-mill machine with subspindle from Absolute Machine Tools, which was installed last July. Perhaps what is most inter-esting about this machine, which can perform both turning and milling work, is that it is used solely for milling. “I’ve never installed a turning tool in it,” Johnston says. Using this machine in this way has enabled the shop to perform faster changeovers for the 100 different part numbers in two part families that run across the machine, while leaving the option open for additional prismatic work machined from barstock, should that work present itself. No Turning Back ISO 13485-certified, MoManTech specializes in surgical devices for spine, trauma, large joint and dental applications as well as implants. Its range of capabilities enable it to be a virtual one-stop shop for its medical customers’ needs. In addition to its diverse machining capabilities, the shop has in-house secondary processes such as laser etching and marking, ultrasonic cleaning and citric passivation. MoManTech also has plastic and metal 3D printers it uses primarily to create fixtures used in the shop (see sidebar on following page). The QuickTech S42ATM was its most recent capital equipment purchase. Johnston cites price and compact size as big reasons for choosing this model. But, he also appreciates that it has a full C-axis subspindle rather than a workpiece clamping device for backworking. The three-axis subspindle movement also contributes to the machine’s small size, as it can move in the X-axis above and below the part center line to provide the B-axis milling spindle with better access to the part. The B-axis has a 10,000-rpm, 3-hp motor and working range of 190° (±95° from vertical). The machine has a 30-mm bar capacity. Rather than using a :: MoManTech machines a range of components for medical devices and implants. productionmachining.com :: 39
Production Machining Production Machining - July 2020: Page 39
