Formaplex increases 5-axis complement with two DMG machines

They will be installed in May 2012 to assist the company in meeting short-lead-time deliveries to demanding customers. Moulds, dies and master patterns, mainly in aluminium and for plastic and composite component production, are manufactured around the clock by Formaplex, in addition to prototype parts. Formaplex's Metallic Division installed its first two large 5-axis machines in 2009 and 2010, with these capable of unmanned processing of parts up to 3 m in X, but the company was finding that bottlenecks were occurring in the production of smaller, complex components. The DMU machines have a 1,250 by 710 by 710 mm working volume, a full NC rotary axis within the main 1,500 mm x 800 mm table surface, and a high powered B-axis milling head with a swivel range of -120 /+30°. It was partly the versatility of this configuration, as opposed to the more common trunnion design, that prompted Formaplex to opt for DMG machines. Ben Yule, operations manager at Formaplex, comments: "With the trend towards ever greater component complexity, our recent entry into 5-axis manufacturing revolutionised our operations and is allowing us to continue to beat customer deadlines. "Investigations into potential suppliers of similar machines for producing small to medium sized parts led us to conclude that DMG has the track record and industry reputation to be considered market leader. "Trunnion-type 5-sided machining is virtually non-existent here, whereas the universal head design of the DMU lends itself well to our type of work, such as mould/die profiling and 3-plus-2-axis drilling of compound holes. "In fact, the configuration is more like a 3-axis vertical machining centre with 5-axis capability and all-round accessibility is good. We also like the Heidenhain CNC option, as all of the machines on our shopfloor are similarly equipped."