Small component maker benefits from in-house surface grinding investment

Previously reliant on subcontractors for its grinding operations, Micrometric decided that a combination of changes at its supplier plus an increasing volume of components needing ground profiles and surfaces justified investing in its own grinding machine. "It was not a technique we had firsthand experience of," explains managing director Neil Main. "But one of our production engineering team had worked in a grinding environment and suggested Jones & Shipman as a starting point. We approached them and received a solution that meant we did not look any further," he explains. "Small and precise" is Mr Main's description of Micrometrics' expertise. A high proportion are laser cut components supplied to end-users ranging from energy to automotive, with an increasing percentage into aerospace, where Micrometric holds the all important AS9100 accreditation. "It's where we started [in 1982] and we are now one of about half a dozen UK companies specialising in small and micro-component development and manufacture," Mr Main adds. The J&S grinder has a grinding bed capacity of 500 by 200 mm and features the unique J&S developed EASY programming software that, according the Neil Main, lives up to its name in every sense. "Production runs can be anything from 10 to 10,000, but, typically, 250 is an average batch size. That is well within the machine's capacity, but, more importantly, the inventory of parts we manufacture is vast. We store the programmes on an adjacent PC and our operators can rapidly call them off when a batch – or even a one-off – is required. With the EASY software, this is proving to be a simple and reliable operation, with repeatability the all important necessity." The EASY touchscreen control offers the operator the benefits of CNC control without the complexity of a traditional CNC system. EASY is icon-based software that can interpolate two axes simultaneously to enable precision output of complex shapes, angles, profiles and surfaces. Its self-teach capability allows both experienced and inexperienced operators to rapidly grasp the features and quickly become productive. At start up, the operator is offered a choice of three modes – manual, dress or grind – and, having made his choice, a range of options are automatically presented that enable productive operation in the shortest possible time. Micrometric has made all its own jigs, fixtures and tooling – some using the 524 EASY – and this has proved both cost-effective and beneficial to productivity. "Starting from scratch was a bonus in this sense," explains Mr Main. "We were able to establish priorities and manufacture fixtures precisely to suit our customer component options. This has greatly reduced downtime and given us a significantly improved ability to respond, especially to urgent batch requirements. "The J&S machine has easily integrated into our operations and almost on a daily basis we are realising the benefits and flexibility of having our own, in house capability. In the two months we have had the unit, we have made significant strides in paying back our investment," he concludes.