Brand manager Miguel Johann says the new pattern, combined with the ability to define the slope angles that the toolpath will cut on, make this strategy the most modern technique for part finishing: “Where before, these high-feed cutters could only be used to rough or semi-finish the part, as the allowances were not constant, the constraints are now removed and WorkNC customers can reduce their finishing times by half, doubling productivity.”
In cutting tests carried out before releasing the software, gains varied from 47% up to 74%, depending on the individual tool and part shapes. Vero is now encouraging all WorkNC users to consider the benefits of circle segment tools.
“Mould cutting tools will always benefit from cutting in three axes instead of five, where possible, and circle-segment tools designed for moulds should not have a radius too big as to miss the advantage of flexibility,” says Johann. “While theory explains to us that the larger the radius, the bigger the gain in spacing the step-over, in practice the parts we cut are not formed purely of long, flat faces. We need the gain from the big radius, but we also need the flexibility of using the tool’s and part’s curvature to the maximum.”
Another important improvement in WorkNC 2019 R1 is the strengthened link with WorkPLAN, Vero Software’s ERP solution for the mould and die market.
WorkPLAN brand manager Christophe Mas says: “Integrating with other Vero products remains a high priority for us, which is why we were keen to launch this interface between WorkPLAN and WorkNC. It allows a number of production tasks to be directly managed by the WorkNC program code, and means the work zone can be stored in WorkPLAN’s database.”
This strategy is confirmed by Johann, who says that manufacturers “cannot afford the inefficiency of having to retype any piece of information that is already in another part of their digital thread. As a manufacturing solution provider we’re keenly aware of that, which is why we’ve made it much easier to link with vital production control information.”
