EDM specialist Ona wins design award

The company, which is represented in the UK by Warwick Machine Tools, picked up the accolade for its AV-25 wire EDM machine, with the prize recognising machine tool makers that strive to deliver improvements by investing in design and technological innovation. In fact, Ona is no stranger to this sort of praise, as it has now received the award five times, but the company explains that it uses industrial design as a strategic tool. According to the EDM specialist, the unit that won the award is part of the company's strategic plan to boost current product competitiveness through the design of the new range of wire EDM machines in the 'Premium' range. The main features of the AV-25 are described as: • A new CNC-CAM that exceeds the demands of the most advanced programmer and offers a simple, user-friendly interface. The CNC can control up to eight axes simultaneously, incorporates CADCAM and boasts a 21.5 in touchscreen • A new generator delivers surface finishes of 0.1 µm Ra • An automatic threader use fine wires of up to 70 µm • The unit offers new corner and profile control systems, linear rulers with a resolution of 0.1 µm and a protection system that detects impacts of just 0.8 kg (8 N) • An energy-management system cuts consumption by up to 30% during cutting, as well as reduces wire consumption with its Ecocutting technologies • The machine tool's compact design cuts space requirements by 20%, compared to similar models