Cutting tool manufacturers sign up to use the Haimer Safe-Lock toolholding system
1 min read
Haimer reports that to date nine cutting tool manufactures have acquired licences to use its Safe-Lock high performance toolholding system. Widia, Walter, Sandvik Coromant, Seco, Kennametal, Helical, HAM, Emuge Franken and Data Flute have all incorporated the Safe-Lock system into their product range and are already recommending it as the safest solution for increasing productivity in roughing applications.
The Safe-Lock principle works with spiral-shaped grooves that are ground into the cutting tool shank. In combination with corresponding carbide drive pins in the toolholder (shrink fit, collet or hydraulic chucks) they prevent the tool from twisting or even being pulled out of the chuck during extreme machining.
Safe-Lock was developed for heavy duty roughing as routinely performed in the aerospace and power generation industries. In such sectors, many workpieces are milled from solid. To optimise the process and achieve high material removal rates, high torques and low rpm are usually selected. However, such high performance cutting generates high tensile forces. Coupled with high cutting and feeding forces, they lead to twisting movements of the cutting tool in the chuck, posing the danger of the cutting tool being pulled out of the chuck.
Haimer director Andreas Haimer comments: "With the Safe-Lock system we have established integrated pull-out protection for round tools that unites frictional clamping force and positive locking. With regard to process reliability and high material removal rates results attainable are much better than when using conventional toolholders."
