Horn UK boost specials manufacture

The company is to commission two additional high-technology CNC insert grinding machines this month. They will support local manufacture of inserts that were previously sourced from Germany, with consequential substantial reduction in delivery lead times. ‘Specials’ form an increasing proportion of sales for Horn UK. During 2005 its customised insert business grew by 30 per cent, while sales revenues as a whole increased by around 10 per cent. Bespoke inserts embrace a huge range of applications ranging from relatively straightforward adjustment of edge dimensions or corner radii on otherwise ‘standard’ inserts through to fully customised profiles for gear tooth form generation, spline cutting and so on. “This side of the business is very important to us, and vital to our customers who make use of the service,” says Mike Green, UK sales manager. “Having specialist manufacturing capability at Ringwood will optimise our response on ongoing orders and also speed up the process of special insert development.”