When Wellingborough-based R&G Precision took its first steps into full five-axis machining with a Matsuura MAM 72-35V, it needed to maximise the machine’s capabilities with an appropriate work-holding solution for its 32 pallets.
The company is one of those classic success stories. It began in 1974 with two friends — Vic Rigalsford and Giuseppe (Joe) Giammasi — working evenings in a shed after doing their day jobs, taking on any work that was offered to them.
When Mr Rigalsford retired from the business in 1983, Mr Giammasi continued to develop it, relocating several times before moving into the current 18,000ft2 facilities (one of its locations was a pigsty that had to be thoroughly cleaned before the business could move in).
R&G Precision provides machining, spark erosion, grinding and assembly services to a broad spectrum of customers from the motor-sport, medical, oil and gas, defence, telecomms and aerospace sectors.
Mr Giamassi, who is now company chairman, says: “We started with one manual lathe, and I was delegated to be the salesman by Mr Rigalsford. While we experienced steady growth from the outset, the biggest influence on the business was when we purchased our first CNC machine almost 24 years ago; that led to further expansion and brought us to where we are now — machining components for some prestigious customers across a wide variety of industry sectors.”
Satisfying demand
With continued growth, R&G Precision had to look at alternative manufacturing solutions to satisfy customer demand, and this led to the purchase of its first full five-axis machine.
Phil Parish, the company’s head of programming and engineering, said: “The benefits of the multi-pallet Matsuura were immediately evident for the type of work we were doing. With typical cycle times of an hour and with 32 pallets, we could throw lots of work at the machine and let it get on with production, running for long periods unmanned.”
That said, Mr Parish’s initial problem was work holding, but this was solved when Warren Howard, a technical sales engineer at Sheffield-based WNT (UK) Ltd (
www.wnt.com), left one of the company’s ZSG vices for him to ‘play with’. “I was like a kid in a sweetshop. Along with the vice, WNT gave me detailed CAD models of all its products, so I was able to visualise lots of different work-holding scenarios.”
The result is that all 32 pallets on the Matsuura are now equipped with the WNT MNG Zero Point clamping system and WNT ZSG-4 vices. The latter are mechanical centric-type vices that benefit from high clamping forces (up to 35kN) and a gripping range of 0-300mm; they are also very compact, making them ideal for high-end multi-pallet five-axis machines such as R&G Precision’s Matsuura.
The high level of engineering that goes into each vice ensures maximum accuracy and a repeatability of ±0.01mm. With up to 12 variants of the ZSG-4 vice available, there is one for virtually every application; and when combined with the MNG Zero Point base-plate, they can be mounted singly or as double vices for further versatility.
A further advantage is that they are compatible with existing base-platesystems and zero-point adapter plates from other manufacturers. Location of the vices is straightforward, with a single pull stud and two dowel locations, making it easy to reposition vices as required.
Good access
WNT’s Mr Howard adds: “We are being asked more and more to put together application-based packages for our work-holding systems, and we are winning business due to the advantages that the ZSG-4 system offers — particularly for five-axis applications, where the compact design of the vice allows much greater access to the part.
Other key features are the use of an encapsulated pre-tensioned leadscrew that aids swarf clearance and avoids the risk of clamping on trapped swarf rather than the component.
“Also, the ZSG range has a particularly wide choice of jaws. These include pendulum and adapter jaws that can grip circular and odd-shaped components, smooth or serrated jaws, stepped jaws, carbide-coated jaws, and soft jaws that can be machined to suit specific components.
“A key feature, though, is the ability to apply maximum gripping pressure while holding on just 3mm of material — without any requirement to pre-prepare the material.”
In addition to clamping components directly into the ZSG-4 vices, R&G Precision also uses them and the MNG Zero Point base-plates to locate fixtures, adding even greater versatility to its machine capacity.
Moreover, the compact nature and ease of access to the component provided by this work-holding equipment also caught the attention of the quality control department, which has now bought its own WNT ZSG-4 vice; this sits on the corner of the CMM table and allows the same access to parts as achieved by the Matsuura.
In conclusion, Mr Parish says: “This has improved the flow of work through that department and aided statistical analysis procedures. We quickly realised that with the mix of work we are putting through the Matsuura, vices — in particular the WNT ZSG-4 with the MNG Zero Point base-plate — were the only way to go.
“It is proving to be quick, efficient and easy to use — plus the set-ups are straightforward to work out, thanks to the CAD models that WNT provides. With the base plate set-up that we are using, the height of the vice from the base of the pallet is perfect, allowing maximum access to five sides of the component.”