Samuel Taylor invests £160,000
Posted on 03 Jul 2012. Edited by: John Hunter. Read 1132 times.
A global increase in demand for its precious-metal contacts and contact materials encouraged Samuel Taylor Ltd (www.samueltaylor.co.uk) to invest £160,000 on two new Agie Charmilles EDM machines — plus £30,000 on LogoPress software that seamlessly integrates with STL’s existing SolidWorks 3-D platform.
Alastair Gordon, STL’s managing director, says: “We worked on the two recent Diamond Jubilee bank holidays. Over 80% of our production is exported and most of our customers are abroad; they don’t stop just because the UK is on holiday.”
Mr Gordon says the new Agie Charmilles machines, a CUT 2000 wire-cut EDM and a new DRILL 20, represent the very latest in EDM technology. Moreover, the CUT 2000 has a small footprint (essential for STL) and has been designed for micro-machining and super-precision applications. This machine also features a universal single wire-guidance system that allows the use of all wire diameters from 0.30 down to 0.05mm. The machine is also equipped with Agie Charmilles’ third-generation automatic wire changer, which supports STL’s lights-out operation.
The Drill 20 is the latest generation of small high-productivity EDM drills from Agie Charmilles, and the first ‘fast hole burner’ that STL has bought. It is designed for drilling a range of materials, including hardened steel and carbide, with hole diameters from 0.3 to 3.0mm and depths up to 200mm. Both machines are DNC-linked; and with the SolidWorks and LogoPress software, STL can considerably shorten the time required to design and produce progression tools. Contributing to the company’s shorter lead times with the new machinery and software is its greater use of ‘virtual manufacturing’. “We can simulate all the required parameters for the tooling before cutting metal, thus ensuring a right-first-time approach to tool design” said Mr Gordon.
STL has also hired another skilled tool maker, to ensure that the machines and the software meet expectations and also help with the mentoring of the company’s apprentices.