Two new machines will be unveiled by Vollmer at EMO 2019 (Hall 6, Stand F66) — the VHybrid 360 grinding and erosion machine and the VGrind 340S grinding machine.

The company will also highlight V@dison — its Industry 4.0 initiative launched at the beginning of 2019. Vollmer is represented in the UK by Nottingham-based Vollmer (UK) Ltd (www.vollmer-group.com/en-uk).

The VHybrid 360 grinding and erosion machine will allow for the combined machining of drills, milling cutters or reamers made of carbide and PCD (poly-crystalline diamond).

Tool manufacturers can either completely grind or erode blanks using the VHybrid 360, regardless of whether these consist of sintered PCD or soldered-in diamond plates.

Multi-level machining via two vertical spindles makes this possible; the upper spindle is reserved for grinding, while the lower one is designed for grinding and eroding.

Meanwhile, the VGrind 340S grinding machine is suitable for machining even the smallest carbide tools.

Drills and milling cutters with diameters of 0.3mm or larger, which are in high demand in the automotive, electronics and medical-technology sectors in particular, can be sharpened using the VGrind 340S, which also features two vertical spindles.

Five CNC axes are said to achieve perfect interpolation with short travel distances for the linear axes and swivel ranges, which in turn reduces the time required to machine workpieces.

Solutions for automation, such as pallet magazines or free-arm robots, ensure that machining can continue unattended 24/7.

When it comes to the topics of Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things (IoT), Vollmer is working closely with the German VDW industry association and other machine constructors in order to advance standardisation.

At EMO, Vollmer sharpening machines will be part of an installation that demonstrates the benefits of the VDW’s ‘umati’ standard for data exchange.

This standard, which is based on OPC UA, networks machine tools from different manufacturers.

Stefan Brand, CEO of the Vollmer Group said: “Especially with V@dison, it is about driving digitalisation forward together with our partners from the metal-working industry.

“In our opinion, uniform standards like umati — as well as interfaces and analysis tools — are required so that tool manufacturers can network their machines, regardless of the manufacturer.”