East Grinstead-based Classic Components, a specialist in producing one-off or low-volume development work, is often called on to turn work round at very short notice — quite often without drawings to work to.

The company is a long-term user of XYZ’s ProtoTrak-controlled machines, so their ease of use was familiar to managing director Malcolm Duffield, but the arrival of the latest RMX 3500 bed mill with the new ProtoTrak RMX control was a revelation (www.xyzmachinetools.com).

When he started Classic Components in 2008, his first XYZ machine was a DPM bed mill with an early version of the ProtoTrak control, and this is still in place.

When he decided that it was time to invest in the latest variant with a view to improving productivity and quality, the availability of the new ProtoTrak control proved timely.

The installation of the RMX 3500 bed mill has resulted in significant savings in both programming and cycle times.

He said: “The move from the old DPM control to the new RMX ProtoTrak has been a step-change for me; I am having to catch up with something like 16 years of development.

"However, there have been significant time savings, thanks to innovations such as adaptive material removal strategy and the ability to import DXF files.”

An example of the benefits of the DXF converter is the production of sprockets for vintage aircraft. On his older machine, Mr Duffield had to input every co-ordinate, which was time-consuming in terms of both inputting and cross-checking the data.

"Now, it is simply a case of importing the DXF file and pressing ‘cycle start’.

“I have gone from a process that could take a couple of hours to a matter of minutes to start machining.”