A first for the tooling division of NCMT Ltd, Thames Ditton (www.ncmt.co.uk), was the presentation of the company’s sole-agency range of modular boring bars — from 0.4mm to 3m in diameter — manufactured by Kaiser Precision Tooling. The Swiss company recently introduced digital boring-head options, and these were prominent at the show. All of the heads are geometrically similar to their analogue counterparts, so they can be exchanged without reprogramming. All of the electronic components in the digital boring heads have been developed and produced in-house, which Kaiser claims is unique in this industry.

NCMT was also showing a new range of slim-profile hydraulic tool-holders from BIG Daishowa. There is a choice of BBT 30, 40 or 50 BIG Plus face-and-taper-contact back ends (compatible with BT spindle machines) or the HSK-A63 taper. The tool-holders are designed for machining high-precision features in restricted areas on components; tool-nose diameters range from 21mm down to just 14mm. The tools lend themselves particularly well to completing simultaneous five-axis cycles without interference. Moreover, run-out accuracy is less than 3µm when measured at a distance of 4 x D, and the maximum rotational speed is 35,000rev/min.

NCMT was also showing a new BIG Daishowa face-milling cutter for the high-speed finishing of cast iron, aluminium and other non-ferrous metals. Called Speed Finisher, it has inserts that are adjustable to within 1µm of each other, resulting in a mirror-like machined finish using spindle speeds up to 20,000rev/min. Speed Finisher comes in three diameters — 50, 63 and 80mm. With the ability to deliver coolant directly to the cutting edge, the tool is especially effective at avoiding built-up edges and the re-cutting of swarf.