Hampshire-based Lymington Precision Engineers (LPE), which supplies precision-machined components, fabrications, assemblies and kit sets to a wide range of customers, has invested in three new EDM machines — a Cut 400Sp, a Form 300 and a Drill 20 — from GF Machining Solutions (www.gfms.com). Installed about 12 months ago, these are being used to machine complex profiles and features on a range of parts for the oil and gas, aerospace and defence, power generation, telecoms and marine sectors.

They have also strengthened the company’s ‘design to manufacture’ prototyping and pre-production service. Managing director Tony Chalk says: “This is a core business area for LPE, which differentiates us in the market-place and helps us to develop strong preferred-partner and supply-chain relationships with OEMs plus Tier One and Two
customers in the UK and overseas.”

Before investing in these new machines, LPE sub-contracted out most of its EDM requirements, but the company eventually decided to strengthen its own EDM capabilities.

“There comes a tipping point when it’s more efficient and cost-effective to bring previously sub-contracted work back in-house. The emergence of new EDM work — in part fuelled by an increase in demand for our design-to-manufacture services — meant that it was time to take the decision to invest in new equipment.”

LPE approached a number of manufacturers with its requirements and then chose three high-productivity models from GF Machining Solutions that feature the latest digital generator technology and powerful control systems. “As anticipated, having the latest EDM technology in-house has helped us to predict and control our EDM machining costs, and the efficiency of the new machines means that customer delivery times have improved. They have also made us more innovative — certainly when it comes to our ‘design to manufacture’ service.”