Over the past 18 months, Avon Valley Precision Engineering (AVPE) has bought six new Doosan machines. By investing in the high-performance lathes and machining centres from Mills CNC Ltd, Leamington Spa (www.millscnc.co.uk), the market-leading sub-contract precision-machining specialist has significantly increased its capabilities and capacity.

The new machines — two DNM 400 vertical machining centres (both supplied with fourth-axis units); two Puma 3100 lathes (one equipped with driven tools), and two VC630 5AX universal five-axis machining centres — were installed at AVPE’s 2,500m2 facility in Bristol during 2013 and are being used to machine a range of high-precision complex parts primarily — but not exclusively — for customers in the aerospace sector.

Part of AVPE’s continuing growth and success has been its investment in Doosan machines. In early 2013, the company upgraded its milling capabilities when it bought its first DNM 400 VMC, which included a fourth-axis unit and was acquired primarily to machine aluminium interior cabin parts for an aerospace customer.

Steve Eccles, AVPE’s technical director, said: “Our existing milling capabilities were under pressure and couldn’t be relied upon to consistently achieve the part accuracies, surface finishes or the delivery times required. We researched the market and identified the Doosan DNM 400 as being the ideal machine to meet our requirements.

“The machine’s rigid design and build, advanced spindle technology and cost-competitive price — plus positive endorsements from existing users of DNM machines — helped in our decision-making process. We specified the machine with a fourth axis to give us greater flexibility and the ability to machine parts to completion in fewer set-ups and with shorter cycle times.

"We ordered a second identical model soon after the first DNM was installed, at the same time that we were negotiating our investment in a large-capacity Puma 3100 lathe to increase our turning capabilities. The Puma 3100LM that we selected has driven tooling, which we knew would give us extra manufacturing flexibility and the ability to machine parts to completion in one hit.”

The Puma 3100LM lathe was installed in April 2013; AVPE acquired a second Puma lathe (a Puma 3100) in December 2013. A contract to machine aluminium fuel injection connectors for A380 aircraft ultimately swayed AVPE to invest in five-axis machining — a VC630 5AX. A second identical five-axis machine was installed a few months later.

“AVPE has experienced significant growth since 2011,” said Mr Eccles. “By upgrading our machining capacity and capabilities, and through acquiring advanced multi-tasking machine tools, we are stronger and more flexible than ever before.”