MACH 2016 
MACH 2016 proved to be an excellent show for High Wycombe-based Hurco Europe Ltd (
www.hurco.co.uk). Managing director David Waghorn said: “Even though the market has softened a little since we achieved record financial
results in 2014, the number of visitors to our stand and orders taken this year were very similar to two years ago.
We booked a total of 26 orders for new machines worth £2 million during the exhibition and the following week.
“The greatest interest was sparked by the number of different five-axis configurations in our vertical machining centre range. The show provided an excellent opportunity to talk through the different advantages of each design.
“One five-axis model, the VCX600i (pictured right), was being exhibited for the first time in the UK. Built in Italy for the European market, this travelling-column machine is designed to provide the maximum metal-cutting capacity in a compact footprint.
“There was often a crowd around the VMX42SRTi, on which we were machining a facsimile of Darth Vader’s iconic helmet — a complex 3-D shape with several undercuts and a considerable amount of fine detail. The configuration of this machine with its B-axis head and flush rotary table is proving to be the most versatile in our five-axis VMC range and is capable of producing an outstanding surface finish.”
Mr Waghorn also confirmed there was a high level of interest in machine automation. Indeed, one customer — Brian McKeon, managing director of the Galway-based sub-contractor Dawnlough — bought the Hurco VMX30UHSi five-axis high-speed machining cell on the stand.
Configured for unmanned running, the machine was equipped with an Erowa 48-pallet workpiece storage and retrieval system that will serve the new VMC and another identical model installed two years ago in the Galway factory.
Mr McKeon said: “Keeping costs down for customers in the aerospace, medical and other sectors is important to retain existing business and win new contracts. Automation is undoubtedly the future for Dawnlough, and this cell will allow us to extend our double-shift operation to 24/7 running. We calculate that it will take over the work currently done by six VMCs in our factory.”
On the last day of the show, Portsmouth-based Tuco Developments ordered its fifth Hurco machine — a VMX42SRTi five-axis VMC. This sub-contractor serves a wide range of industries and is currently working in areas as diverse as aircraft simulators and industrial cleaning machinery.