A new range of CNC turning centres with live tooling in the turret has been introduced by High Wycombe-based Hurco Europe Ltd (www.hurco.co.uk). The three models — TM8Mi XP, TM10Mi XP and TM12Mi XP — cover the popular 8, 10 and 12in chuck sizes required by most manufacturers.

Explaining where these machines fit into the company’s product programme, managing director David Waghorn said: “Hurco previously sold a range of driven-tool lathe models designated TMM, but their performance was limited, as they were not controlled by the proprietary Max5 control that has proved so popular on the company’s machining centres, due to features such as concurrent programming and recovery restart.

“The new lathe control system, developed in-house by Hurco’s software engineers, was first introduced on the XP series of two-axis lathes in early 2018.

The all-digital ‘control platform’ was delivered alongside improvements to the design of the machine; these included a smaller footprint, roller guideways in the linear axes, a larger spindle bore and enhanced rigid tapping.

“A primary reason for developing the TM Mi XP range, in addition to adding the superior features of the Max5 control, was to ensure that driven-tool milling is smooth and accurate.

“The machines include a servo-controlled C axis and can deploy driven tools at all turret positions, allowing milling and off-centre drilling to be performed, in addition to normal turning operations.”

The first machines available for sale will be the new 8in chuck models; compared to Hurco’s TMM lathes, these offer higher spindle power (at 22.6kW), a spindle bore increased from 62 to 79mm, a draw-tube diameter of 64.5mm (up from 52mm), and faster rapids (at 30m/min rather than 24m/min). The coolant capacity has also been increased.

Meanwhile, the new CNC system uses a multi-core CPU that allows high-resolution graphics on the screen, comparable with those on Hurco’s machining-centre control.

Patented Ultimotion dynamic variable look-ahead software is standard, ensuring that machine motions are responsive, smooth and accurate (improving surface finish, tool life and cycle times).

Additional features of the control are: concurrent programming, check for errors, compute estimated run time, recovery restart in NC and conversational, linear broaching, and spindle harmonic control.

Features such as tool and material library are planned for later releases. Prices of the new lathes are the same as those of their TMM equivalents, and the addition of Y-axis and sub-spindle versions is anticipated for mid-2021.