The long life and continuing accuracy of a Hartford vertical machining centre that has been operating for more than seven years convinced Dundee-based Pacson Valves to return to Ward CNC when it needed additional capacity to meet demand from customers in the oil and gas sector.
According to production supervisor Peter Dolan, the Kappa 1300 VMC has proved itself on the company’s range of high-integrity valves for harsh and critical applications. These are machined from — for example — carbon, stainless, duplex and super-duplex steels, plus Inconel, hasteloy and titanium; the operations required include multi-face milling, drilling and tapping.
“Like any other machinist, we can not afford to get things wrong when we invest in capital machinery,” says Mr Dolan, “so when originally investigating additional VMC capability, we carried out an extensive costing exercise, pitching the Kappa against a higher-priced machine of similar capacity.
After extensive cutting trials — and considering all other specification and selection aspects, the Kappa won ‘hands down’ — and it hasn’t disappointed. Whether used for roughing work or for holding tight one-thou tolerances, it is still fit for purpose today, seven years on.
“Last year, to meet increasing demand, we returned to Ward CNC and invested in new Hartford Pro 1000 and Mercury 2060 AG machines. Importantly, the 2060 extends the size of the workpieces that we can handle.”