Martin White from Anotronic with the latest Sodick investmentAnotronic Ltd is a well-recognised sub-contract machining business and manufacturer of high-quality EDM fast-hole drilling and EDM die-sinking machine tools. Founded in 1982, the Bedfordshire business started in ECM, ECD and EDM tooling and machining, evolving to the production and growth of its own ECM and ECD technology brand. Along this journey, the company has worked with
Sodi-Tech UK and the Sodick brand of machines.
Martin White, managing director of Anotronic, said: “My father started the business in 1982, and I joined the company in 1985. We tend to machine a lot of hard materials such as Inconel, titanium, and special stainless steel. In fact, we take on the worst jobs because we can — and we have all the machines and processes in-house to do what we need to do.”
Over the years, Anotronic has continually expanded its factory footprint, services, and range of machines. This has resulted from an ambitious growth strategy, staff development, and investment in the latest machine tool technology. The Leighton Buzzard manufacturer currently operates three Sodick machines, with the latest ALC600G Premium wire EDM with linear motor drive technology arriving recently.
Pictured right: Martin from Anotronic programming the New Sodick ALC600G Premium MachineThe high-end plant list gives Anotronic the edge over its rivals, and the Sodick ALC600G Premium, with its spacious X-, Y- and Z-axis travels of 600 x 400 x 500mm and the U- and V-axis travels of 120 x 120mm, clearly gives the company an edge. Mr White recalls how Anotronic settled on the ALC600G: “We always buy premium machines, and as the company has become more experienced, we always look to buy better machines. This always comes down to reliability and the ability to run unmanned. We have a Sodick AQ35L die-sink machine that we have had for a very long time, and Sodi-Tech UK has looked after this machine for us for over 20 years.”
The reliability and performance of the Sodick AQ35L meant that when Anotronic entered the market for another EDM machine, it once again turned to the Sodick brand. Mr White recalled: “We bought a Sodick AG 600LH around seven years ago. That machine enables us to do tool work up to 500mm high, which we regularly do. We have a large bobbin on this machine, enabling us to run 70 to 80hr unmanned.”
Lights-out machiningThe high level of lights-out machining possible with the Sodick AG600LH and its incredible reliability persuaded Anotronic to invest in its latest EDM machine, the Sodick ALC600G Premium with linear motor drive technology. “We bought this latest machine because we had a project with a sister part. The project typically consists of 40 parts that would maybe take us three months to complete. We suddenly had an order placed on us last year for 300 parts. We could not have done this without another machine, as we knew we would have had to have been machining 24hr a day to fulfill the order.”
Sodi-Tech UK sales manager Richard Bailey said: “Martin and Anotronic do not just take on run-of-the-mill CNC jobs. This company tackles the higher end of the industry and often the parts that companies do not want to tackle themselves. Anotronic looks at jobs from an application perspective rather than a ‘machining time’ point of view. With the Sodick technology and the special characteristics within the machine, Anotronic can use this to run all of its applications and do jobs that are unique and out of the norm. In this instance, the application that Martin has been working on requires some very steep table angles. The ALC600G Premium has very large U- and V-axis travels, allowing the processing of tapered angles up to 45deg. So, when it comes to machining this part, it can be done in situ with the integration of a fourth and fifth axis.”
Pictured left: the set-up of the complex parts on the new Sodick ALC600GHe continued: “Manufacturers can also use the on-board technology and IQ software system that brings Anotronic’s model into the machine and draws the profile on-board utilising the U- and V-axis cutting technology. The program is generated, the parts machined, and the job is complete!”
Adding to this, Mr White from Anotronic said: “We are using a very complex four-axis programme to cut a rotary part with 45deg slots in it. The only way we could do that was to use the software we currently use, and without it, we could not manage to do the part. So, we used the on-board software within the CNC control of the Sodick machine to take control and create a 3-D model and a toolpath to cut the part. This is machining at extreme angles. We are cutting at 45deg and machining up to 40 to 50mm in the U- and V-axis to create this particular part. We also had to specify wide nozzles and wider guides to machine this part, and the ALC600G did a brilliant job.
“I have been a Sodick user for 35 to 40 years, and the beauty of the Sodick machines is that you can jump straight into a point anywhere in the program without editing the entire program. It makes things very easy as it is a powerful and user-friendly software system. It has many benefits, such as the negative offsets — normally, you have to cut a comp on a machine, but with the Sodick, we can drive the comp the other way and cut the other side of the part using a negative value. Most control systems would just throw that out, whereas the Sodick accepts it and gets the job done.”
Mr White concluded: “I was working 15 to 20 hours every day, which was too much. I was not seeing my kids growing up, and something had to change, so we went down the automation route. We have a great team that works very hard and helps us reach our common goal — we run a lot of machines with very few people because of automation. Sodick is a very established brand, and it has a great customer base and exceptional knowledge with engineers who are exceptionally good. I have known Peter Capp at Sodi-Tech for over 35 years, and this relationship is based on our excellent support — it has been a fantastic marriage between the two companies.”