A Hermle five-axis vertical machining centre installed at the Stirling works of CA Models has increased the company’s five-axis capacity to six machines. The one-off and small-batch production specialist uses a wide range of additive-manufacturing equipment for its rapid-prototyping work, but it also needs metal-cutting machines for larger parts and those that cannot be built layer by layer.
The Hermle C 40 U — supplied by UK agent Geo Kingsbury (
www.gkholdings.com) — has an 850 x 700 x 500mm work envelope and can accommodate workpieces weighing up to 1,400kg. It is often used in continuous five-axis mode for milling complex 3-D surfaces; for the remainder of the time, with two axes clamped in position, it performs five-face machining in a single set-up. The machine shop at Stirling also has three-axis milling plus die-sink and wire EDM capabilities, supported by nine seats of Delcam and four seats of design/modelling software.
Managing director Clark Campbell says: “We chose the Hermle C 40 U due to its reputation as the Kilimanjaro of five-axis machines in terms of precision, speed and reliability. We process a vast range of materials, from plastics and composites to aluminium, brass, copper and steels — plus exotic alloys — and we achieve tolerances of 5µm without any problem.
“The new machine is at home in all fields, be it tool and mould making, medical, engineering, aerospace, motor-sport, or oil and gas. We purchased the ‘dynamic’ version of the C 40 U, with 60m/min linear rapids and a 55rev/min trunnion, so it is highly productive as well as a valuable asset for us.”