Page 81 - MetalForming October 2012

Three-Point Guiding
The CUT 2000 uses patented GF AgieCharmilles Universal Wire Guide technology. Two stationary three-point V-guides—an upper and lower— accommodate a range of wire diame- ters from 0.002 to 0.012 in. Additional- ly, the machine includes dynamic corner control, wire bending control (for complex geometries) and Vario- cut, a function that automatically opti- mizes machining parameters.
Without its state-of-the-art EDM technology, Scenic Tool would have to produce tooling using other more time- consuming methods, say the Blackwells. The CUT 2000 allows tooling with small cavities to be processed whole to improve quality and shorten processing time. Plus, the shop can cut extremely tight inside-cavity radii with the machine’s small wire-diameter capability.
Reel-to-Reel Stamping
In production-stamping operations, Scenic Tool produces its connectors on high-speed stamping presses, one of which runs at 1000 to 1200 strokes/ min.; approximately 90 percent of the shop’s electrical-connector stampings run reel to reel.
Raw material—typically copper, beryllium, stainless steel or brass—on coils move through stamping tooling, and connector parts are stamped one after another. The material exits the stamping process where it is rewound onto a reel after passing through cam- era inspection and quality testing. Reels then ship to customers or head out for plating.
Customers run the rolled strip mate- rial into an assembly machine where stampings are cut off, and nearly all then are affixed into plastic housings to complete the connector-assembly process. Or, some stampings are cut off and layered into a plastic over- molding operation.
“Our end product is stampings,” says Mike Blackwell. “In this business, it’s all about providing parts within customer specifications at the most cost-effective price. In addition to new EDM technology, we’ve incorporated
advanced software that speeds the tool- ing-design process, and have initiated modular concepts into our tooling designs.”
Scenic Tool and Stamping started in 1995 and has progressed to its pres- ent-day 30-employee, two-building operation, with Mike Blackwell at the helm and Eric Blackwell on the floor. Since its beginnings, business has grown continually even through the
challenging year of 2008. Going for- ward, business is expected to further increase because Scenic Tool has its sights set on expanding into the med- ical and aerospace industries, and the shop’s EDM capabilities, along with its extensive microstamping experience, will play a key role. MF
Article provided by GF AgieCharmilles, Lincolnshire, IL: 847/913-5300; www.us.gfac.com.
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