In the ever-progressing world of manufacturing nothing stays the same. If you are not improving continuously you cannot stay in the game for long. This is true in all progressive mold shops that have embraced the latest in CNC technology and automation in almost all aspects of production. The exception is that row of grinders that could have time-warped from the middle of the last century.

Automation in other areas is shining a greater light on the lack of automation in grinding. Every attempt has been made to move as much out of the grinding department as possible. With great strides being made in wire EDM, high-speed machining, and hard turning and milling, the grinding department is being bankrupted, in many cases. Still, there is a need for grinding in mold shops. Every shop has a bank of grinders. There will be a row of manual grinders of the usual types and a cluster of automatics. The technology in these machines remains unchanged in its basic function and capability.

The purpose of this article is to set forth some steps that can be taken to change the grinding department into a CNC department, which is based on successes seen in a range of mold shops from small to large—but all having a need for precision grinding of mold components.

Automatic Surface Grinder Benefits

• The operator can keep two machines running unattended.
• Skill level is lower so most CNC operators can do these tasks.
• Accuracy is provided by the machine.
• Wheel management for faster, simpler setups.
• Develop repeatable processes that are machine-based not operator-based.
• Core requirements for the job are controlled—including wheel offset, auto-dress, simple dimensional inputs into conversations graphical screens, and grind.
• Critical dimensions can be checked on the grinder automatically.

Six Steps to Grinding Transformation

The steps a mold shop can take to transform grinding into a CNC-based technology are:

1. Strategically build around the correct machines.
2. Must have a committed attitude from management.
3. Must have a positive attitude for grinder hand to increase productivity through CNC technology.
4. Plan to cross-train CNC operators to operate CNC surface grinders.
5. Develop high competency at core grinding tasks like surface, slot, and step grinding.
6. Think outside the box.

These simple tasks can be completed through the assistance of a high-precision CNC surface grinder faster and easier than through conventional manual grinding.

Article Source: http://www.moldmakingtechnology.com/articles/transform-grinding-into-a-cnc-based-technology