Metal working is one of the oldest human industries and is now at the cutting edge of engineering technology. As one of the most basic industrial processes, it consists of forming, cutting and joining operations, with specialized tools for each. With drills, lathes, clamps and abrasives, precise machine parts can be created that will be used to make other machines, or will have applications in a whole range of contemporary industries.
The metalcutting industry is set for growth
Forget everything you’ve heard about the end of manufacturing. The metalcutting industry is poised to grow. Gardner?s Capital Spending Survey provides the most comprehensive annual survey on future spending for durable goods manufacturing industries. For 2015, the survey forecast that $8.822 billion will be spent on the metalcutting industry. This amount represents a 37% increase over the 2014 estimate.
By 2016, advertising expenditures for the metalcutting industry are expected to reach $481.38 million. Metalworking is both an art and a science, and can be used in the most advanced industries or to handcraft jewelry and fine art objects.
A growing demand for metal cutting tools
Clearly, there is a strong demand for precision cutting tools and new technology for the metalworking industry, which support reliable, consistent and cost efficient manufacturing.
Some of the commonest tools used in metalcutting are clamps, lathes, and drills.
- Clamps
The standard ER collet is made from alloyed spring steel and is the most commonly used clamping system worldwide. The ER collets are used for different machining presses like boring, milling, reaming, tapping and grinding. They hold the object to be worked on securely on the lathe or workspace. - Lathes
Lathes are machining tools that turn on a longitudinal axis to perform functions like cutting, polishing, drilling and turning on an object, to achieve a symmetrical shape around the axis of rotation. Swiss-style lathes provide extreme accuracy with holding tolerances as small as a few tenths of a thousandth of an inch, or a few micrometers.
Lathes are used with clamps to hold the object securely, and a variety of drills, and tools for tapping and milling to shape the object. - Drills
Precision drills, and tools for tapping, turning and milling are used to cut and shape the metal to the level of precision required. These tools are used with lathes to shape and form metal into the machine or object required. Generally these processes involve the removal of material to achieve the desired shape.
For any business that uses metalworking processes, a reliable supplier of drills, collets, abrasives and other essential products can keep manufacturing processes running smoothly. With excellent customer service and urgent delivery of spare parts from your supplier, your metalcutting operations can continue to expand.