Makino Carves Out New Category with High Productivity Machining for Large Monolithic Parts

Demands of the market will always drive innovation. Look no further than your desktop to see a good example. First there was the computer, then the
personal computer, then the laptop, then the personal data assistant. At each step, forward-looking companies that understood the game skated to where the puck was going to be to meet evolving demand and define new categories.

The machine tool industry is no different. Tools and processes continue to evolve to build better parts faster. And aerospace manufacturers face particularly intense competition on a grand scale, with large monolithic parts to produce at accuracies that leave no room for error. In the aerospace parts universe, the gantry first redefined this process. Then there was the CMM gantry with advanced software and accessories. Now there is the Makino MAG4 high-speed machining center.

Designed for large, aluminum monolithic parts, the MAG4 delivers high productivity machining to reduce both cutting time and non-cutting time for structural aerospace pieces, including wingboxes, fuselage sections, rudders and a myriad of other components. Where traditional gantry operations use a multi-spindle approach and tend to be labor intensive for the operators, the MAG4 slashes cutting time with high-power, high-speed machining and maximizes spindle usage by allowing for loading and unloading of parts during machining.

“The MAG4 will redefine the manufacturing approach to large, monolithic aerospace parts,” explains Steve Colston, sales and marketing manager for Makino’s aerospace group. “We work closely with our customers and understand the capabilities they need to have to stay competitive. The MAG4 is carving out a new category to meet that demand and the impact on aerospace part manufacturing will be substantial.

The MAG4 high-speed machining center features innovative A and C axes that virtually eliminates moving wires, tubes and hoses outside of the body. The MAG4 also combines feedrates up to 1,574 ipm, a 60-tool magazine and a 30,000 rpm spindle to maximize speed and productivity.

“The MAG4 moves beyond the gantry to a new level of flexibility,” explains Jason Calimlim, product engineer at Makino. “Table design is modular so it is available in different sizes. The work indexer allows for continuous material flow to and from the machine. The X-stroke variation corresponds when adding structure base units.

All of the features of the MAG4 add up to produce the future of aerospace parts manufacturing today. Makino representatives will be on hand to discuss the MAG4 machining center at the International Manufacturing Technology Show in Chicago, September 6–13. For more information, contact Steve Colston at 513-573-7345 or via e-mail at steve.colston@makino.com.

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