Insight's Metal Cutting Solutions

- World-class, Nothing Less

Although the history of metal cutting is more than 5000 years old, this arena saw phenomenal developments through the last couple of centuries, accelerating as we approached the 21st.

But then, there is still an aura, a mystery sort of, around the science of Metal Cutting, perhaps because sufficient intellectual investment wasn't warranted in this domain, save some truly remarkable contributions by the likes of 'Earnst & Merchant', Stabler, 'Lee and Shaffer', 'Christopherson, Oxley and Palmer'.

Insight's expertise in Metal Cutting stems from a deep & nuanced understanding of the mechanics of cutting - encompassing the building blocks such as tool materials & geometries (be it rakes, flanks and stem strengths), shear mechanisms, chip flow, cutting fluids, thermal aspects and a host of other crucial elements of this truly deep science.

Special Purpose Machines, Metal Cutting Machines, Insight Technologies

'iMC Series' is Insight's Machining Centers' product line - which flows into three solutions paradigms:
1) Standard Machining Centers: Exuding unparalleled accuracy, performance & reliability. Configurations of Vertical, Horizontal & 5-Axes Machining Centers.
2) Special Purpose Machines: Dedicated machines for specific purposes, especially for high production rates.
3) Customized Machining Centers: Cross-overs between General Purpose Machining Centers and SPMs (Special Purpose Machines). These offer a solution that strikes a balance between the flexibility of GPMs and takt of SPMs.

iMC H400-C | Customized 2+1 Axes Compact Machining Center

This iMC is installed at one of the world-leaders across a multitude of portfolios ranging from Marine, Navy, Transportation, Infrastructure Engineering, and so forth.

End-user was looking for a compact customized machining center that caters to their current needs of component machining, but yet possesses sufficient flexibility for similar family of components that may be added in the future. Plus the plausibility of reconfiguration if the need arises considering future scalability.

So our engineers customized the 'iMC H Series' to have two linear axes + 1 rotary axis.

This iMC performs machining on over 18 variants of components at the moment, and a lot many that may come up in the future.

iMC H500-C | Customized 3+1 Axes Horizontal Machining Center

Installed at one of the prominent global-leaders in the power generation sector renowned for the manufacture of AC Generators & Motors, this iMC H500-C does the job of machining large sized shafts and analogous complementary components.

The ask here was a customized heavy duty Machining Center that can handle heavy components that are in the vicinity of length~1200mm or so, necessitating a large swing diameter coupled with a heavy duty table load carrying capacity of order of 2000 kgf.

So here's another case of a customized 'iMC H Series' that has standard specifications of the H500 model, but customized to the needs of end-use; An amalgamation of fitness to purpose and flexibility of a GPM.

Solutions' Efficacity

High Speed, Robust, Meticulous

High & Sustained Productivity & Quality
Designed & Built-to-Last; Flexibly so!

Modular Spindles & Drives

Single, Twin or Multi-Spindle
Operational Parallelism | Low Takt

Configurable Feed Axes

Series or Simultaneous | Linear & Rotary
Servo | Hydraulic | Pneumatic

Built-in Flexibility

Modular, Modifiable, Reconfigurable
Takt of an SPM + Flexibility of a GPM!

Autonomous Intelligence

Self-monitoring | Self-caring
Predictive maintenance | Long-life!

Control | Fit to Purpose

CNC or PLC or Microcontroller or Hybrid
Cost focused, Life-cycle visibility based

Let's take a look at a the repertoire:

Repertoire

Milling Machines | Special Purpose

Being an intermittent-cut operation, Milling requires special care in selection of right Spindle, Axes actuators and Structural design.

Tooling & Fixturing, that can handle micro-shocks at high frequency (for every cutting edge engagement), form the crucial part of a fine Milling Machine.

With advancements in cutting tool geometries, the machine built today, must be largely future proof i.e., capable of adapting to faster machining.

Insight's extensive library of know-how on machining process, enables it's machine building team to make robust, fit-to-purpose yet flexible Machines.

Turning Machines | Special Purpose

Operational Parallelism, is the methodology that when applied correctly - heralds significant returns in terms of takt time.

Performing multiple operations on the work-piece at once, or to have multiple stations performing specific operations in parallel, is a choice that is driven by the capacity of the part being machined.
The question to be answered through metal cutting mechanics + thermo-plastic behaviour of the parts, is how much of simultaneous machining can the part take. While this applies to all metal cutting operations, it has it's own special place in turning.

A well designed machining schema, can catapult the volume capacity of the shop-floor into multiples.

Drilling Tapping Reaming Machines | Special Purpose

Multi-spindle head-stocks have been around for decades. Such machine offer operational parallelism at it's best. A 20 spindle head-stock machine, can replace 20 Machining Centers, quite literally.

But then, there is always this fear of obsolescence. What if the parts goes obsolete? That's where Insight's modular machines offer future reconfiguration possibilities.

Our Solution experts help customers choose the right modularity to minimize / eliminate risk exposure of obsolescence.

And building a modular machine, is a fine art - mastered over decades of experience by our machine building experts.

Drilling SPM, Tapping SPM, Reaming SPM

Fine Boring Machines | Facing, Grooving Machines

Single point cutting tool scores over multi-point cutters in terms of clean definition of hole / bore axis. There's always a trade-off between bore quality and takt time. Choice is based on part quality requirements and desired production volume, a holistic balance to be struck.

When it comes to build, fine boring machine requires thermally stable dynamically balanced super-precision spindles, axes with tightly-controlled straightness & a machine structure scores high on vibration resistance and dynamic stability.

Balanced, low stiffness-to-weight ratio of tooling - is another crucial factor that affects the quality outcome.

Same principles apply to precision grooving & facing.

Fine Boring SPM, Grooving SPM, Facing SPM

BTA Drilling Machines | Precision Hole Making

Short for Boring & Trepanning Association, 'BTA' drilling is a precision deep hole drilling process which uses a long drill tube to produce long holes - up to 400 L/D.

With the use of tool geometry with multiple cutting surfaces on a single tool plus high pressure coolant to evacuate chips as they form, BTA drilling is a different class of hole-making process in it's own right. But then, it should be done where it is apt. For simple short drilling and for most applications, either twist drill or gun-drilling are more appropriate.

Quite naturally, a long tool & a long/tall component, translate to the need of robust head-stock, super-precision tool-spindle, precision pressure-head and a carefully built feed-axis.

BTA Drilling SPM, Fine Boring SPM

Deep Hole Drilling Machines | Gun Drilling

Relative to BTA, Gun-drilling works out far effective for hole sizes of upto 50mm. Whilst it can be done for larger hole sizes too, BTA must be explored beyond dia.50mm.

L/D of upto 200 is quite normal for gun-drilling, whereas upto 400 is possible with right engineering.
A standard gun-drill comes with one cutting edge relative to 2 edges in a typical twist drill, and as a process gun-drill is class of process that has it's own niche in terms of L/D where it's applications diverge from twist-drills. High pressure through spindle coolant ensures clean chip removal even at very high depths.

Slender tool made of a seamless tube, naturally calls for very well aligned axes, a precision bush-box unit for entry guide, and super-precision high-speed tool-spindles.

Deep Hole Drilling Machine, Gun Drilling Machine, Long Hole Drilling Machine

Slotting Machines | Slitting Machines | Circular Sawing

Operations such of slot-milling, slitting and circular sawing, are deceptively different but fundamentally similar, in terms of metal cutting mechanics.

The mode of chip generation & evacuation, be it orthogonal or oblique cutting, decides how the tool should be and how should the axes be put together.

High frequency micro-shocks that arise from intermittent cutting as like in milling, are the phenomena of very high importance in such operations.

Shock-resistant tool-spindle, jerk-resistant yet non-deformative fixturing, structural rigidity, clean linear axes motion, are all the pieces of jig-saw puzzle that need to be fit right-in.

Slotting SPM, Slitting SPM

Disc Milling | Profile Machining

Machining a profile with a disc milling cutter, is a fine balance. Key things that influence end result are robust low-vibration head-stock, clean axes interpolation with minimized jerk & motion transition, robust tool-spindle and a correctly done work-holding which imparts sufficient torque-resistance to the work-piece.

Profile per se, is the direct outcome of multi-axes interpolation and right cutting parameters - be it the cutting speed, feed & DOC. A sound tooling engineer makes all the difference here.

Insight's extensive experience in complex machining operations such as these, enables it's machine tool engineers in building fine pieces of equipment that personify performance-robustness.

Disc Milling SPM

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