After a thorough analysis of the combination CNC/manual machine tool market, Airbus UK decided on a Proturn 350 lathe, a Proturn 420 lathe and a DPM 4000 bed mill.

Things are really buzzing at Airbus UK's site at Broughton in North Wales. For as well as being extremely busy assembling the wings for the highly successful Airbus family of aircraft (A300, A310, A320, A330 and A340), the company is also planning wing assembly facilities for the world's first twin-aisle, twin deck passenger aircraft -- the A380. The first wing is scheduled for delivery in 2004 and this major new project is helping to create some additional 1700 jobs.

Behind the front line activity, other support type functions have also been streamlined at Broughton to meet the current challenges.

One key section which has invested in several new CNC machine tools to improve its performance is the Aero Tooling Product unit.

After a thorough analysis of the combination CNC/manual machine tool market, the company finally decided that a Proturn 350 lathe, a Proturn 420 lathe and a DPM 4000 bed mill were the machines which would best meet its requirements.

All three CNC machines for this upgrading project were supplied as a package by XYZ Machine Tools.

Employing 80 people, Aero Tooling produces turned and milled components for the repair, manufacture, modification and re-certification of jigs, fixtures and templates used in the assembly of aircraft wings.

With batch quantities being small for new tooling and much work involving modifying existing components, the company needed versatile, flexible and easy to use equipment.

However, it also wanted to progress from its reliance on purely manual machines and decided that combination CNC/manual machines were the way to go - as this would capitalise on the skill of its operators, improve repeatability and boost productivity.

After carefully studying the market, Airbus UK specified the three combination machines from XYZ and these were installed at Broughton in March of last year.

As team leader Paul Franchetti explained: 'We carried out a thorough assessment of the department's requirements and compiled a detailed financial justification for this project.

Our initial list of suitable machine tool suppliers was whittled down to just two and XYZ got the vote due to the performance, cost and ease of use and programming of its machines and the high level of on-site training provided.

In addition, we also liked the tracking facility on the Proturn lathes whereby an operator can go through a CNC programme step-by-step by simply winding the handwheels.

This is useful for proving out new programs and it also helps build up operator confidence.' Both the Proturn lathes are used to produce a wide variety of new tooling in small batch sizes (typically from 1 to 25 off) and for reclamation work on existing tools such as pins, bushes and sleeves.

Production is split between manual and CNC depending on the type of work (new or re-certified parts) and the operations involved.

In CNC mode using the ProtoTrak LX3 control, the combination lathes have reduced cycle times by some 30% compared with manual turning and repeatability within the batch has also been improved.

While on some new tooling work, the accuracy of the Proturns has helped eliminate certain grinding operations, so further reducing costs and lead times.

On a batch of new jig pins, for example, the Proturn 350 has really streamlined production cycles.

Required in batches of up to 50 off, these 20 mm diameter by 75 mm long mild steel pins have to be faced off, profile turned, centre drilled and screw cut.

While machining operations used to take over 3.5 min per component manually (and involved the use of a die box for the thread), the Proturn lathe can now produce each complete pin in a cycle time of just 2 min using CNC.

It is a similar story with larger components and smaller batch sizes, too.

For 35 mm diameter by 75 mm long tooling pins are now being produced some 1.8 times faster with CNC.

Operations include machining three step diameters, a thread and a knurled section and batch sizes are between six and 10 off.

Cycle times on the Proturn 350 are 3 min/part compared with almost 6 min on a manual lathe.

While on the reclamation front, one recent job on the Proturn 420 involved modifying panel clamps.

This entailed reducing the length of the threaded clamp by some 60 mm and turning a new small plain diameter at the leading end.

Measuring 24 mm diameter by 142 mm long, these clamps were machined manually as this was considered to be the quickest production solution.

But that's the beauty of XYZ's combination lathes, they can be used in different control modes depending on the nature (and volume) of the work.

And with the increased production capacity they provide, the Proturns will be able to meet scheduled increases in tooling demands and provide faster response times for breakdown style work.