Walter: Milling tools for aerospace

10 aerospace industry l engineering Optimal machining for resilient materials WALTER milling tools set new standards in the aerospace industry Walter M3255 porcupine milling cutter for roughing titanium Aluminium alloys have played a crucial role in aerospace production for a long time. New requirements and attempts to reduce the weight of components as much as possible has led to innovations in aluminium machining and alloy types. The main challenges in the sector are the large volume of removed material, which for many components can be up to 90 %, as well as new, extremely light, yet robust aluminium alloys that are difficult to machine. It is also necessary to take material costs into consideration. Although aluminium alloys are cheaper than CFRP materials, their cost is still a major factor in calculating the cost per component. Aluminium alloys – still in vogue d "Until recently, many industrial experts predicted that carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) will become ever more important for aircraft production. The advantages of these materials are clear - they are light, yet astonishingly strong. That makes them ideal for use in a branch of industry that needs to handle both incredible growth and increasingly strict requirements for energy consumption and pollutant emissions," explains Dirk Masur, Walter's aerospace component manager. "However, CFRP materials also introduce problems, since their machining is difficult and expensive. The search for alternatives brought aluminium alloys back to the centre of attention. Current forecasts are based on the assumption that the volume of machined components will grow considerably until 2020." The aerospace industry is on the rise. With revenue of around EUR 40 billion, this branch of Germany's industry reached its highest total in history in 2017, a 6 % increase compared to 2016. German aircraft manufacturers have invested 10 % of their turnover into research and development (source: BDLI). The aerospace industry counts among the pioneers of new materials and machining processes. Tool manufacturers, such as machining specialist Walter, keep in step with the dynamism and innovativeness of this branch of industry. To that end, Walter maintains a strong partnership with research institutions such as the Institute for Technology and Innovation Management at Hamburg University of Technology. This cooperation has led to the development of BLAXX M3255 porcupine milling cutter for titanium-aluminium alloys. Another addition to the product range is the M2131/M2331 ramping milling cutter, which allows users reliable, precise and efficient machining of aluminium alloys. special 2020 T+T Technika a trh Designed for high-speed cutting d In the majority of structural components, the large volume of removed material is caused by the complexity of the shape. It is typically the result of the need to create pockets of various sizes and depths, which must be machined directly into a "raw" blank. The only economically viable processing method is high-speed cutting (HSC), where materials are milled at speeds of up to 3,300 m/min. Lower cutting speeds lead to a build-up on the cutting edge which makes milling tools wear down faster until the machine eventually overloads and stops. The total cost per part ends up increasing as a result. In order to achieve the cutting values required by suppliers of components in the aerospace industry, however, which are much higher than average cutting values, it is necessary to design special machines and tools. Walter, a specialist in machining, has introduced special ramping milling cutters designed to meet these requirements: the M2131 and M2331, with the latter being designed specifically to meet the requirements of Makino machines with speeds of over 30,000 rpm. The ability to choose between two sizes of indexable inserts allows users to achieve a 15 or 20 mm depth of cut - ideal for ramping milling and pocket milling. Thanks to the extra hard, yet smooth PVD coating, there is nearly no build-up on the insert's cutting edge, making the edge extremely resilient to wear. The unique design of the insert seat protects the insert from the high centrifugal forces created during high-speed