5 Questions with Frank Hebda

1) What main benefits do custom cutting tools bring to aerospace manufacturing?

The three biggest advantages are increased productivity, reduced manufacturing costs, and improved part quality. These apply to any industry, but part quality is especially important to aerospace, where parts are often complex and precision is essential. In some cases, a single aerospace component may cost $35,000 or more. With those costs, it becomes critical to have exactly the right custom tool to maintain quality standards.

2) How do custom capabilities improve part quality?

The operation dictates the design of custom tools, so the finished part will never be compromised by the limitations of standard tooling. For aerospace manufacturing, Cole Carbide often produces custom inserts tailored to machine one specific part, start to finish. This approach improves precision to accommodate extremely tight tolerances. The result is a finished product of the highest possible quality.

3) How can custom cutting tools increase manufacturing productivity and efficiency?

One custom insert can be designed to handle the entire machining operation on a workpiece. Cole inserts are fashioned with multiple facets capable of forming an entire part, so there’s no need to change inserts during machining. This will typically reduce downtime by 10%-to-20%, saving time and cost. Also, rework decreases because custom tooling’s accuracy minimizes or eliminates the risk of parts falling short of quality standards.

4) Do customers need to supply their own prints/designs?

It’s a common misconception that custom tooling orders mean extra work for the customer. Cole Carbide routinely generates tooling designs for our customers based on a part’s specs. Cole has been designing and producing custom cutting tools for more than 80 years, and it’s something our engineers excel at. In many cases, we create a holder and an insert, or we produce an insert to fit a customer’s existing holder.

5) How do you reduce costs and lead-times that some users associate with custom tooling?

Production efficiencies gained with custom tooling outweigh any initial added cost or lead-time. This is especially true in aerospace manufacturing, where the cost of a custom insert is insignificant compared to production and parts costs. Custom cutting tools equate to cost savings and time-efficiency, which is why custom is widely used in aerospace.

Cole Carbide can quickly and efficiently produce custom tooling for our customers. We maintain a large inventory of carbide blanks to streamline the manufacturing process. Our diverse resources and technical expertise allow us to offer custom tooling at competitive prices and with minimal lead time.

For more info: http://www.colecarbide.com