Nowadays metal-cutting processes are planned and put into operation virtually using state-of-the-art aids. Only companies that are willing to tackle the question of adapting and expanding conventional product and software solutions in order to boost the productivity of their process chains will be in a position to gain an edge over their competitors. The aim of the Institute of Production Engineering and Machine Tools (IFW) with its first ever “Five-Axis Process Competition” was to find the best examples of success worldwide. And the EMO in Hannover saw the winners presented with their “MACHINING EXPERT Award” at the booth of the technology partner DMG MORI SEIKI in Hall 2. CNC-Technik MACK GmbH & Co. KG from Dornstadt, Germany, emerged as overall winner, coming first against top-ranking international competition with their dental 5-axis process chain.

“As leading technology provider in the field of 5-axis machining, DMG MORI SEIKI offers a unique range of high-tech machining centres with high-end CNCs,” stresses Christian Thönes, member of the board of GILDEMEISTER AG. “Of course, we are also learning from our customers, who are world-leading manufacturers.” It was to honour exactly such excellence that DMG MORI SEIKI initiated the international MACHINING EXPERT competition. And with its focus on the process chain of 5-axis machining this first staging of the award kicked off with the supreme discipline in metal cutting. Whereby integral processes – from planning through to the finished product – were the basis of the evaluation.

DMG MORI SEIKI was able to gain the Institute for Production Engineering and Machine Tools (IFW) of the Leibniz Universität Hannover for the implementation and scientific management of the competition. Head of the institute Prof. Berend Denkena explains: ”Together with DMG MORI SEIKI we looked specifically for innovative solutions along the process chain and customised adaptations within computer-aided process planning.” Three categories for the evaluation of the competition contributions were defined on the basis of the resulting requirements: INNOVATION, CAD/CAM and PROCESS CHAIN. Prof. Yusuf Altintas from the University of British Columbia in Canada and Prof. Tojiro Aoyama from the Keio University in Japan joined Prof. Berend Denkena to form a prestigious international jury.

CNC-MACK emerges as world champion

CNC-Technik MACK GmbH & Co. KG from Dornstadt asserted itself as the overall winner of the competition and winner in the PROCESS CHAIN category with its range of individual dental products. The MACK group is a family-run enterprise that offers professional and reliable milling services of the highest quality. MACK Dentaltechnik was established on the basis of 25 years of metal-cutting expertise in a multitude of different branches in order to fulfil the individual wishes and requirements of the dental branch by offering top quality products.

“With a dedicated process chain development CNC-Mack took the daring step of establishing itself as a supplier of individual dental products in a completely new market”, was how Prof. Denkena honoured the courage and innovative performance of the company in his laudation. Whereby the focus always remained firmly fixed on the needs of customers from the dental technology sector. Mack was able to convince the jury both with its manufacturing competence as well as with its unique understanding of the process chain – from an Internet-based customer portal, customised CAD/CAM optimisation and on to include in-house tool production, highly automated manufacturing processes and the shortest logistics response times. The complete process, for example, from data entry to delivery of the orders normally takes just 24 hours – also an indication of top process reliability.

The prize in the category CAD/CAM was awarded to KOMET GROUP GmbH, a leading international manufacturer of precision tools from Besigheim, Germany. In this case the jury honoured the specific adaptations within computer-aided process planning, in particular KOMET’s own software expansions for commercial CAM software. “With its diverse range of options KOMET long ago started to advance the automation of its own production planning. It began this initiative at a time when feature-based production planning and virtual commissioning were still regarded as extremely visionary. Even at that time the experts at KOMET recognised the fact that the close interconnection of construction and production offered immense potential for achieving an efficient production chain”, says Prof. Denkena in his laudation.

IRISO SEIMITSU Co., Ltd from Japan took first prize in the category INNOVATION. Prof. Denkena says of the reasons for the jury’s decision: “The company Iriso Seimitso is a major supplier of precision components for the automotive and semiconductor industries. Despite the fact Iriso Seimitso works with standard machine tools, it still manages to carry out high-precision micromachining. The reason for this lies in the high level of motivation and inventiveness of its employees – above all that of Mr Kiyokazu Saito, the managing director of the company.” The jury was particularly impressed with an innovative in-house development with which “direct tool length measurement for multi-axis machining” can be realised with extreme precision. This invention, which can be integrated simply in the machine tool, enables a substantial reduction in process start-up times for different clamping positions and as a result increases machining accuracy enormously.

Altogether companies from 12 countries from America, Europe and Asia took part in the MACHINING EXPERT Award. The IFW as the leading German institute for research into production engineering presided over the competition at the Leibniz University Hannover. Evaluation of the contributions was carried out by a jury of three internationally acclaimed top researchers from the field of production engineering. Namely, Prof. Altintas from the University of Britisch Columbia in Vancouver, Prof. Aoyama from the Keio University in Yokohama and last but not least Prof. Denkena from the Leibniz Universität in Hannover.