[TonyW]

I'm with most of the posts here. I started 30 years ago in high school shop class on an original Bridgeport manual mill, and a 1960's south bend manual lathe. (really dating myself here ) But I was also active in computers and IT work. I now do programming on a CAM system, which I have to admit is much faster and more powerful in SOME ways than typing the code myself. BUT, I do believe you have to have quite a bit of schooling on Metallurgy, machining practices, and shop practices. As well they should have some good amount of time doing things manually and also setting up a job they programmed. Many times here at work I talk to 'Engineers' who say they have done CAM programming, but when asked what type or grade of insert they would use for deep boring on a lathe, etc, don't have a clue on what to answer. Degree programs for CAM should obviously have some of these things included. I don't think CAM is killing the machinist, I think the machinist and CAM people need to know both sides of the coin for things to progress together.

[D.L]

All very well informed views on this matter, it would be nice if the software developers could license multiple stations with dongles for the price of a single user, considering all the programming happens under the 'one roof'.
Each NC machine could have a wifi laptop with dongle and log into a main 'brand X' cadcam PC server.
This could be administered by the lead programmer maybe?
Couldn't be that hard to include everybody economically?

The software would need to be structured around this scenario though.

[Dylwad]

After watching Keith fenners YouTube videos http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVQCy...e_gdata_player I would say that manual machinists are here to stay, 90%of what he does would take longer, cost more or be impossible with CNC and CAM, and I would hope that coast to coast there are hundreds of job shops just like his, with apprentices and interns learning to keep the much needed trade alive.


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[christinandavid]

You would think theyd have dim checker built in that pulls you up if any feature is undimensioned. Click to ignore etc.

DP

[RFB]

Beto86 writes: Machinist are the ones that actually move the cnc machine not the program.

That is absolutely the most statement that I have ever read.

In some cases the machinist may have wrote the program but, when the machine positions in the automated cycle then it is receiving instruction from the control.

RFB

[RFB]

northernmach writes: Noticing that many 2d dimensioned drawings are getting pretty sloppy. Lots of dimensions missing. I love the use of solid models but think that the software is making things too automated for engineers and things are getting missed. I almost always ask for some form of electronic cad file now due to the time wasted making phone calls asking for missing dimensions.

That has absolutely nothing to do with CAD/CAM and everything to do with the operator. Don't blame CAD/CAM for the poor quality of the drawing, instead blame the person that produced the drawing with missing dimensions.

Aside from that name a company that does not provide the contractor with a CAD file. This is the 21st century in which magnetic storage devices are the low end of data transfer technology and paper is the high end of technology for wiping our :nono:.

So, is CAD/CAM killing the machinist trade? No, it is being killed by the systematic (by design) decline of the of Industrial Giant brought about by the political party that presently controls our government. . . . . and rules against our will.

WAKE UP AMERICA! 'Hope and Change' + 'Yes We Can' = 'No We Cannot'

RFB

[RFB]

br1 writes: I believe machine programmers should be qualified machinists.

BINGO! Nice to know that there's at least one person that gets it.

RFB

[TonyW]

That has absolutely nothing to do with CAD/CAM and everything to do with the operator. Don't blame CAD/CAM for the poor quality of the drawing, instead blame the person that produced the drawing with missing dimensions.

Aside from that name a company that does not provide the contractor with a CAD file. This is the 21st century in which magnetic storage devices are the low end of data transfer technology and paper is the high end of technology for wiping our :nono:.

So, is CAD/CAM killing the machinist trade? No, it is being killed by the systematic (by design) decline of the of Industrial Giant brought about by the political party that presently controls our government. . . . . and rules against our will.

WAKE UP AMERICA! 'Hope and Change' + 'Yes We Can' = 'No We Cannot'

RFB

I LOVE YOU MAN! I totally agree with what you said about whats going on in our 'government', but thats a totally different thread. I WILL NOT hi-jack this thread

hehe

[Bill3D]

Solid models are great and should be included. But any monkey can make a pretty 3D model. You still need the ability to describe what you need in a readable working drawing. I've seen a lot of people waste money by handing off a solid model to a machine shop as if the design job was done at that point. Engineers are often trained in CAD/CAM and some machine shop instruction not so much so they pop out of college as experts in these area, but so they can speak the language to those that are and communicate what they need.