[Green0]

I own The company so I don’t interact with machines much/ am not a cnc machinist. I was working late last night as I typically do and checked on second shift before leaving on Friday night. The guys on second are pretty green because finding skilled people in SE Wisconsin who need placement is pretty tough. One Puma was stopped on a load monitoring break value and the second shift guys were debating calling a first shift person for support.

Picture attached. This Iscar Penta D40 tool obviously was either not properly tightened to 34-44 in lbs, or the double side opposite hand threaded screw was marginally engaged in the holder and buried in the clamp. Either way, tool load registered a break value, and about .03” of the cut edge was gone, but the machine feed held and stopped the spindle.

Upon backing off the tool, I realized the top clamp was completely unscrewed. We didn’t lose the holder, clamp, or insert.

I remounted the holder, indexed the corner (a bold move rather than junk the insert with 4 remaining corners), and the night shift guys read a procedure and touched the tool on the setter. We swapped the bar, and got the machine back into production where a tool failure would have cost us 8 hours of production as we would have had to check turret alignment on Monday.

Tool load monitoring works well when it is supported by the control and plc/ladder.

[deadlykitten]

hy i would investigate such a case a bit deeper, because in most cases is not possible to use load monitoring for a groove tool, just like how is not possible to monitorize a finish operation

at least for okuma machines, there are numerous cases about 3mm cutting toolholders that got damaged because monitoring is not sensible enough

is not that okuma monitoring is not good, but that the machine is simply too powerfull; in most cases, if you can monitor a cut off operation, then machine is weak, or you are not really pushing that insert

was it a cutt off operation + transfer ? if yes, then it may not have been cutting monitoring, but w overload; is a different thing

most nasty crashes occur during transfer, okuma's load monitoring is that complex, that simply makes other brands to look like a particular case

each time i was in a case of a fail, if i didn't understood, i always replicate the conditions and lead to identical stops, and then, i would use monitoring the prevent it; for example, i can't check if a cutting insert was broken, but i can check if cutting occured and other things as well

indexed the corner (a bold move rather than junk the insert with 4 remaining corners

an operator is indexing inserts in his 1st week; as i can see, you really have a need for good people, or at least normal operators

we would have had to check turret alignment on Monday

is possible to use a missalinged turret; thus is not critical to always have it in spec; is in the intereset of your maintanence guy/contractee to charge you for each alingment, yet how many have told you how to avoid/prolong a turret alingment, until it is really needed ?

you will always compensate with money all the lack of employer experience, but you know that, don't you ?

Tool load monitoring works well

i have used monitor functions, to allow the machine to cut lightsout and for in cycle measurement, not to say leaving it with unexperienced operators; there are techniques that really reduce the burden for operators, thus overall all will feel more comfortable; prevention programming, etc

you won't hear such things often, simply because most cam posts won't output special functions / kindly