West Manufacturing News • November 2015 • Hardinge Grinding Group Introduces New Technology

"With the acquisition of the Voumard brand at the end of 2014 and the integration of its proven internal grinding technology into the comprehensive product range of Swiss grinding specialist Kellenberger AG, the technology spectrum of the Hardinge Grinding Group is now wider than ever," said a company spokesperson. "From entrylevel Jones & Shipman machines to premium grinders from the Kellenberger and Voumard brands, jig grinders from Hauser and modular solutions from the Tschudin and USACH brands, the Hardinge Grinding Group delivers products for every grinding task, including universal machines, system solutions and special one-off solutions in production environments."

Recently, long-serving Kellenberger Head of Sales and Marketing Urs Baumgartner was appointed as the new CEO and takes the place of Jurg Kellenberger, who will continue to make his knowledge available to the company serving on the Board of Directors. Kellenberger has shaped the destiny of the organization for more than 25 years and has represented Hardinge Inc. for the past 20 years.

At EMO 2015 in Milan, the Hardinge Grinding Group exhibited an array of new products. The first Voumard VM 110 to be manufactured at the Kellenberger facility in St. Gallen, Switzerland, had its world premiere. this machine is the smallest of the four machine series. As previously announced, the machine series has been technically modified to meet the demanding Kellenberger quality standards, and the machine design has also been revamped. The high-precision internal and external cylindrical grinding machine can be used for small batches as well as in volume production for workpieces with internal grinding diameters of up to 150 mm / 5.9". The machine is suitable for workpieces such as hydraulic components, ball bearings and highly complex parts for fuel injection systems. The VM 130, VM 150 and VM 300 series are designed for larger diameters.

The Kellenberger VARIA universal cylindrical grinder had its premiere showing at AMB 2014 in Stuttgart. Despite its compact design, the working area has again been significantly increased in comparison to the predecessor Kel-Varia machine, of which more than 1,000 units are on the market worldwide. The long version with a distance between centers of 1,600 mm / 63" was presented to the public for the first time at EMO. The VARIA is optionally available with I,000 mm / 39.37" or 1,600 mm / 63" distance between centers, as well as with 200 mm / 250 mm 7.87"/9.84" or 300 mm / II. 81" height of centers. The stroke on the X-axis has been increased to maximum 365 mm / 14.37". Due to the modular machine concept, the task defines the position of the grinding head within the machine and thus ensures optimal travel and dressing. More than thirty different grinding head options with external and internal grinding spindles enable a wide range of machine possibilities and application- specific configuration.

"Hauser, another member of the Hardinge Grinding Group and a manufacturer of jig grinders, has developed a jig grinding head for all its machine series that enables significant increases in performance and productivity as well as higher machining accuracy," said the spokesperson.

Hauser jig grinding machines traditionally are sold to the niche market of highly accurate grinding work in tool and mold fabrication, as well as the production of small series. "The enhancement of the grinding head (grinding head picture) complements the high-precision, hard machining in jig grinding with additional options in ultra-fine hard milling," said the spokesperson.

In addition to the combination of grinding and hard milling and the increase in precision in terms of bore roundness, the new grinding head concept facilitates machine automation and enables an array of machining options in bore grinding, mold grinding, profile grinding and every type of machining of conical workpieces.

"With the enhanced Suprema 1000 cylindrical grinder, Jones & Shipman demonstrated at EMO a concept that meets the demand for high geometric accuracy with quick changeover times in toolmaking as well as in batch and high-volume production. The machine performs complex cylindrical grinding tasks with a simple setup process and is ideal as an entry-level machine," said the spokesperson. "Automatic dressing and grinding cycles allow rapid setup and unmanned production. These 'selfteach' grinders will enable inexperienced and experienced operators alike to be immediately more productive. The basis of this user-friendliness is the J&S 'EASY' programming system. The most important innovation is the integration of a FANUC Power Motion control system with color touchscreen which offers significantly greater online memory for dressing and grinding programs together with improved response times and therefore contributes to a further reduction in programming and dressing times. Upgrades and extra functions in the 'EASY' control program provide additional flexibility and productivity."

Further machines on display included the T25 modular production external cylindrical grinder from the Tschudin brand and the Easy 624 surface grinder from Jones & Shipman.