FAQ

Optimizing your toolpaths with Productive Machines can lead to

• Time, material and money all saved by reducing trial and error on your machine tool
• Lower production cycle times and increased productivity
• Extended tool life
• Improved surface quality
• Improved dimensional quality
• Reduced need for post-manufacture inspections

• Our unique stability map is able to identify and eliminate chatter vibrations on the whole toolpath before they cause any issues
• Intuitive Software as a Service (SaaS), no need to train your engineers to use complex software;
• Simple subscription service, no need for large capital investment

• Lower surface finish and dimensional accuracy
• Increased tool wear and cutting tool costs
• Increased maintenance costs on machine tool
• Increased noise level coming from the process
• Increased waste of material

• Aside from chatter marks in your workpiece and low tool life you may also notice increased noise levels during a process with chatter
• Machine tends to vibrate close to its natural frequencies in addition to the frequency of chip removal

• Currently our solutions works best with Siemens NX but we are developing APIs to help us work better with other CAM programs
• Some of our web apps don’t require a toolpath to optimize

• This depends on how much trial and error you have already done to improve the process. Many of our clients report a 20% increase.

• When working with an un-optimized toolpath, Productive Machines have increased productivity up to 110%. Even for an advanced toolpath that has had a lot of improvements, we have been able to increase productivity by an additional 10/15%.

• Our web apps do not need installation.
• Our CAM integrations and tap testing software require installation and minimal training. This can also be provided by our partners

• We use your CAM file and some basic machining data.Our chatter mitigation services require a tap test input for the dynamics of the machine tool assembly.

• As well as the optimized CAM file, you will receive a report detailing our findings and our predictions

• We provide you with trend analyses and alerts based on the Frequency Response Function (FRF) measured through your regular tap test programme.

• We offer a new toolpath with recommend machine settings such as optimal spindle speeds and feed rates to achieve better results

• Feed rate and spindle speed optimizations for single cuts take a few seconds to process. Our full automated 5-axis toolpath optimization service will take around a coffee-break to process.

• Very easy! You don’t need any training or to install any extra software and we have different levels of service.

• We are agnostic when it comes to machine tools and cutting tools - we can work with any machine tool or cutting manufacturer

• Currently we only work on milling operations

• We use AWS to host our online services and there will be an on-premise option in the future, if required.

• Our optimization services require an onsite tap test data except for the Feed Rate Optimizer. Our partners can come to your site to deliver this service or to provide training for you to learn to do this yourself. Talk to us about this to find out more.

• Tap Testing provides a dynamic footprint of the machine - tool holder - cutter assembly in terms of natural frequencies which is unique to each set up. This enable optimization of spindle speeds and feed rates peculiar to your setup

• Tap testing takes into account specific machine tool dynamic characteristics. We use this info to produce a stability map and recommend spindle speeds. Our unique optimization capability combines both mechanical and dynamic properties.

• We offer Software as a Service (SaaS) as opposed to a standalone software package to simplify the use of the technology and to bring expert milling strategies to every machine shop irrespective of the skills of the user.