Sonnax Air-Bearing Lathe and Metrology Work Cell

sonnax-air-bearing-lathe-and-meterology-work-cell

2-Axis Diamond Turning Precision Valves
ABTech designed and delivered air bearing based metrology
stations and 2-axis lathes for a leading OEM automotive parts manufacturer to measure mass produced shafts and machine precisely matched sleeves, bringing manufacturing back to the US.

Increasingly tighter part tolerances on transmission parts made it more difficult for typical off-shore sourcing channels to meet the quality standards being demanded by the major automotive manufacturers. To solve this international sourcing logistics problem, a leading manufacturer of OEM automotive parts contracted ABTech to design and manufacture a turnkey work cell.

The objective was to develop a combination metrology and machining system that would measure valve shaft components, and then machine precisely matched corresponding sleeves. In addition to the prerequisite of being very accurate, piece part cost concerns meant that the system had to efficiently produce parts with high through-put and low scrap rates.
The resulting air bearing-based metrology and 2-axis lathe work cells began producing saleable inventory on the day of installation, helping to bring manufacturing back to the US.