Faster production cycles, higher quality surface finishes and'dual' machining capability are just some of the majorbenefits on offer with the new high-speed electro-spindle nowavailable for Soraluce CNC milling machines from Ward CNC ofSheffield. The compact 20 kW synchronous spindle motor - whichproduces 21,000 revs/min - boasts short acceleration times and aconstant torque of 18 Nm, plus surface finishes of 0.4 Racompared with 0.6 Ra with a traditional asynchronous spindle. Theresult is that Soraluce users can effectively broaden theirmachining capability by 'doubling up' machine capacity.This will permit roughing and finishing with the same spindle, orusers can quickly and easily swap the new unit with the standardautomatic indexing head arrangement used for heavy metal removal,to suit the task in hand.

The 'cold' rotor also extendsthe lifetime of the bearings - equating to a spindle life of atleast 7,000 hours compared with the usual 3,000 hours availablefrom an asynchronous unit.

This is courtesy of the very lowlevels of vibration generated by this low-inertia unit, and itsability to achieve balance independent of both speed and power.Available as optional extra on Ward CNC's range of SoraluceCNC milling machines which are available in three variants - TL,TR and TF travelling table types; SL, SP and SM travellingcolumn, bed types; and FP, FS and FR travelling column floortypes - the new electro-spindle doubles the effective machiningcapability of the range at relatively low cost.

Pick up of theelectro-spindle, which is located to one side of the machinetable, is via the machine's automatic head, followed byautomatic clamping then connection using manual quick-switchconnectors.

The use of a Hirth coupling makes for an extremelyrigid arrangement - and the whole process takes only seconds!Ward CNC's five- and six-axis Soraluce CNC milling machinesrange in capacity from 1,500 mm to 16,000 mm plus in the X axis,from 1,000 mm to 3,600 mm in Y and up to 1,500 mm in Z.

Thelatest linear guideway technology offers rapid traverse rates upto 15,000 mm/min.

Spindle motors range from 28 kW to 37 kW.

Inaddition to the electro-spindle feature, other options includeuniversal or orthogonal automatic indexing heads and two-axisgyroscopic head for five- and six-axis applications.

Automatictoolchangers with up to 80 stations or more can be provided.