Manufacturing

The CAM learning journey for most of us in the manufacturing sector typically follows a similar path. You may start to learn about CAM in school, using the software that is best suited for the curriculum. Later, when you join the workforce, you will have to learn whichever CAM software is used by the employer. This can often feel like being dropped into the deep end of the pool – but you make it through because you have the basic tools to understand the new software given your experience with a previous tool. The lucky few of us have mentors to show us the tips and tricks to get the software to do exactly what we need.

It’s common that CAM programmers will find themselves at a new shop, or in a new situation, needing to learn yet another new CAM system quickly. While I am not working at a job shop, I had a similar experience when I came to Hawk Ridge Systems. My previous experience was not with CAMWorks, but I had to come up to speed quite quickly.

In industries that use CNC machining, there can be many team members that contribute to the production of the final product. The process starts with the designer creating the CAD model that is then sent to the programmer for CAM programming. Once the program is complete, the code is sent to the operator to set up and run the CNC machine.

Efficient communication is key to optimal production. If the machine is not producing parts, it is still considered downtime, even during the period when the programmer and operator are tying up the machine with a test of the code. With the levels of communication between all the parties involved, there are many opportunities for information to be lost or misinterpreted.

It seems that with everything these days, it’s all about speed and automation. You can browse the internet for a product that interests you and with only a few mouse clicks have it delivered to your doorstep the next day. Credit card numbers can be saved, shipping preferences recalled, and recently used addresses can autofill the delivery address on an order for you.

The old adage is “time is money.” Nowhere is that truer than in production based on CNC machining. The time it takes to produce a part (or many parts) is greatly improved using advanced CAM software such as CAMWorks. Both stages in the production process can be affected by delays, which can increase the most crucial periods of time in CNC: the programming time and the machine’s cycle time.

The programming time is increased if the programmer must review not only the printed hardcopy of the drawing for tolerances but also confirm that the 3D model matches. The machining time could suffer from extraneous moves if the tooling used is not robust enough. In the end, no amount of programming skill or efficient tooling can save the production time if an unforeseen collision causes the machine to go down to await repair.

Every year, to keep pace with the requirements and trends of the manufacturing industry, CAMWorks releases updates to their software including new features and enhancements. CAMWorks 2022 is no different – chock full of the latest innovative technology to improve your CNC programming experience, reduce cycle times, and enhance your efficiency.

New Features in CAMWorks 2022

New Support for Barrel Tools in Milling Operations

CAMWorks 2022 has added support for barrel tools for multi-axis and 3 axis milling operations. Barrel cutters offer greatly reduced cycle times in some jobs by increasing the surface area of the cutter at the point of contact. That also contributes to better surface finishes. The latest version of CAMWorks supports the most common shapes, including standard, conical tangent, tapered, lens, and advanced user-defined barrel tools.