A commitment to quality

Aerospace Manufacturing hears how Mitutoyo has helped coordinate Currock Engineering’s component inspection operations with the aid of a Mitutoyo CRYSTA-Apex S CNC CMM.

Currock Engineering was established in 1963 as a subcontract machining and general engineering business. By 1995 the urgent need for additional space to install further machine tools prompted a move to the company’s present Chelmsford, Essex location. Now employing 91 staff, Currock has extended its range of specialities and increased its collection of advanced machine tools.

To support its manufacturing operations the business operates a well-equipped quality department. The mainstay of Currock’s component inspection operations is its collection of Mitutoyo coordinate measuring machines (CMMs) which are controlled by computer software that allows them to accurately inspect components against pre-programmed data by means of fully-automated, CNC measuring routines. Following a measuring routine, Currock’s Mitutoyo CMMs can generate traceable, detailed inspection reports that are essential to the aerospace industry. These reports can be archived or supplied directly to the company’s customers.

Having experienced a significant rise in business recently, the increasing throughput of components passing through Currock’s busy inspection department began to place a strain on the business’ existing Mitutoyo CMM provision. Therefore, a decision was made to purchase an additional machine. As the company is planning to manufacture high volumes of more complex, larger components, a search was made for a high-specification, large capacity, fast acting CNC CMM. Happy with the performance of its existing Mitutoyo CMMs, an order was placed for a CRYSTA-Apex S CNC CMM with an X, Y, Z capacity of 1,200 x 2,000 x 1,000mm.

Now installed and fully-operational, the CRYSTA-Apex S CNC CMM brings Currock’s Mitutoyo CMM count up to four machines. The size of the machine’s granite bed also allows multiple smaller parts to be loaded and fully-automatic CNC, mass measuring routines to be quickly performed. The Mitutoyo CMM’s ability to accommodate larger components and perform rapid, mass measurement tasks removes the possibility of inspection delays and ensures that Currock’s quality department can handle all anticipated production increases.

“Our continuing commitment to the quality of our output is illustrated by the recent installation of our largest capacity CMM yet, in our specially extended quality department,” explains Currock Engineering’s operations manager, Mark Burrows. “To ensure our new Mitutoyo CMM delivers the best possible standards of precision, we’ve also installed a highly-efficient environmental control system.

“The speed and accuracy of our large capacity CRYSTA-Apex S CNC CMM has already made a significant contribution to our inspection function. As well as handling our largest parts, its ability to inspect multiple smaller components in a single set-up in automatic CNC mode has considerably speeded-up the throughput of work in our quality department.”

Given the speed of today’s high-yield machine tools and the volume of parts produced, ensuring that component inspection systems keep pace has never been more important. Add to this the increasing complexity of components and tighter dimensional tolerances, and it is easy to understand that the performance of CMMs is being constantly challenged. To overcome these problems, Mitutoyo provides CMMs across a wide range of capacity, speed and accuracy classes. In addition, the availability of a variety of both contact and non-contact probes further enhances Mitutoyo CMMs’ flexibility and enables them to perform countless measurement tasks efficiently.

Currock Engineering’s Mitutoyo CRYSTA-Apex S CNC CMM is able to makes accurate measurements at high speeds that are essential for keeping pace with manufacturing output. The CMM series comprises a comprehensive line-up of CNC CMMs, including small, medium and large capacity machines. The use of lightweight materials and innovative machine structures ensure the delivery of high motion stability and impressive accuracy. Further extending their flexibility and measurement capabilities, each CRYSTA-Apex S series CNC CMM is compatible with both vision and scanning probe technologies.

In addition to being installed in dedicated inspection facilities, due to the range’s innovative temperature compensation function, CRYSTA-Apex S CMMs are equally at home taking accurate measurements when located on the shopfloor. The CMMs also represent a future-proof investment as, mindful of future technical developments, probe systems and software can easily be changed, or added to the system when required.

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