Research in Practical Aspects of High Speed Milling of Aluminum

Research in recent years in high speed machining has been a cost-effective method of machining aluminum alloys. High speed machining, however, does not necessarily mean new machine tools. A survey of the aluminum machining industry suggests that substantial gains in productivity can be realized by better part programming and by better utilization of existing machine tools. Still further productivity gains can be realized by investing in new machine tools equipped with higher speed spindles with adequate horsepower and with higher feedrates. A practical method of defining such requirements is proposed. These requirements challenge machine tool technology with added problems of safety, noise and chip control.