Keeping pace with modern manufacturing demands often means bridging the gap between design and production. Creative and resourceful applications of tooling and accessories, such as angle heads, can get complex parts out the door.
Engineers at LORD Corp., a manufacturer of expensive and complex aerospace parts, were struggling to achieve tight tolerances for precision bores on a new engine mount prototype.
In the Aerospace & Defense Manufacturing Yearbook published by SME, our Tool Measuring Systems product manager, Doug Sumner writes, “In the precision, no-room-for-error world of aerospace, manufacturers need sophisticated tool presetting like airplanes need wings.”
Jet engine manufacturers have found that even the most infinitesimal imperfection can produce catastrophic results; absolute precision is the name of the game in the aerospace industry.
Aerospace is unique among industries in its thirst for component accuracy with ‘blemish-free’ precision. Unlike any other industry, anything that goes into the air has to be on spec, as the smallest imperfection in machining can adversely affect flight safety.
