Toshiba Leads The Way With Heavy Duty VTL

29 April 2015

The continued growth within the UK aerospace, power generation, transportation and similar industries has identified an increased demand for robust machine tools that can deliver excellent machining performance and heavy duty cutting. To this end, Leader CNC has now introduced the new Toshiba Machine TUE-100 vertical boring and turning/milling centre.

To guarantee this machining capability, this expansion in the Toshiba line of VTL’s provides the TUE-100 with an identical ram cross-section as that on the larger TUE models, together with the highest rapid rates in its class. This gives the end user heavy duty cutting capability and cycle time reductions that are well beyond most competitor machines. The TUE-100 has a build quality that can only be expected from Toshiba.

A single cast wall-type column is integral with a large cross-sectional cross-rail which firmly supports the rail head, providing both high precision and high speed positioning whilst also delivering astounding material removal rates. The cast iron bed, also cast in Toshiba’s own foundry, has been designed to support the table and column and, at the same time, it has been designed for the swift and efficient evacuation of swarf. With all this solid, robust structure packed within a 5 by 3.5M floor area, the 11,000kg TUE-100 guarantees outstanding material removal rates, regardless of materials being processed.

Unlike many manufacturers who use a single bearing configuration for both radial / axial loads, the TUE-100table is supported by the combined use of tapered roller bearings to support heavy radial loads, whilst separate thrust bearings absorb the axial load. From a capacity viewpoint, the new VTL has a table diameter of 1,016mm with a 1,200mm swing over the bed. This, together with its cutting height of 850mm and cutting diameter of 1,200mm, allows the TUE-100 to process large workpieces weighing up to 2,000kg. To deliver maximum torque levels across the speed range from 2 to 600rpm, the TUE-100 has a two-speed gearbox that is driven by a 45kW motor developing a maximum torque of 11,960N/m.

Complementing this availability of power and rigidity are rapid axis movements of 15M/min on the rail head and 12M/min on the ram, with cutting feed rates of up to 2000mm/min with an available ram force of 2,000kgf. Despite delivering such heavy duty machining performance, the construction and build quality of the TUE-100 can still meet the highest precision demands, with X and Z-axis positional accuracies of +/-0.007mm and +/-0.015mm in the X-axis. The precision of positional repeatability is likewise assured to an accuracy level of +/-0.003mm in all axes.

To minimise set-up times, the ram, with its BT50 taper spindle, receives tools from a 12 station ATC. This heavy duty unit permits the use of large cutting tools up to 350mm in diameter, 400mm long and weighing up to 40kg. Further enhancing the set-up and ease-of-use characteristics of the TUE-100 is the Fanuc- 0iTD CNC control. This control is provided with operator friendly functions such as a help function, alarm display and the display of operation status to assist the operator.

In addition, the TUE-100 can also be used in manual mode, with table jogging, table rotation, axis feed and table speed / feed over-ride switches, all of which can be activated via the manual pulse generator.

Toshiba has created this machine to be as user friendly and flexible as possible and, as always, Nuneaton based Leader CNC can tailor the TUE-100 with a number of options to meet the specific demands of the customer. These include different tool-holder types, a variety of hard and soft jaw sets, X-axis linear scale feedback, automatic tool measurement, spindle probes, various control options and an ATC jib crane for manual loading of tools weighing up to 50kg.