Maybe you should fix it anyway
Many manufacturers who do grinding don’t have dressing process optimization on their radar screens. Why should they? “If it ain’t broke, why should I fix it?” is an all too common attitude. They have more important things to worry about.
If you are one of these, we suggest that you reconsider. The truth is: one of the most effective things you can do to improve the quality and productivity of your grinding processes is to methodically assess and fine tune the process you are using to dress your grinding wheels.
Consider this: When Meister engineers are called out to help solve a customer’s grinding problem, the vast majority of changes they make to the grinding process involve dressing. We often show our customers how to make their vit bonded CBN or diamond grinding wheel sharper for more aggressive cutting or duller for a smoother surface finish, simply by adjusting the dressing variables. Manufacturers who take advantage of these tips can:
- improve productivity by reducing cycle time and making fewer wheel changes
- save money with better wheel life
- and improve part quality with better finishes and tighter tolerances.
Achieving these important process improvements may be as simple as changing the speed or direction of rotation of your dressing tool. Rotary dressing tools often do not have to rotate at a fixed speed or direction relative to the grinding wheel. In fact, varying the speed/direction of rotary dressing gives you the flexibility needed to optimize your wheel for either aggressive roughing or smooth surface finish applications. We will explain why in a future blog.
Finally, beyond fixing your dressing process, you may also want to consider whether or not the dressing tool you have selected is best suited for your application. Meister’s hDD (hybrid Diamond Dresser) technology can often dramatically reduce total grinding costs while improving grinding wheel performance. For example, see the CAM Roller Application case study recently posted in this blog.
Want to Learn More
If you glance to the right you will notice that the one of the fatest items in our tag cloud is DRESSING. Browse through some of these posts and you will get a better idea of how addressing your dressing can result in significant improvements to your grinding process even if its not broken.
You can also learn more by downloading the Meister Abrasives Dressing Tutorial PDF and acquiring your own free copy of the Meister Abrasives’ Dressing Calculation Tool, by visiting the Calculation Tools category of this blog.
Going to IMTS? If you have a specific grinding issue or would like some troubleshooting advice please visit our booth at IMTS and talk to one of our application engineers. We would really appreciate the opportunity to make or renew our acquaintance with you.
