ActOn Finishing develops a single step finishing solution for axle holder which benefits the end-user by eliminating manual finishing and producing a repeatable and quality finish.
ActOn Finishing was approached by one of its customers to develop a finishing solution for axle holder. The customer manufactures forge automotive parts for the motorcycle industry. They were manual polishing the components and were looking to implement vibratory finishing in their process. However, at the time they had no experience with mass finishing techniques and they needed some guidance.
The aim
- -To
achieve a descaled, deburred and bright finish
- -The customer
has very high manufacturing volumes and there is a required
throughput to be achieved. Hence we had to determine the most efficient
finishing solution for axle holder to be processed.
What we did
ActOn team started by working out the weekly volumes and determined that the finishing process should be no longer than 15 minutes. As a normal vibratory bowl may not achieve the required finish within the time frame, the team decided the most appropriate finishing technology to use is the High Energy finishing machine. Furthermore it has been identified that by using divider plates in the High Energy finishing machine barrels, 12 parts can be processed per load without any impingement.
ActOn also developed a unique finishing process, using a single type of media and compound. As the axle holder is manufactured out of Aluminium a medium abrasive ceramic media was used for descaling and deburring. The media size and shape was carefully chosen to avoid any lodgement while managing to finish even hard to reach areas of the part.
Beside using the correct machinery and media the compound was integral for the success of the finishing process. The technical team chose a compound that acts as a concentrated cleaner and a good polisher. Furthermore the compound has other functions such as:
- -Suspending
the dirt and media residues and flushing them from the system
- -Keeping the
components and media clean, which brings stability to the process
- -Acts as a
lubricant, thus extending the media life
The result
The process resulted in complete scale removal and a deburred and bright finish all in a single step process, thus achieving the throughput.
-Achieving the
required finish in a reduced processing time.
To learn more about ActOns finishing technology for Automotive industry please visit http://acton-finishing.co.uk. For further information regarding the finishing process contact our technical team at [email protected].