Sempre Group
Sempre Group invests in Hurco VM10i vertical machining centre.
The Sempre Group has announced its investment in a Hurco VM10i vertical machining centre (VMC). With manufacturers growing demand for bespoke automation solutions that provide quality control, metrology, and inspection processes, the Sempre Group is bringing the production of its systems in-house.
The importance of providing high-quality fixturing of components under test is crucial when ensuring customers can produce traceable, reproducible, and repeatable measurements on the shop floor. To meet the increasing demand for these fixtures, Sempre invested in a VMC, enabling the company to design, manufacture, build, and test the fixtures in-house rather than relying on subcontractors.
“The decision was driven by a desire to ensure faster component production and greater flexibility to address more effectively the challenges our customers face,” said Mike John, Head of Technical Delivery at Sempre. “After evaluating several machine tool providers, the Hurco VM10i emerged as the ideal production platform due partly to the suitability of its working volume, which accommodates 90% of the fixturing components we make.”
He continued, “The VMC's speeds and feeds are appropriate for the materials we primarily machine, namely aluminium, stainless steel and engineering plastics, added to which the price of the machine was competitive.”
About the Hurco VM10i
The installation of the new system has been a success. John and another team member took part in a three-day comprehensive training course at Hurco’s High Wycombe technical centre, learning about conversational programming and machine operation.
The VMC is user-friendly and is capable of holding the tight tolerances required by Sempre's customers. Enhanced ease of use allows for the quick creation of parts, helping to avoid bottlenecks and overall reducing lead times from eight weeks when using subcontractors to 30 to 60 minutes for a simple component.
The metrology specialist primarily employs Autodesk Fusion for generating the often-complex toolpaths, transferring programs to the Hurco. This shortens the design-to-reality timeline. Conversational programming at the Hurco machine's proprietary WinMax control is employed to edit a program if modifications are needed, or to simply prepare a cycle to drill an array of holes into a plate.
Benefits of the VM10i:
- Aligns with Sempre’s requirement to produce accurate, aesthetically pleasing components reliably.
- Discussions with Hurco revealed the potential for future machine upgrades, like an additional cobot automation feature, providing improved adaptability and longevity.
- Improvements to response times and the quality of manufactured components are expected.
- The ability to prototype and develop new fixturing solutions quickly allows for faster iteration and testing of complex assemblies.
- Shortened delivery timescales with select projects able to be completed ahead of schedule.
