Specialist gun drilling, deep hole drilling and honing subcontractor for Premier Deep Hole Drilling Ltd (www.premier-drilling.co.uk) has ordered two-meter horizontal honing machine for use on aerospace components.

Manufactured by Ohio Tool Works Corporation (www.ohiotoolworks.com) and imported by Mollart-Cox (www.mollartcox.co.uk), the machine is an important investment for Premier and will be installed early next year.

The new OTW1000-5m to 2m horizontal honing machine, which features a full CNC for superior machining performance, will be the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. It is constructed from heavy, welded steel sections, providing the rigidity needed for precise bore sizing of components. The infinitely variable speed spindle drive motors and the 3.73kW servo drive reciprocation system offer quiet, trouble free and smooth operation under harsh conditions.

Stuart Grant, managing director of Premier, said: “We have ordered this new generation tube honing machine to fulfill a project for machining aerospace components. For the parts concerned its specification looked perfect on paper, and during performance trials we carried out it proved to be the ideal choice.”

Introduced last year, the model 1000 is offered in several standard stroke configurations between 2m and 6m with spindle drives up to 7.46kW. Honing diameters will range from 25.4mm to 559mm. Infinitely variable spindle speed motors of 1000rpm enable improved processing with both conventional metalbond and vitrified superabrasives.

“We have purchased the OTW1000-5-2m as a turnkey project,” said Mr. Grant. “As the components being machined required precise and consistent size control, we specified the optional Medium Size Control System which offers accurate and dependable size control to 12.5 micron, or better when metalbond abrasives are applied.”