PRV Engineering Elaborates On The Latest Machinery To Be Installed

At the start of the year, we reported that once again PRV Engineering had invested in new machinery. The latest addition is the large format machining equipment and we thought we’d tell you a little about why we chose the equipment we did.

First and foremost, the reason behind our continued investment in staff, premises and equipment is our desire to provide the best service possible to our customers. Quality is top of our agenda and that means both in terms of the product produced and the service provided – they go hand in hand.

We were increasingly being asked to produce larger components and decided that we needed additional machinery to provide the level of service that is important to us.

Leadwell V50-L

PRV Engineering has a number of Leadwell machines and so are used to the brand; they are reliable. It’s the first brand new Leadwell machine for some time but that’s no bad thing. Managing Director Simon Jones said, “I’ve got Leadwells that are 20 or 30 years old and have only ever had a Leadwell engineer in the shop once – well twice now if you count the installation of this new one!”

So why this particular machine this time? PRV Engineering was looking for a machine with a longer X and a bigger Y axis. Whether you need to do a job in Y or not is not the main importance as long as you can fit the job into the machine. The envelope and access of the Leadwell V50-L fitted the bill. “I’ve got some machines that are 3 m in Y and 800 in X but you can only just get a 1m job in there and just about close the doors,” said Simon. “I need that extra capacity and this machine has it. I can not only get the large jobs inside comfortable, but I can move them around while working on them.”

The machine comes with a high standard specification like a 12000 rpm, 30 tool change and through spindle cooling so there was no need to delay installation waiting for additional requirements. Simon chose to have a Siemens control panel. “When it comes to one-off projects,” said Simon “The Siemens panel is so user friendly – it’s quick and easy for anyone to use”.

The versatility of the material that can be machined is also vital and the V50-L has already been used to cut a variety of different materials since it was installed.

Takumi H22S

A recent contract for large format components meant a need for a machine with larger cutting dimensions that could cope with high-speed aluminium cutting. With 2.2 in X and 1.6 in Y, linear scales, face and taper spindles, a high-speed spindle at 15000 rpm and through spindle cooling, this machine fitted the bill perfectly.

For the type of work, the machine will be completing the ability to get the job off the machine quickly while maintaining high levels of accuracy is vital. “I want to remove metal as quickly as I can,” said Simon “so the high-speed spindles getting the chips away from the cut helps to do this.” In addition to the high-speed cutting capabilities, again the capacity inside the machine and access for loading materials were big factors that helped with the buying decision. “Getting a large job on this machine is prime for me,” said Simon. He went on to add that the access doors front and back means that odd-shaped jobs and very long jobs can be completed in sections because of the ability to open up both ends.

PRV Engineering manufactures for an expanse of industries and provides a diverse range of products and services. We also offer design and development services.