Acu-Rite Solutions
Acu-Rite Solutions
Acu-Rite Solutions

MILLPWRs are vital at UNC Biomed Engineering Lab

“I’m an engineer that likes to make things,” says Steven Emanuel, who holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and is employed as a Laboratory Education Specialist in the University of North Carolina’s (UNC) Biomedical Engineering Department. “And with access to seven Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWRs, I can do that every day.” Emanuel explains that for seventeen years he has worked in a university setting, predominantly assisting engineering students bring their design projects to life in a fabrication laboratory. These projects are most often prototypes of biomedical devices and/or parts to support their ideas of something new to possibly assist mankind in the future. “I am not a trained machinist myself, though I’ve learned by doing,” says Emanuel, who while working on his masters at the University of Michigan in (2005) was first given the opportunity to work in an engineering lab. There, Professor Robert Dennis mentored him while they supported students who needed to manufacture their engineering designs. “We had a MILLPWR control on a Bridgeport mill in the lab, along with a few other tools and were able to make all kinds of things. Right off the bat, I was able to grasp the conversational programming on the MILLPWR since it’s like having a discussion with someone. For example, if you were asked ‘where would you like your circular pocket on this piece of aluminum’ and you simply point out which coordinates. The MILLPWR basically does that then programs it and it gets done. This makes perfect sense to an engineering student. Now if you asked them to put in G-code, they’d be glassy-eyed and would need more training to do that. “From a teaching standpoint, it’s so powerful to be able to be productive so quickly,” adds Emanuel. “Not to sound cliché, but the MILLPWR control really is extremely intuitive. I can take an engineering student and in under an hour of pushing buttons, put them in a position to where they have a basic understanding of what the machine can do, including how to access and add certain features [...]

2024-07-15T20:42:24+00:00

For the love of MILLPWR

  A longtime Acu-Rite Solutions user shares the life-changing benefits of the Acu-Rite Solutions control and his love for the brand. Since 1996, Craig Guth has been using an Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWR control in his home shop making custom motorcycle parts and more and is still using that same MILLPWR today! Not only that, but his love of machining secured him a full-time job in 2003 at The Toro Company headquarters in Bloomington, MN, where ACU-RITE controls are now used widely for prototyping. Melding his love of art with the benefits that machining provides, Guth has created many unique and useful things over the last 25 years. Originally teaching himself to use an Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWR CNC on a mill still used in his home shop, Guth has become a go-to source for his unique inspirations of all kinds. A personal project head-turner are his fully custom-made motorcycles to name only one! Then when Guth was hired as an employee at The Toro Company to support its Product Development Lab (PDL), his love for machining helped him as he supported various R&D projects. Toro is a well-known provider of outdoor equipment including turf and landscape, snow and ice management, specialty construction and more. Acu-Rite Solutions Control Supports Home-based Business It all began for Guth in 1994 when working for a local machine distributor where they evaluated various equipment and settled on obtaining multiple easy-to-use and conversational Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWR controls for mills for sale. From there, Guth purchased his own and went to making molds for a local rubber company as well as custom motorcycle parts for sale and himself. Guth’s home-based business named CNC Metalcraft has produced many parts with truly unique designs since its inception. His fully custom motorcycles include specially designed parts using the MILLPWR that include those for the primary drivetrain (where clutch is housed and suspension parts), front end parts, triple trees and wheels. “I consider myself an artist and enjoy creating beautiful things,” said Guth. “And I love working in the shop.” Another unusual project [...]

2024-07-15T20:36:13+00:00

Did you know Acu-Rite Solutions products are used at OMIC?

Exciting manufacturing research is happening daily at OMIC R&D (Oregon Manufacturing Innovation Center – Research & Development) and some Acu-Rite Solutions equipment is working inside. OMIC R&D is the fifteenth advanced manufacturing research center established originally with Boeing leadership, and is the first sponsored in the United States. Now supported by 37 corporate members, state/federal government grants and three universities, OMIC R&D is serving as a world-class manufacturing collaborative environment. Through applied research and advanced technical training, OMIC R&D is actively working its mission of developing new tools, techniques and technologies in order to address near-term manufacturing challenges. The OMIC facility, hosted by Oregon Tech (the state’s polytechnic university) is a growing campus located in Scappoose, Oregon. The building is equipped with best-in-class machine tool equipment in order to support Industry 4.0 smart technologies and more. HEIDENHAIN equipment currently in use on site includes an Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWR control and an Acu-Rite Solutions DRO in use on a manual machine, as well as some HEIDENHAIN scales, TNC controls and the State Monitor connectivity software system. OMIC’s Business Development Officer Josh Koch said “Our unique collaboration with HEIDENHAIN is an important piece in allowing us to be at the forefront of changing the industry. Together, we are coming up with unique solutions to today’s systemic challenges in manufacturing.”

2024-07-02T20:02:08+00:00

MILLPWR users: You already know the new TURNPWR!

Yes, if you know how to use an easy-to-use Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWR control, it is important to recognize that you also already know how to use the new TURNPWR control for lathes. Just released, this new TURNPWR is designed for CNC lathe applications utilizing a common UI platform between the two that allows for easy transition. Also, the screen layout and graphics on the new TURNPWR are the same as the MILLPWR making for straight-forward intuitive use by past MILLPWR users. This allows for quick transition to CNC lathe control immediately following a TURNPWR installation in those shops. The new TURNPWR, of course, does have added turning features for controlled lathe machining. These standard state-of-the-art features operate via a conversational programming language or G-code (ISO) programming and are employed as chosen by the operator. It is extremely intuitive and designed for turning machine tools with up to two axes plus spindle. The TURNPWR was developed to satisfy the wants and needs of lathe machinists where manual and automated operation are both useful and needed. It promises to enable the user to maximize throughput by significantly reducing set-up time, scrap and other non-productive operations, thereby increasing efficiency, productivity and profitability.

2024-07-02T14:44:35+00:00

Did you know that a MILLPWR is being used to create classic aircraft parts in an Alaskan machine shop?

An Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWR control has been a critical production component in Burl’s Aircraft, LLC machine shop since the year 2000. Making aircraft parts, including parts for the classic Aeronca Sedan light aircraft (originally built in 1949-1951) and now manufacturing an entirely new updated version of it called the AeroSedan Model 15AC, Burl’s Aircraft, LLC is helping to keep this classic aeronautical tradition alive. “We have customers all over the world that still own and use classic light aircrafts, and we are happy to support them,” explained Burl Rogers, company owner. “I have a special love for the Aeronca Sedan, a 4-place aircraft,” added Burl. He explained that his own father bought one in 1956 in which he was given flying lessons as a teenager by his father while traveling on hunting and fishing trips in their home state of Alaska. Burl served in the Alaska Air Guard where he was a mechanic from 1962-1968. In 1982, he started his own light aircraft maintenance business with the knowledge and skills to do the job. In 1996, Burl quit doing maintenance and devoted full time to manufacturing. In the year 2000, while visiting new and used equipment dealers on the West Coast with his wife, Burl witnessed a demonstration of an Acu-Rite Solutions MILLPWR in action. “After the demonstration, I asked her what she thought, and she told me ‘you need to buy that’, as it was clear the benefits this MILLPWR would provide to our company’s milling capabilities,” explained Burl. “So, we purchased the MILLPWR II. It was obvious that this would allow us to update our operation and machine basically anything that had a shape to it, and it has!”es Here Today, Burl’s Aircraft, LLC is producing FAA-approved parts for classic and current general aviation aircraft using the MILLPWR, including parts necessary for landing gear, flight control surfaces, a sub-assembly brake torque flange, engine mount brackets and a new design fuel cell screen to name a few. They also use the MILLPWR in manufacturing special tooling that is required to complete [...]

2024-08-12T16:34:13+00:00

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