Published 3/14/2023

Automation Solutions, Multitasking Machines Take Center Stage at Machine Fest 2023

Methods Machine Tools' Chicago-area Machine Fest saw over 15 live demos and more than 20 industry vendors over its two days, with a noticeable presence of automation solutions and multitasking machines.

Automation

Nathaniel Fields

Associate Editor, Modern Machine Shop

Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute project that U.S. manufacturing will have 2.1 million unfilled jobs by 2030. In the face of this shortfall, the demand for automation solutions in machine shops is poised to grow. Add in a projected annual growth of 5.78% per year from 2022-2030 for the multitasking machine market, and you have two potential themes for what you may often see at industry trade shows and events going forward. These themes were at the heart of Methods Machine Tools’ Machine Fest 2023, where the company aimed to show how its machines and automation solutions can help customers ship parts quickly with fewer operations.

“What we tried to focus on is giving customers an idea of how they could produce parts complete and make shipments every day — for a couple of reasons,” says Mike James, general manager of Methods. “One, removing the labor content and reducing the number of operations it takes to produce a part. Queue time is dead time in the shop. It’s lost profit and it’s lost ability to ship. That brings in the second part of this: When you can’t ship products, you can’t bill for products and you can’t get paid.”

With hundreds of attendees, more than 15 live demonstrations and over 20 industry vendors displaying their products, numerous automation solutions and multitasking machines from providers like FANUC, Yasda, Methods, Nakamura-Tome, OKK and more were hard to miss.

Below are a few of the machines that were on display at Machine Fest 2023.

This Nakamura-Tome SC-100x2, a twin-turret multitasking machine, utilizes two tools on either side of the upper turret for superimposed machining. Methods says this machine is suited for Swiss-style parts greater than 25 mm in diameter, and the simultaneous use of the upper and lower turret gives it the flexibility of a twin-spindle machine.

This MB 650U five-axis machining center from Methods features a 48-tool arm-type automatic tool changer (ATC). With the Automatic Manufacturing Package (AMP), the MB 650U combines this machining center with the automation of a six-pallet Indunorm automatic pallet changer. Find more on this automation package here.

This Nakamura-Tome MX-100 is a multitasking machine with the capabilities of a machining center and a turning center. The MX-100 has a 96-tool capacity and is equipped with a 15-hp upper tool spindle with 20,000 rpm and turning capability. An 8,000-rpm milling turret offers 12 tool stations with 24 indexing positions. The company says this machine is well-equipped for medical part manufacturing and high-mix production of aerospace parts.

The Nakamura-Tome WY-100II, a twin-spindle multitasking machine with two turrets, was loaded by a RoboJob cell. Turn-Assist from RoboJob is Methods’ first end-to-end standard automation system for Nakamura-Tome turning centers. With this setup, a pre-programmable FANUC robot loads blanks and unloads finished parts from the stocking table.

Methods provides a complete list of machines on display at Machine Fest on its website.