ANCA Announces Tool of the Year Winners

ANCA CNC Machines’ annual Tool of the Year competition gives cutting tool manufacturers a chance to build brand recognition and showcase the beauty of performance expected from ANCA machines. The main winner receives $10,000 AUD worth of ANCA parts, accessories or software and the winner of the most innovative virtual tool receives the full CIM software package.

The Tool of the Year must be a ground tool that is functional, high quality and complex. A panel of expert judges consider the surface finish, tolerance and functionality. This year the industry-first competition had two categories.

Overall Winner – ARCH Cutting Tool

The overall winner, ARCH Cutting Tool, demonstrated excellent use of multiple iGrind operations with several complex profiles. The large-diameter (1”) multi-functional cutting tool with many features also stood out in terms of complexity of grinding. Overall, the tool was an exceptional effort from the team at ARCH. 

ARCH Cutting Tools is the third American company in as many years to earn the accolade, highlighting that the skill and craftmanship of the USA cutting tool industry is alive and well.

ZMK received the runner-up award in this category for another outstanding effort with their contribution.

Winners of Virtual Tool Category - JG Group and Turcar

The entries for the Virtual Tool category impressed the Judges so much they found it impossible to split JG Group and Turcar’s submissions. They agreed that both virtual tools were complex and demonstrated great use of different cycles and operations.

“Both tools showed a high level of effort, artistry and creativity. When creating the Virtual Tools, both Turcar and JG Group used their imagination along with the power and flexibility of ToolRoom RN34 and CIM3D V9 to produce works of art,” says Pat Boland, co-founder of ANCA CNC Machines.