TO INFINITY AND BEYOND

Kennametal Inc. offers Beyond?, an entire platform of high-performance turning products. Due to higher metal-removal rates and extended tool life, these cutting tools promise to push productivity 30 percent higher or more for a broad spectrum of metalworking users. "Customers can apply these tools across a wide range of cutting parameters, with extended tool life and higher productivity as the results," says Ujjwal (UJ) Baid, Kennametal Senior Product Manager. "Depending on the application, field tests show anywhere from 30 percent to 300 percent improvement."

These tools comprise a complete line of 11 grades applicable to steel, stainless steel, and cast-iron turning applications. A post-coat surface treatment improves edge toughness, reliability, and depth-of-cut notch resistance, and micro-polishes the surface to reduce friction and workpiece sticking (BUE). A fine-grained alumina layer allows for increases in cutting speed, improving productivity and reliability at high cutting temperatures.

The 11 grades consist of five grades and 22 geometries for steel turning; three grades and 10 geometries for cast iron turning; and three grades and eight geometries for stainless steel turning. Manufacturers in the transportation, aerospace, oil and gas, medical, and general engineering industries could realize significant speed, feed, and depth of cut increases depending on the application. "The goal is to help customers further optimize their performance with tools that are more reliable and predictable while providing higher productivity and tool life," explains Baid. "These cover a complete portfolio of turning products. Future platforms for milling and holemaking are on their way, too."

New tools are traditionally introduced to the market one at a time, but this launch encompasses more than 2,000 line items that have been several years in development. "A wide range of materials and applications were investigated," notes Chuck McNerny, Manager, Global Grade Development at Kennametal. "Each specific grade is optimized with substrate characteristics and coating thickness specific to its application. The result is productivity improvement and an expanded range of application for each new product compared to the original grade."

For example, KCP40, a new grade for roughing steel, shows speed and depth-of-cut increases of 10 percent to 20 percent in tests against competitive grades. KCP05, a new grade for finishing steel, showed feed increases of 30 to 40 percent in similar tests. All of the new inserts are CVD (chemical vapor deposition) coated, but whereas conventional CVD coatings are under tensile stress, these inserts undergo a proprietary post-coat treatment on all surfaces to reduce this stress, which improves coating adhesion and reduces micro-chipping.

"More uniform and reliable wear of the cutting edge results in improved and more consistent tool life," states Kent Mizgalski, Manager, Global Lathe Systems Engineering at Kennametal. "Smoother surfaces also lower frictional forces, another factor that expands applications and permits higher cutting speeds. Together with the right geometry, we've seen big improvements in chip control and tool life in both internal and field tests."

"It's a common misconception that new products are for higher-speed applications only," adds McNerny. "This new line also shows improved performance at currently used speeds and hence lower cutting temperatures," he says. "You can measure productivity by increased feeds and speeds or by deeper and smoother cuts. Either way is a win. Additionally, all of these inserts are top- and bottom-ground after coating for a better seating surface in the toolholder, which improves security."

In field tests, these tools saw action in applications as diverse as railroad wheel machining, green machining of bearings, and roughing heavy forgings. Productivity gains were "overwhelming," whether measured by increased number of parts produced or increased tool life. Moreover, tests were conducted in customer sites around the world, including the U.S., Germany, Italy, France, India, and Japan, among others.

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Kennametal Inc., 1600 Technology Way, Latrobe, PA 15650-5274, 724-539-5000, www.kennametal.com.