The SYNCREX Swiss-style machines were featured in the High Production Technology Action of Mazak's DISCOVER 2023.
Mazak’s Kentucky-built SYNCREX Series – the company’s entry into the Swiss-style turning machine market – was one of the main highlights of its recent DISCOVER 2023 event, which included more than 2,000 visitors from the U.S., Canada and six other countries.
The SYNCREX Swiss-style machines powered through small, precise parts on seven, eight and nine-axis configurations designed for high-speed productivity, were featured in the High Production Technology Action Area of DISCOVER 2023. Among these machines, attendees saw the newest SYNCREX innovation, the MAZATROL SmoothSt X with a full mechanical keyboard.
Swiss turning has become much more popular and flexible and is no longer limited to just high-volume production. More job shops in high-mix/low-volume production environments are producing families of smaller parts from 12-ft long bar stock that is 1.5” in diameter and less, Mazak says. It is for this reason that Mazak says it developed the SYNCREX Series machines it claims improve upon existing market designs and technologies to take Swiss-style machining to the next level.
Mazak’s Swiss-style machines come in four barstock capacities (20-, 25-, 32- or 38-mm) and set themselves apart from the ground up. Built on one-piece High-Damping Composite Castings (HDCC), the machine bases weigh approximately 3,400 pounds and are 10% more rigid than cast iron for superior surface finishes compared to their cast-iron counterparts. This polymer-composite footing provides an 80% reduction in vibration at the cutting point, which helps increase tool life by 30%. Additionally, the HDCC technology reduces thermal distortion, lessening part variation by 25% for more consistent and reliable production.
High-volume and lights-out production is aided by Mazak Dynamic Chip Control (MDCC), which effectively manages long, stringy chips that are often the byproduct of long periods of uninterrupted turning. Instead of a “bird’s nest” of chips that can cause tool breakage and mar surface finishes, MDCC oscillates the Z axis to create chip flakes with no significant decrease in surface finish due to the HDCC technology.
To reduce setup times, the Mazak Swiss Set-up Assist (MSSA) function prequalifies tools inside the machine with a removeable probe that is mounted in the main spindle guide bushing or in the collet on head two (a dual probe option is also offered). Only found on SYNCREX machines, the system can set up 35 tools with positioning accuracy of less than 3mm in 15 minutes, cutting setup time by as much as 50%. A removeable guide bushing adapter also allows operators to preset the guide bushing outside the machine, so it keeps working uninterrupted.
SYNCREX Series machines feature Mazak’s MAZATROL SmoothST CNC. Outfitted with a 15-inch touch-panel and full mechanical keyboard, the control streamlines programming for even shorter job setup time.
Mazak expanded its Florence manufacturing campus to add a dedicated SYNCREX Assembly Building in late 2022. The 27,000-square-foot facility combines engineering, production, and applications support for the SYNCREX Series with a production capacity of up to 10 machines monthly.
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