There are many applications where what seems like old-fashioned technology is the best means to make parts. The traditionally designed VTL (vertical turning lathe) is an example of this class of technology. While its basic form has been around awhile, the VTL hasn't stopped evolving. New versions of these machine tools incorporate many of the productive technological innovations found in horizontal turning centers.
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Well Suited for a Variety of Castings
Foundries with machining capabilities, or even those that outsource their machining, can benefit from vertical turning technology. Essentially, a vertical turning center configuration takes a traditional lathe and stands it on end. This design provides a number of important production and cost benefits, and is particularly well suited to cutting a variety of castings: brake discs, pump housings, aircraft parts, heavy-equipment parts, energy field parts, and more.
Advantages of Vertical Turning Lathes
Vertical turning lathes are large, ram-type machines, also called vertical boring mills (VBMs). These lathes are not high-production machines, but they are ideal for heavy-duty and high-power cutting of medium and large parts.
- An important advantage of the VTL machine is the ease in which large heavy workpieces can be set and held in place for machining. An advantage for any shop using VTL is that gravity is an important factor in holding these parts. Generally only a minimum of hard clamping is required.
- Vertical turning lathes that use the main spindle to load and unload themselves are finding increasing acceptance as multitasking capabilities make them efficient processing centers for producing chucked parts.
- Vertical turning lathes give foundries with machine shops as well as those that outsource machining the ability to cut bigger and heavier castings.
- An indexable tool turret head distinguishes traditional VTLs from VBMs
- Aside from turret head or ram head, VTL machine design uses a rotating table to support the workpiece and use a bridge-type construction that carries the X-axis. A ram traverses the X-axis guides and delivers the cutter.
- In terms of productivity, vertical turning centers typically improve cycle times because shops can be more aggressive with their cuts.
Thanks to Rick Sundberg, Support Center Technician, Okuma America Corporation, for providing this article.
There are certain applications where a vertical turning lathe machine has an advantage over other machining solutions. We take advantage of this to produce better parts and more efficient machine pieces.
Heavy workpieces are easily set up and held in place when machining. Gravity works with the machine to keep the part in place, and minimal clamping is required compared to other processes. Our machines can accomplish this while taking up less space than a comparable horizontal lathe would.
VTLs that have the main spindle load and unload themselves are able to multitask when machining and producing chucked parts, reducing machining times and turnaround for our customers.
Our vertical lathes accommodate bigger and heavier castings within our shop than a horizontal lathe would. We are able to take heavier cuts safely without messing up our tolerances. This cuts down on cycle times because we can more aggressively remove material. We can control the final surface finish from semi-finished to fine, giving our clients excellent results right off the machine without any grinding required.
The rotating table supports the workpiece. A precision ram drives the x-axis and delivers the cutter to the desired location.
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