Tubular Heaters Keeping Machined Parts Within Tolerances
Problem:
A machine shop was involved in machining parts to very critical tolerances. The ambient temperature of the machine shop was not closely maintained. The customer was having a problem holding tolerances due to:
- The varying temperatures of the parts being machined
- The expansion of the parts from the heat produced during the machining operation.
Solution:
Prior to Watlow's involvement, the cutting fluid was not heated. This was the cause of their problems.
By heating the cutting fluid and controlling its temperature, the expansion/contraction problem of the parts being machined and minimized.
The heater chosen was a stock tubular element formed in a special configuration with bulkheads. The heater had the required wattage, yet held permissible watt density to 23 W/in2 (3.5 W/cm2) and still fit within the container used to store the cutting fluid. A stock element was chosen to allow a fast delivery schedule.
Finally, a temperature controller regulated the heaters and held the cutting fluid temperature at a pre-determined point. This reduced the scrap rate to acceptable levels.