The final step in the completion of a part is finishing where remnants of production are removed. To enhance production and increase efficiency, manufacturing and industrial operations use mass finishing, which is a method of finishing large numbers of parts in a single cycle.
The purpose of mass finishing is to deburr, clean, polish, and burnish a workpiece as well as remove scales, flash, rust, and runners. A popular process used to perform mass finishing is tumbling where a piece is placed in a barrel that slowly rotates to complete finishing operations. This method is used by hobbyists to polish stones.
Another method used for mass finishing is vibration or vibratory finishing. Unlike tumbling, finishing is completed by placing workpieces in a container with an abrasive medium. Once the unit is loaded, it vibrates, which causes the medium to come in contact with the workpiece to deburr, burnish, clean, and polish it. This form of operation can be compared to a single worker finishing a workpiece with a file.
In the highly competitive world of industrial production, mass finishing has become a necessity for companies to be able to keep up with their competitors. It is a means for completing tedious operations quickly and efficiently, as well as freeing up workers to perform other tasks.
In industrial operations, mass finishing refers to a group of abrasive processes where a large number of components, made of metal, plastic, or other types of materials, are economically processed in large numbers to achieve a high-quality surface finish. It is designed to employ an abrasive material to remove contaminants that are the result of heat treatment and other process.
Though mass finishing can be considered to be a final step in the production process, in some instances, it is a middle operation designed to prepare a part for the next step toward completion. Mass finishing‘s further function is to prepare a workpiece for painting, coating, or plating operations that require the piece to be treated such that it has a smooth, unobstructed, surface.
The main operating mechanism of mass finishing equipment is an abrasive or media in an enclosed container. The process relies on energy that produces motion, which causes the media to rub, wear, or scrape against the workpiece. This is achieved by tumbling, shaking, or other forms of motion, with tumbling or barreling being the most common.
Finishing of parts is a necessity for any form of production process whether it is components for a computer or bumpers on a car. In each case, they must have imperfections removed before they can move on to be shipped or be subjected to other processes. Mass finishing equipment is chosen for these final steps for its cost effectiveness and economical advantages.
A major benefit of mass finishing is the savings that are derived from the elimination of labor costs, which has become especially important as the need for quality control increases. The types of finished surfaces that come from mass finishing are impossible to achieve in such quantities by any other means. By implementing mass finishing equipment, producers have found that poor quality parts and the need for reworking become insignificant or nonexistent.
As technology advances and the need for superior quality increases, mass finishing equipment will become the answer to help manufacturers and producers fabricate parts rapidly, efficiently, and at a lower cost.
Deburring machinery are machines that are used during the secondary machining process in order to achieve a smooth final surface.
This can be after a number of different manufacturing techniques such as drilling, forging, stamping, molding, machining, or just about any other form of material manipulation that leaves behind a rough and unfinished surface. The reason being that these processes often leave behind a raised edge, sharp edge, bump, burr or seam that can sometimes interfere with the overall task of the object. This interference could lead to operational damage, or even injury. This is why having proper deburring machinery is crucial for a wide range of industries and applications.
There are a number of different processes at play within deburring machinery, from buffing and polishing to vibratory finishing. All of which are utilized in order to remove any burrs or imperfections on the surface of a part or product. Deburring machinery itself is a rather broad term as you can find large, industrial sized machinery all the way down to small hand-held pieces of machinery which get the job done within certain applications. These hand-held tools are great for products or intricate parts which are rather fragile and would risk damage by going through an industrial sized deburring machine which has everything from wheels to belts and vibratory tools. Deburring works on a wide range of materials from metals to even wood, no matter what material you are working with it is important to achieve a smooth finish in order to prevent injury and ensure that the product will be able to perform within its own application to the best of its abilities. Learn more about deburring equipments.
Industrial washers are parts washing equipment that use methods such as water, ultrasonic blasts, agitation, and aqueous chemical solutions to effectively clean parts.
It is possible to design these washers to function as a multi-stage process that encompasses cleaning, deburring, drying, surface treating, and powder coating all in one. There are other pieces of parts washing equipment that function as an aqueous, single-step parts washing tub. Other types of industrial parts washers utilize non-aqueous solutions such as vibration cleaning, laser ablation, acoustic cleaning, and vapor cleaning when aqueous cleaning is not appropriate or possible.
Until recently, the majority of aqueous parts washing solutions have been chemical based. However, new regulations regarding the safety of workers and the environment have been on the rise. These regulations have led manufacturers to use organic solvents much more frequently. Another method of parts cleaning that has been increasing in popularity is ultrasonic cleaning. Ultrasonic cleaning is a new and innovative method that significantly cuts down on costly and harmful waste, because ultrasonic cleaners require only a fraction of the amount of solvent concentrations that traditional parts washers use. Ultrasonic cleaners use tiny air blasts against the parts‘ surface. These air blasts enable the machine to effectively clean crevices that other cleaners cannot reach. Ultrasonic cleaning is used by various industries whose products have little to no tolerance for parts contamination, such as the automotive industry. Manufacturing automotive parts requires the utmost precision. Contaminants such as shavings, oil, grease, and foreign chemicals can be a costly hindrance to the smooth operation of machinery, and at the very worst, a danger to those who operate them. Industrial parts are capable of thoroughly cleaning parts and saving money. Therefore, industrial washers are a necessity in the process of manufacturing quality parts. Other industries for which industrial parts washers are essential include electronics, dental, surgical, and medical parts washing. Learn more about parts washers.
The term "sandblast equipment," or blaster/ machinery, applies to a wide variety of tools and equipment designed to use sand (or a similar material) to clean or resurface industrial products and components.
To do this work, sandblasters participate in the process of sandblasting, also known as blast cleaning.
Sandblasting is an abrasive blasting process that propels materials at a high pressure and high speed to smooth out rough surfaces. Note: Sandblasting has become the blanket term for all media blasting processes, though it technically refers only to media blast processes that use sandblasters and silica blasting media.
Learn more about sandblast equipments.
Ultrasonic cleaners are a type of cleaning equipment. They remove soil and contamination from small parts using cavitation causing, high-frequency sound frequencies of about 18 kHz.
Cavitation, or ultrasonic cavitation, is the formation and implosion of minuscule bubbles in a liquid cleaning medium. The bubbles, or implosions, of cavitation clean and clear away parts of small dirt particles that reside in crevices and surface areas that would otherwise be impossible to reach. Ultrasonic cleaners typically clean contaminants like sludge, buffing and polishing compounds, mold release agents, and oil.
Ultrasonic cleaning equipment has a range of applications; however, it is most commonly used to clean jewelry, watches, delicate parts for electronics, medical and dental instruments, precision tools, heat exchangers, and weaponry.
Some of the industries that use ultrasonic cleaners to clean things include: healthcare (general practice, surgery, optometry, podiatry, etc), laboratory (sonochemistry, cleaning scientific and medical research equipment, cell disruption and mixing technology), manufacturing, jewelry, aerospace, automotive, defense, filtration, molding and fabrication, pharmacy and reconditioning and maintenance. Learn more about ultrasonic cleaners.
