Discover Companies Specialising in Milling in Emilia-Romagna with the Confindustria Emilia Subcontracting Platform
05/11/2024
Milling is a
vital machining process for the manufacture of precise and complex parts in a
range of industrial sectors. This technique involves removing material from a
workpiece using a rotating tool, called a ‘milling cutter’. It is highly
versatile, allowing you to create flat surfaces, grooves, complex profiles and
three-dimensional shapes.
Emilia-Romagna
is home to numerous companies specialising in milling. And it’s now easier to
find them with the new Confindustria Emilia platform!
Emilia-Romagna
Milling Companies List: search using the Confindustria Emilia Subcontracting
Platform
Emilia-Romagna
is one of Italy’s most industrialised and pioneering regions, boasting a strong
presence of companies that specialise in machining, including milling. The
region is steeped in manufacturing tradition, especially in the automotive and
precision engineering industries, and is home to numerous businesses providing
high-tech milling services, often with the use of state-of-the-art CNC
machines.
You can
consult the Subcontracting Platform to pinpoint companies in Emilia-Romagna
that specialise in milling. You’ll find a long list of companies operating in
the mechanical engineering and materials processing sector.
This
platform is also a tremendous opportunity for companies offering the following
services:
- mechanical subcontracting
- electronic subcontracting
- machining and specific treatments on a contract basis product
- design/development and joining
- contract
- machinery
.
What is milling and what is it used for?
Milling is
predominantly used to produce metal or plastic parts in the automotive,
aeronautical and mechanical sectors and even in the electronics industry. This
process results in extremely precise and defined surfaces, making it ideal for
the production of customised parts, including gears, moulds and dies.
There are
various kinds of milling, grouped according to the direction of movement of the
tool and the type of machining.
The main ones are as follows:
- Face (or tangential) milling: Used to achieve flat surfaces, with cutting mainly done at the front of the milling cutter.
- Peripheral milling: Cutting occurs at the sides of the milling cutter. This technique is used to machine vertical or horizontal surfaces.
- Plunge milling: The tool moves vertically along the z-axis, perforating the workpiece to create cavities or holes.
- Immersion (or basket) milling: Similar to plunge milling but with horizontal movements, ideal for complex surfaces.
- Copy milling: Used to reproduce complex forms on a workpiece, often with the help of CNC milling machines.
- Profile milling: Ideal for creating special contours or edges on a workpiece.
- Face milling: Used to machine flat surfaces and remove thin layers of material.
- Slot milling: Ideal for creating grooves or slots with cylindrical or disc milling cutters.
- Helical milling: Used to produce helicoid surfaces, such as gear teeth.
- Shoulder milling: Ideal for creating stepped surfaces or perpendicular shoulders.
Milling type according to materials
The milling
type can also vary depending on the kind of material to be machined, as
different materials require different machining strategies and tools to ensure
precision and tool life. Below are a few thoughts on milling broken down by the
different types of material:
1. Steel milling:
- Low-speed milling: Steel is a sturdy, hard material and therefore requires slower cutting speeds to prevent overheating of the tools and rapid wear.
- Cemented carbide or high-speed steel (HSS) milling cutter: Effective cutting of steel requires tools with very high wear resistance, such as carbide or HSS milling cutters.
2. Aluminium milling:
- High-speed milling: Aluminium is softer than steel and can be machined at higher cutting speeds while still maintaining precision.
- Positive geometry milling cutter: Tools with sharp cutting angles and anti-adhesive coatings (to prevent chip build-up) are ideal for milling aluminium.
3. Cast iron milling:
- Medium-speed milling: Cast iron is hard but fragile. An intermediate cutting speed is used, as well as cemented carbide or HSS milling cutters.
- Reduced lubrication: Cast iron produces dust, so lubrication is often kept to a minimum during milling.
4. Plastic Milling:
- High-speed milling: Plastics are soft materials, which means they can be milled at very high speeds without the risk of premature tool wear.
- Milling cutter with sharp geometry: Extremely sharp tools with a positive cutting geometry are used to achieve high-quality finishes.
- Temperature management: Plastic tends to melt when subjected to excessive friction, so maintaining low temperatures during machining is vital.
5. Titanium milling:
- Low-speed, high-feed milling: Titanium is difficult to machine due to its high mechanical resistance and low thermal conductivity. It requires low speeds and adequate lubrication to handle the heat.
- Cemented carbide milling cutter: Carbide milling cutters are an ideal choice, since they are more resistant to wear and to the heat generated from machining titanium.
6. Milling of composite materials (carbon fibre, Kevlar):
- Controlled-speed milling: Composite materials can be abrasive for tools, requiring controlled milling speeds to prevent breakage of the edges or delamination.
- Diamond tools: Milling cutters with diamond inserts or abrasion-resistant coatings are used for composite materials to ensure a long tool life.
7. Brass and bronze milling:
- Medium- to high-speed milling: These materials are relatively soft and allow for higher cutting speeds than steel, but not to the extent of aluminium.
- Milling cutter with sharp geometry: Tools must be sharp to prevent burr formation and achieve a good surface finish.
8. Copper milling:
- High-speed milling: Like aluminium, copper can be machined at high speed, but it tends to stick to the tools and therefore requires milling cutters with anti-adhesive coatings.
- Lubrication required: It is important to use lubricants to prevent the material from sticking to the tool.
