A combination of Delcam's Power Solution software and new manufacturing methods is helping Cavalier Tool and Manufacturing to meet its commitments to designing and building quality moulds on time.

A combination of Delcam's Power Solution software and new manufacturing methods is helping Cavalier Tool and Manufacturing to stay ahead of its domestic and overseas competition. Together, they are allowing the company to meet its commitments to designing and building quality moulds, on time, at competitive prices. In 1975, Ron Kellenberger, Ray Bendig and Rick Janisse founded Cavalier Tool and Manufacturing in 2,500 sq.feet of space in Windsor, Ontario.

Today, the company employs 110 people in two buildings covering over 50,000 sq.feet.

It makes moulds of all types for a wide variety of consumer products and automotive applications.

Cavalier combines new techniques with a wide array of new and veteran equipment.

To maximize productivity, CNC programmer Ed Mueller tailors machining strategies to individual machines.

'The older, larger machines are more rigid and you can take a larger depth of cut, but you have to go to slower feed rates,' he said.

'On the newer, more compact machines, we take a shallower cut and increase the feed rate.' Mr Mueller programs all the cutting paths with Delcam's PowerMILL CAM system.

On the higher-speed machines, PowerMILL offers great control over links and leads, permits blending cuts and executes corners in ways that ensure gouge-free machining.

The toolpaths for some of Cavalier's larger moulds require as long as 24 hours to machine.

A number of machining strategies are used to protect the workpiece and cutting tool when running unattended, lights-out operation.

Mr Mueller said the 'faith we have in the program' enables shop personnel to simply make sure the machine has 'a good cutter in there and let it go.' 'We try to climb mill instead of milling back and forth,' he added.

'It takes a little longer because the mill has to rapid back, but you've got less chance of gouging than in conventional milling, where the tool pulls into the steel.' When possible, Cavalier employs PowerMILL's constant Z or profiling strategy, rather than raster methods, because they give more even cutting forces on the tool.

Despite the precision and speed of present-day machining, EDM remains an essential tool in achieving fine mould details.

Cavalier utilizes state of the art CNC orbital and wire edm machines, and is completely self-sufficient in EDM electrode design and manufacture.

Programmer Steve Glendinning said, 'We've got a CNC-controlled ONA EDM sinker that allows us to do three burns in one set-up.

We can set it up to burn for an entire weekend.

We do the same thing with our CNC machining of electrodes.

We set up four or five electrodes on the machine.

The operator is needed only to change the electrodes, key in the correct programs and hit the go button.' Mr Glendinning uses Delcam's PS-Electrode program to create the electronic files from which the electrodes are made.

He brings an IGES file from Cavalier's CAD department into the software, and then automatically generates the electrode through its Electrode Wizard.

'When you extract the electrode, PS-Electrode automatically and immediately generates the drawings and location sheets,' he said.

'I've created my own custom set-up sheets with four views: front, top, regular third angle projection plus the isometric view.' Previously, making these sheets consumed much more time.

'I'd have to generate each individual electrode, then make an individual location drawing for it, make a separate set-up sheet, and print that out,' he recalled.

Mr Glendinning said PS-Electrode also offers the flexibility of easily moving in and out of the electrode Wizard as the job demands.

'If it's not a fully enclosed electrode, for example, where its burning on all sides, or if I've got to offset my holder because it's too close to a wall, it involves breaking out of the Wizard.