High-Performance Inspection Probe
Introduced for Machining Centers

Renishaw Inc.‘s new OMP40 probe is a significant development that brings the benefits of automated part set-up and in-cycle gaging to small machining centers and high-speed cutting machines. With the OMP40, you can realize the benefits of probing, including reductions in set-up times of up to 90%, reduced scrap due to setting errors, reduced fixture costs, and improved process control.

The OMP40 uses miniaturized electronics that allow an ultra-compact probe that is 40 mm (diameter) by 50 mm (length), while still delivering a metrology performance of 1µm repeatability.

The OMP40 operates with Renishaw’s optical signal transmission system and is a further development in the company’s extensive range of products for machining centers. It was designed to meet a demand for probing on small machining centers and an expanding family of high-speed machines fitted with small HSK and small-taper spindles.

The OMP40 features a 360° optical transmission system with a range of up to 3 m, allowing probe operation in any spindle orientation. The result is simplified system installation and set-up on small machine tools, making the OMP40 suitable for retrofitting to machines without probing.

Latest Version of Handbook on
Machine Tool Resources Now Available

The latest version of a valuable resource on the world machine tool industry is now available from The Association for Manufacturing Technology. The 2002-2003 Economic Handbook of the Machine Tool Industry offers the latest information on the US and global machine tool industries. It covers employment, machine tool shipments, machine tools in use, and the financial condition of the industry by location.

The handbook contains approximately 300 pages including written overviews and an explanation of terms. Both product-specific and country-specific data are included. Information on capital equipment purchases is broken out for several major consuming industries.

AMBA Creates New Chapter for
Northern Ohio; 22 Firms Sign On

One of the more extensive association for the mold industry and one dedicated to mold makers is the American Mold Builders Association which has announced the organization of its 12th chapter, the Northern Ohio Chapter. In a summer meeting, 36 individuals from 22 companies throughout Ohio agreed to the formation of an official chapter. Dave Hunt, vice president of Hunt Machine & Manufacturing Co. in Tallmadge, Ohio, will serve as chapter president. Hunt is the third generation of his family to operate the 50-year-old mold making business. Assisting Hunt on the steering committee to select officers and committee members are Tom Nahodil and Dave Kuhary of Industrial Mold & Machine in Twinsburg, Ohio.

AMBA has grown from its original roots as a Chicago-based group to a national trade association with over 400 member companies with 9,000 employees and representing in excess of $2 billion in annual tooling sales. AMBA has chapters in Arizona, the Carolinas, California, Chicago, Milwaukee, Indiana, Minnesota, Upstate New York, and three chapters in Michigan.