University Times

Machine tool manufacturer Agie Limited has donated a rare machining tool, one of only 14 in the world, to the Manufacturing Assistance Center at the School of Engineering for use in its training and cooperative manufacturing programs.

The AGIECUT 200VHP wire EDM (electric discharge machine), valued at more than $500,000, removes metal from extremely hard materials to tolerances of .0001 of an inch, plus or minus four 100,000ths of an inch. EDMs differ from conventional machining tools in that they remove metal by melting tiny amounts of material using an electrical arc created by a wire conducting hundreds of volts of direct current onto the workpiece.

The mechanical and thermal features of the AGIECUT 200VHP include high-accuracy feedback systems to sense and adjust for slight variations in position of the workpiece, and special circuitry to produce a finish finer than can be produced by any other EDM.