In an increasingly competitive manufacturing environment, companies must deliver high-quality parts faster and more cost-effectively than ever. While many focus on upgrading machines or investing in expensive tooling, the real opportunity often lies in optimizing workholding.
This customer success story highlights how a mid-sized machining company achieved 30% cost savings and significant cycle time reductions by strategically implementing self centering vises, CNC with 4th axis setups, and 5th axis vises.
Company Background
The featured company is a family-owned precision machine shop serving the aerospace, medical, and defense sectors. Operating with 18 CNC machines, the shop produces both small-batch prototypes and medium-volume production runs.
For years, they struggled with long setup times, frequent re-clamping, and inconsistent part alignment — all of which increased scrap rates and slowed production.
The Problem
Key challenges:
- High Setup Costs: Operators spent excessive time centering parts manually.
- Multiple Setups: Complex parts required up to five re-clamp operations.
- Inconsistent Quality: Manual alignment often resulted in small but costly dimensional errors.
These inefficiencies added labor costs, slowed delivery times, and limited the shop’s ability to take on new work.
Step 1: Increasing Accuracy with Self Centering Vises
The first improvement came from integrating self centering vises across their 3-axis CNC machines.
Results:
- Reduced Setup Time by 60% for symmetrical parts.
- Improved Repeatability: Automatic centering ensured every part started in the correct position.
- Lower Scrap Rates: Dimensional errors due to misalignment dropped significantly.
This change alone delivered a rapid ROI, paying for itself within two months through reduced labor and scrap costs.
Step 2: Adding Flexibility with CNC and 4th Axis
Next, the company upgraded two machines to include CNC with 4th axis capabilities.
Impact:
- Fewer Setups: Multi-sided parts could be machined in one cycle.
- Better Surface Alignment: Maintaining a single datum throughout reduced tolerance stack-up.
- Faster Production: Average cycle times dropped by 20–25%.
This upgrade enabled the shop to handle more complex geometries without needing to outsource, improving profit margins.
Step 3: Complex Part Efficiency with 5th Axis Vises
For their most demanding aerospace jobs, the company invested in 5th axis vises.
Results:
- Single-Setup Machining: Reduced up to five setups down to one.
- Full Part Access: Better tool clearance enabled complete machining without manual repositioning.
- Expanded Capabilities: Allowed the company to bid on more complex, higher-value contracts.
These vises not only improved efficiency but also boosted the shop’s reputation for delivering intricate parts quickly.
The Financial Impact
After one year of implementing the new workholding strategy, the company reported:
- 30% Reduction in Total Production Costs due to labor savings, reduced scrap, and faster cycles.
- 40% Increase in Machine Utilization by minimizing downtime between jobs.
- Higher Customer Satisfaction: On-time delivery rate improved by 15%.
Lessons Learned
- Workholding Can Outperform Machine Upgrades: For a fraction of the cost of a new CNC machine, workholding optimization delivered measurable results.
- Operator Training is Key: Even the best fixtures require proper use to unlock their potential.
- Flexibility Wins Contracts: The ability to handle a wider range of part geometries opened new market opportunities.
Conclusion
This success story shows that strategic investment in workholding — particularly with self centering vises, CNC with 4th axis, and 5th axis vises — can transform a shop’s efficiency, cost structure, and competitive position.
For manufacturers facing tight deadlines and cost pressures, workholding isn’t just a technical consideration — it’s a business strategy.