Milling is a manufacturing process that is very similar to drilling, however, the feed movement primarily occurs vertically along the tool axis.
- Milling machine with bed-like design
- Ideal for processing heavy workpieces
- Particularly suited to slender workpiece shapes
Quality Great offers Personalised
This places considerably higher demands on the lateral guidance of the tool. This is why milling came rather late onto the scene as a manufacturing process; it only started in earnest with the development of industrial tool machines and the invention of the steam engine.
The first milling machine was constructed in 1818. In contrast to the lathe, it enabled the machine-supported manufacture of prismatic workpieces without any rotational symmetry and thus increased the range of options for workpiece design. The design of this machine moves all translational movements within the range of the tool holder.
CHIRON Travelling column milling machine in operation
Since the workpiece does not move while being machined on the column mill, the design enables very bulky and heavy components to be milled, which are often large enough to be measured in tonnes. The spindle in the column mill can be placed vertically or horizontally and the equipment can also be designed as a universal milling machine. As with all modern tool machines, moving column milling machines are usually numerically-controlled.