Friday, February 28, 2020
CNC Machining Is The Foundation Of The Future
Fareastgizmos: Various reports in the last year or two have indicated that the CNC machining industry is set up for significant growth. This industry can involve a number of different specific practices, but broadly speaking it concerns the use of automated equipment to cut, turn, and shape materials so as to form final products. And in late 2019, AP News cited market projections forecasting a near doubling of this industry in the span between 2018 and 2028, as a result of “increasing awareness about energy and heavy industry worldwide.”
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It doesn't surprise me at all that the CNC machining industry is expecting to see a doubling in growth over the ten year span that the article lists. CNC machining has opened the doors to creating what would have been nearly impossible parts in a matter of hours or days. Not only that, but it makes the machining world almost more accessible to a wider range of industry professionals. The fact that we use MasterCAM, the industry standard high-end Computer Aided Manufacturing software in our shop is just one example of how CNC technology has reached our industry. I agree a lot with what this article says, and have seen this impact in the engineering world when I've partnered with companies such as SouthCo and Siemens for projects in the past. I never even thought about the ability for astronauts to machine broken parts in space, something that would be crucial for long-haul space travel. In that case, much of the heavy lifting can be done on earth, and the astronauts don't inherently need to be master machinists to fix something. In our world, this might equate to an office member toolpathing a contour for platforms or flats, and handing that off to a master carp or job lead who only needs to know how to operate the machine. The possibilities are truly endless, and I encourage anyone in our industry to gain CNC experience if they can.
This article mentions that CNC is probably going to be a more important tool heading into the future, but that a lot of the excitement is centered around processes like 3D printing because it’s totally new. It;s interesting that this author thinks that CNC machining is to some extent, a wave of the future, because it is a process that has been around for quite some time. The article mentions that the CNC is the perfect tool for a quick prototype, and that it certainly is. CNC parts are sometimes useful in scenery, but for the most part there are simpler processes that can get us the effect we need for theater. The article alludes to the idea of CNC and 3D printing working together, and I’m curious what that may look like in the near future and how that could possibly help us create new ideas and inventions.
I chose this article specifically because of Boevers’ repeated comments during ScenoFab about our “unnatural love affair with the CNC router”, and how we choose to do things on the CNC that could be done quicker and easier with other tools. The main advantages of CNC technology is its level of precision and its capability to work with different materials - the article explains its usage in the auto and aerospace manufacturing process, and I think that makes a lot of sense. I also think that for a lot of what we do, that level of precision is unnecessary. It’s great for cutting out things like our automation deck, where we need a bunch of copies of the same weird shape that would be a pain to cut out with a different saw. But I can also see how other jobs get sent to the router that would be more easily dealt with with a sharpie and a normal saw, because we get sucked into the idea that more technology=better.
It doesn't surprise me that between CNC and 3D printing, 3D printing gets most of the hype. I remember when 3D printing became something regularly talked about in school and there was so much commotion when we finally got one. There's something about watching what you've designed become 3-Dimensional layer by layer that's so intriguing and makes you feel like there's a world of possibilities. CNC being an automated router kind of makes sense that people aren't as excited about it as a concept, not based on its ability or capacity to make work more efficient. It can feel a little bit like old news even though the technology is comparable in age. There's something flashy and intriguing about 3-D printing because precision in 3-D by human hands is difficult and time-consuming so seeing it done so quickly can be a bit astounding. For what we do, the CNC tends to come into play a lot more because it takes away the need for human labor on repetitive or complex tasks.
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