CASE STUDY M4 8XD MICRO END MILL INDUSTRY GOALS AEROSPACE The goals of this study were to significantly reduce job cost through the implementation of superior tooling and increased manufacturing efficiencies. MATERIAL 347 Stainless Steel (28 HRc Hardness) STRATEGY KSPT approached the job with a 4 flute 8XD Micro End Mill. The four flute PRODUCT design allows for higher feed rates and decreased deflection, improving M4 8XD Micro End Mills productivity and surface finish. APPLICATION Plunging COMPETITOR KSPT COMPETITOR 3 Flute Extended Reach Micro End Mill TOOL DIAMETER .07” .07 SPEED 6600 RPM 3400 RPM COOLANTSoluble Flood FEED 4 IPM 2 IPMRADIAL CUT (AE)N/AN/A TOOL INFORMATION AXIAL CUT (AP) 0.38 0.38 0.07" Dia / 0.21" LOC / 2" OAL CYCLE TIME 6 SECONDS 11.4 SECONDS RESULTS The overall findings of this study indicate KSPT’s 4 flute micro end mill blew away the competitor’s 3 flute tool in efficiency and effectiveness. KSPT's tool was able to capacitate a 94% higher speed and a 100% greater feed rate. Those combined efficiencies were able to cut the cycle time in half! Because of the higher quality tool, the customer was able to produce 160 parts per KSPT tool. The competitor’s 3 flute end mill was only able to produce 1 part per tool. Thus, the tool change cost was reduced by over 99%! Additionally, since KSPT only used 3 total tools to complete the job, the customer benefited from a new tool cost reduction by over 99%. The M4 8XD 4 flute micro end mill ultimately saved the customer a grand total of $12,030.34, resulting in a 98.88% cost reduction! These tools, albeit small, are an epic step forward for micro machining. TOTAL PARTS AVAILABLE PER TOOL NEW TOOLS REQUIRED TO 160 160 COMPLETE THE JOB 140 400 120 340 100 8060 200 40 20 1 3 0 0 KSPT Competitor KSPT Competitor TOOL CHANGE COST TOTAL COST $2,125.00 $3,000 $15,000 $12,166.17 $2,000 $10,000 $1,000 $5,000 $18.75 $135.82 $0 $0 KSPT Competitor KSPT Competitor