Industries

Specialist precision Engineering across a range of industries

At Acutech, for more than two decades, we’ve provided specialist precision engineering expertise across an extensive range of industry sectors, with an emphasis on CNC milling, turning and wire erosion plus spark erosion, to provide the parts our varied client base requires.

Here, we supply an overview of some of the areas in which our customers operate:

• Automotive

In the automotive industry, precision engineering is vital to enhancing safety and performance. It also ensures that you build car parts to set specifications with virtually no deviance, meaning replacement parts are often cheaper than those from the original manufacturer.

We specialise in making precision components for this industry and for motorsport, so have a strong track record in this sector.

For example, we worked on an exciting project aimed at promoting both battery-powered vehicles and renewable energy, involving an electric Lotus Exige, powered by wind-generated electricity. We made the gate for the drive and direction selector, as well as the original aluminium billet (a solid length of metal with square or circle cross-sections) for the final drive housings or protective exterior shells. The housings weighed 85kg initially, but we got this down to 11kg.

We also used our state-of-the-art technology on an early 1900s cylinder head, one of only two still existing. We completed extensive welding and repair, while the client fitted steel valve seats. We then had to machine the part back to its original combustion shape, reinstating new combustion cavities.

For another client, we milled prototype drive-system parts from solid material rather than castings to make the dyno testing of a new prototype engine possible.

• Marine

The harsh, cold, wet and salty conditions of the marine environment make it critical to have reliable, accurate and high-quality components.

Our client operated in the world of luxury yachting, where parts are extremely expensive. For this customer’s replacement anchor chain, the size of the links wasn’t an exact match for the winch pocket (the durable rubber pocket which stows away winch handles safely on deck) and pitch. This could lead to slipping and wear.

Acutech remachined the winch drum’s pocket so it fit the chain. But the drum was too small in diameter for the chain’s pitch. We therefore machined away the existing pockets and inserted fresh material. Afterwards, as a double check, we printed some chain links to assess the fit.

• Construction and building

In this industry, precision engineering significantly speeds up production rates for bigger orders of intricate parts, with an incredibly high degree of accuracy. Precision engineering gives access to 3D CAD designs as prototypes before full-scale production begins.

We enjoy working in this vital sector. For example, for one client we used high-precision wire erosion to fashion a cavity block. (This is a precast concrete block containing a cavity or cavities.)

Wire erosion means cutting difficult-to-machine conductive materials (i.e. those which conduct electricity) with pinpoint accuracy. We use standard 0.2mm and 0.33mm wire diameters and can work with hard or soft materials in thicknesses ranging from under 1mm to more than 200mm.

Talk to us about the parts you need, whatever your industry.