Quality control

Quality control in a CNC facility involves a series of procedures and methods aimed at ensuring that products manufactured using CNC machines meet specified quality standards. Here are a few steps that are often performed during quality control in a CNC facility:

1. Initial design assessment: Before production begins, the quality team assesses the technical design to ensure it meets customer requirements and industry standards.
2. Process parameter control: Process parameters such as spindle speed, feed rate, cooling, and tooling are monitored and adjusted to ensure optimal machining conditions.
3. Raw material inspection: Incoming materials such as sheets, rods, or castings undergo inspection to detect any material defects before machining.
4. Process monitoring: During CNC machining, monitoring systems are used to track process performance, including cycle time, machining precision, and deviations from predefined tolerances.
5. Dimensional control: After machining, finished parts undergo dimensional measurements using devices such as calipers, micrometers, coordinate measuring machines, hardness testers, or microscopes to ensure dimensions conform to technical specifications.
6. Functional testing: Depending on the product type, functional tests may be conducted to verify if parts perform as expected, such as strength tests, leak tests, or load tests.
7. Surface Evaluation: It is also crucial to assess the quality of machined part surfaces. Various techniques are employed for this purpose, such as visual inspection, measuring surface roughness, and conducting microstructural analysis.
8. Documentation and Reporting: All quality control results are meticulously documented, and reports are generated to ensure compliance and adherence to quality standards. These documents may also be required for quality traceability purposes in cases of complaints or audits. After production, each report is stored in the system for easy access to measured parameters at any time. For clients requiring measurement reports, they are sent electronically.

Quality control in the CNC facility is a crucial element of the production process aimed at ensuring that the manufactured parts meet customer expectations and quality requirements. A two-stage quality control process ensures that the produced components are inspected both during operations and during final measurements in the measurement laboratory.

To ensure the highest quality of products, we utilize Coordinate Measuring Machines (CMM), especially for manufacturing parts with complex shapes and highly precise requirements. Here is how the quality control process using CMM looks like:

1. Machine programming: First, a measurement program is created that specifies the measurement path, measurement points, and measurement methods for a given part. This programming can be done manually or automatically using CAM (Computer-Aided Manufacturing) software.
2. Part setup on the machine: Finished parts are placed on the coordinate measuring machine table in the correct position to enable precise and repeatable measurements.
3. Three-dimensional measurements: The coordinate measuring machine performs three-dimensional measurements of various geometric features of the part, such as diameters, distances, angles, radii, or planes. These measurements are done with high precision, often at the micrometer level.
4. Results analysis: After measurements are taken, a set of measurement data is obtained and analyzed for compliance with technical specification requirements. CMM software can automatically compare the obtained results with a CAD (Computer-Aided Design) model or other reference geometry.
5. Production process adjustments: If deviations from tolerances or other discrepancies are identified, adjustments can be made to the production process to ensure better compliance with quality requirements.
6. Documentation and reporting: Measurement results are meticulously documented, and reports are generated to document compliance or deviations from technical specifications. These documents are critical for ensuring product quality and may be required by customers or certifying bodies.

Quality control using coordinate measuring machines is a crucial stage in the production process, especially in industries where high geometric precision is required and tolerance requirements are very stringent.

Temperature conditions in the measurement laboratory are crucial for measurement precision and repeatability. Optimal temperature conditions ensure stability of measurement equipment and minimize the impact of temperature changes on measurement results. Here are a few factors to consider when controlling temperature conditions in the measurement laboratory:

1. Temperature stabilization: The measurement laboratory should be equipped with air conditioning or heating systems that maintain a stable temperature in the room. It's important to control the temperature within a narrow range to avoid fluctuations that could affect measurement accuracy.
2. Humidity control: In addition to temperature, air humidity can also affect the precision of certain measurements, especially with electronic equipment. Therefore, monitoring and controlling humidity levels in the laboratory is essential.
3. Thermal insulation: The laboratory should be thermally insulated from external atmospheric conditions to minimize the impact of external temperature changes on the room's interior.
4. Stabilization of measurement equipment temperature: In addition to controlling ambient temperature, it's also important to ensure that measurement equipment, such as coordinate measuring machines or other measurement devices, have sufficiently long thermal stabilization to reach the desired operating temperature before starting measurements.
5. Temperature monitoring: Temperature monitoring systems should be installed in the laboratory to continuously monitor thermal conditions and alert in case of abnormalities.
6. Calibration under temperature conditions: Before starting measurements, it's important to calibrate measurement equipment under temperature conditions similar to those in which the measurements will be performed.

Adhering to the principles mentioned above helps ensure that the measurement laboratory operates under optimal temperature conditions, which translates to measurement precision, repeatability, and increased confidence in the obtained results.