ON TOOL MATERIALS FOR HIGH-SPEED MACHINING

The trend towards increased machining automation improves plant utilization by reducing the nonmachining component of the production cycle and places a premium on reducing machining time. Improved tooling systems allow increased production rate with existing plant and equipment and result in increased production at negligible additional cost. Whereas new tool materials have traditionally been developed empirically, the state of understanding of the mechanisms of tool wear has advanced considerably in recent years. Therefore, an attempt has been made to identify specific strategies for developing new tooling systems for high speed machining in the light of current knowledge.