Cut and dried

For as long as cutting tools have existed, we have been faced with the problem of making a material that is both hard and durable.

The Holy Grail for cutting-tool manufacturers is to offer a single material that meets all customer demands for higher productivity, longer effective cutting times and the best performance across the widest range of cutting conditions.

It may seem an unrealistic goal but it is one tooling developers are moving closer towards. This is further complicated by the fact that metallurgists are also developing new materials to withstand greater temperature, featuring higher strength-to-weight ratios, and that tool geometry and stiffness play an equally important role as construction.

All tooling manufacturers will tell you that the the job setup, machine build and tool holding system is as important to performance as the construction itself. In short, the maximum designed cutting potential is only achieved if you have the right tool material/grade, the right tool geometry, quality tool holders, a solidly built machine tool with suitable jigs and/or work holding solution.