Swiss High Precision Wire EDM
Deutsch   Français   English

 Der Oberentfelder Drahterodierer Argotec ist ISO-zertifiziert.

Home

The strengths of Wire EDM

 

Der Kubus mit rund 300 mm Kantenlänge wird bis auf den<br /> Innenraum fertig gefräst, gebohrt und anschliessend durch Drahterosion<br /> der weiterverwendbare Kern herausgeschnitten.

With the complexity of individual components rising while target prices are falling at the same time, the demand for easily customizable production methods is increasing. Some jobs even stretch the limits of modern machining systems. But by combining milling with wire EDM the desired quality can now be achieved at an acceptable price.  

While milling and lathe-cutting are generally cheaper and laser-cutting and water jets are faster, wire EDM wins hands down when it comes to accuracy and depth of cuts.

 

Wire EDM as a means of metalworking is enjoying growing opportunities that complement traditional metal cutting processes. The ease with which extremely tough, hardened steels and hard metals can be worked gives this technology a firm role in the modern machine industry. The highest surface quality, dimensional accuracy and the enormous flexibility of this technology are opening up new areas of application all the time.

Optimize manufacturing processes with wire EDM

Viewed in isolation, wire EDM is not always the most economical solution. But when introduced as one step in a production sequence, it can optimize the efficiency of an entire manufacturing process or facilitate the production of certain pieces that would not otherwise be possible. Sophisticated parts for tool and mold making and complex constructions for machine making can be produced easily with wire EDM as can prototypes and high-precision small parts such as Vertical EDM electrodes. Material losses are kept to a minimum and it is possible to halve the loss of material, for example in the production of expensive half-shell bearings with hard coatings on the running surfaces.

Dimensional accuracy for mold forms

It is hard to imagine modern mold making without the efficient method of wire EDM. Highly accurate contours, gearings and fine ribbings are impossible without wire EDM. Cutting of round, flat and molded ejectors is also easily accomplished making for smooth molding processes. High precision watch pieces and small electro-mechanical parts are often very difficult to make using classical machining methods. But the ability to rapidly produce complex one-off parts makes wire EDM the ideal and most economic method for prototyping.

Solving the problem of the sixth side

When machining filigree parts, after five sides have been completed, the sixth side often poses a tough challenge especially if the workpiece walls are weak, or have difficult contours. In these cases, wire EDM can solve the problem elegantly by allowing the part to be severed and completed without distortion or ridge formation. With Wire EDM, the sixth side is not machined, but cut away. Of course, total axial freedom can be exploited during this process so that, in effect, the problem of the sixth side is turned into the opportunity to create the most demanding surface forms in the whole manufacturing process.

The specialties of wire EDM

  • High dimensional accuracy and form accuracy in the μ range
  • Extremely low cutting widths 
    - applies even with deep cutting heights (400 mm)
  • Suitable for all conductive materials
  • Suitable for extremely hard materials such as hardened steel, titanium or tungsten carbide
  • Surface structures with variable roughness
  • Production of sharp-edged apertures

The Wire EDM Process

Electrical discharge machining (EDM) refers to a thermal subtractive manufacturing process for conductive materials. Also known as spark erosion, the process is based on electrical discharges – sparks – between the tool and the workpiece. There are three types of EDM: 1) wire EDM, which uses a wire as a tool 2) die sinking, in which an electrode is lowered into the workpiece, and 3) EDM drilling. In all three cases, the material is removed from the workpiece by vaporization or melting and material residues are washed away from cutting area in the dielectric fluid.