Why probe?
Probes are elaborate switches that are designed to trigger on contact with a highly repeatable triggering characteristic when an 'event' occurs – contact with the surface of an object.
Renishaw probing systems
Time is money. Time spent manually setting workpiece positions and inspecting finished product is better invested in machining. Renishaw probing systems eliminate the costly machine downtime and component scrapping that is associated with manual setting and inspection.
See how an on machine probing system can benefit your business
Increase throughput from your existing assets
If your machines are overloaded then you may be facing a sizeable capital investment to make up the shortfall. Either that, or a large subcontract bill. Or worse still, you might find yourself turning away profitable work.
What if you could extract more throughput from the machinery you already have?
- Defer capital expenditure
- Reduce your subcontract and overtime bills
- Pursue additional business
Increase automation and reduce human intervention
Are you reliant on skilled operators to keep your machines running (leading to high labour costs and a substantial overtime bill)? Or perhaps your engineers are tied up with shop support rather than working on new processes?
What if you could automate your manual setting and measurement processes?
- Lower your shop support costs
- Reduce direct labour costs
- Redeploy staff into proactive engineering roles
Reduce rework, concessions and scrap
Scrapping parts is always painful – it's a waste of time, effort and materials. Similarly, rework and concessions lead to late deliveries, fire‑fighting and overtime.
If you could largely eliminate such quality costs, how would this help your responsiveness and profitability?
- Improve conformance and consistency
- Lower unit costs
- Shorten lead times
Enhance your capability and take on more work
Customers are demanding ever more complex work, whilst regulations are driving greater traceability throughout the manufacturing process. Are your capabilities keeping pace with the needs of your market?
Do you need a cost-effective way to boost the capability of your machining and inspection processes?
- Offer your customers state-of-the-art capabilities
- Take on more complex work
- Meet customer demands for traceability
Calculate how probing will benefit your own process
If you are still setting tools and parts manually and wish to compare the benefits of on-machine probing, have a look at our machine tool Probing benefits calculator
Relevant machine tool literature
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Pocket guide: Probes for CNC machine tools
An easy to use pocket guide introducing Renishaw's range of probing solutions for CNC machine tools. Process control solutions.
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Technical specifications: Probing systems for CNC machine tools
The type of probing system that you need will depend on your machine tool and the nature of the probing application. This document focuses on the main applications for probing on machine tools. It contains an introduction to the use of probing for each application, plus guidance on the selection of the most appropriate system and technical information about each probe.
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White paper: Survival of the fittest - the process control imperative
In tough times, manufacturers focus on reducing their operating costs, but may not be able to afford to spend their way out by buying more productive machinery. With that pathway closed, what are the opportunities for radically reducing costs without replacing existing machines? This paper explores four areas where substantial savings can be found if firms are prepared to change the way they control their machining processes.
