Min-Max Machine, Ltd. (Ronkonkoma, New York), a contractor of military aircraft parts, produces work for companies such as Sikorsky Aircraft, Boeing-St. Louis, and the Northrop Grumman Corporation.

Manufacturing components, often consisting of titanium, 17-4ph stainless steel, 4340 alloy steel and other materials, demanded that Min-Max owners Randy, Rodney and Ralph Neubauer consider functionality and quality when making the decision to increase production capabilities. The brothers chose an Okuma MA-60HB horizontal machining center (HMC).

Before the Okuma MA-60HB could be integrated into the production line, toolholding and workholding needed to be addressed. Min-Max decided to use CT50 tooling, of which they had an extensive supply. Having addressed toolholding with "almost 1,000 pieces of CT50 tooling," Rodney Neubauer decided that the company should shift its focus to workholding. The horizontal machine required Min-Max to purchase tombstone fixtures that would support the variety of parts the company usually produced. Functionality was a primary concern.

Aluminum tombstones caused a vibration problem when attempting to cut titanium. "The aluminum tombstone did not have the rigidity we needed," states Randy Neubauer. "Our cutters were taking a beating, and the surface finish was not good." Therefore, plate steel tombstones seemed to be a logical choice. Ralph Neubauer suggested that Min-Max manufacture its own tombstones.

At this point, the Neubauers came across the Web site for Tombstone City (Huntington Station, New York). The company carries an inventory of tombstones, including square machined, square T-slotted, square with tapped holes, T-style machined, T-style tapped holes and T-style modular, and it offers the capability of modifying and/or manufacturing custom tombstones.
Okuma MA-60HB horizontal machining center

The Neubauers called Andy Popky, sales manager at Tombstone City, who provided them with a list of references.

"I believe it is a firm's obligation not only to provide a quality product at a sensible price, but also that customer service, before, during and after the sale, remain just as important," says Mr. Popky.

Mr. Popky went on to explain that fully machined tombstones with horizontal T-slots could be delivered for about the same cost that Min-Max might incur in creating its own. Additionally, tombstones created in-house would not have been able to include T-slots. T-slots are a user-friendly option because they remove a large portion of preproduction labor by eliminating the need to drill and tap a new series of holes each time a new job is set up. Another advantage was that Min Max would not have to tie up its machinery building fixtures.

When the tombstones arrived, the staff scrutinized the fixtures to ensure that stated specifications had been met.
"The surface finish was excellent and the squareness and perpendicularity were well within the stated tolerances," reports Rodney Neubauer.

After running for several months, it was evident that ordering the T-slotted tombstones was the appropriate decision. In addition to improving setup time, the fixturing could be applied to numerous jobs.

"We can save several hours' setup work by using the T-slotted tombstones," says Randy Neubauer. "Being that most of our jobs are short runs, keeping setup time down is a key factor towards profitability," Mr. Neubauer says.