At Lampin Corporation, our engineers are constantly working with customers to determine the most efficient and economical ways to achieve their objectives. Choice of material is almost always a critical part of that process. With their depth of experience, Lampin engineers are able to take a look at a precision-machined part and quickly determine if it has been produced using the most appropriate materials and at the lowest possible cost. This analysis is an essential component of production planning and we pride ourselves on our ability to recommend material choices that will help keep costs in check without negatively affecting the functionality of the part in question.
Case in point; Lampin recently worked with a client in the medical industry to re-design a gear used as a precision component in a medical device. Prior to the part’s redesign, the device had been making patients uncomfortable simply because of the loud noise it created during use. Although the part itself made no contact with the patient and was therefore incapable of causing actual pain, the original design and material composition (brass) was causing the gear to generate loud noises that all-too-often incited fear and anxiety.
Leveraging its comprehensive understanding of, and direct experience with, a broad spectrum of materials, Lampin engineers proposed re-making the part in PEEK (polyetheretherketone), a high-performance plastic that can be machined with extreme precision. These parts require very stringent gear tolerances, which eliminate any possibility for injection molding. Lampin engineers developed a special process and tooling to manufacture these in a CNC Swiss lathe. Lampin engineers also combined a special Cryogenic freezing process to eliminate microscopic burrs in the lathe cutting process. This simple change in material not only decreased production cost, but also virtually eliminated noise and did so while maintaining strict performance specifications.
The client was happy and more importantly, so were the patients!
