Southern Gear Adds Capacity for Large Ring Gears

<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="/ueditor/php/upload/image/20230228/1677554216949496.png" title="1677554216949496.png" alt="3.png"/></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Southern Gear has added two Hwacheon VT-1150+ Vertical Turning Centers to its gear production operations, both capable of high-speed, complete machining of ring gears and other cylindrical parts with diameters of 1,320 mm and lengths up to 950 mm.&nbsp;</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><br/></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">The machines, with powerful 55kW spindles, rapid 24 m/min. axis travel and a 24-tool turret for &quot;turnmill&quot; machining, enable Southern Gear to perform multiple turning, milling and other operations in single setup, thus greatly reducing the cycle times required to completely machine a typical ring gear.&nbsp;</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><br/></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Additionally, the VT-1150+ provides an extremely stable heavy duty cutting platform, with a highly rigid box-way feed structure, air-floating system and unique, one-piece machine bed—all designed to deliver reliable, high precision with minimal thermal displacement.&nbsp;</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><br/></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">“These new Vertical Turning Centers meet the dual challenge of delivering larger parts faster with the highest quality,” explains Southern Gear President Karen Malin. “They’re a great fit for our fast-growing aerospace and defense business where larger gears of this type are today in very high demand.”&nbsp;</span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><br/></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">&nbsp;The addition of the Hwacheon VTC’s is part of a multi-million dollar, company-wide investment in new technologies, methodologies and processes that, over the last several years, has, according to Ms. Malin, added much needed capacity to Southern Gear’s vertically-integrated shop floor.</span></p><p><br/></p>