4 to 5 fully-equipped SPRINT 20 | 5 machines for the price of one multi-spindle machine.

The volume alone shows that single-spindle or multi-spindle automatic lathes are the preferred production equipment. Increasing component variety and the smaller batch sizes this involves, as well as more complex component geometries, have increasingly led to single-spindle lathes becoming the preferred option. This trend is reinforced by material-related process requirements such as dry machining or working with minimal volume lubrication. “What is crucial for our success is the ability to master all disciplines of high-tech turning in the production area with a similar degree of perfection, to be able to assure our customers, holistically and objectively, of optimum performance at the most favourable conditions at all times”, as Wolfgang Hafen emphasises, the co-director of the family business together with his brother Hubert, now in the third generation. But due to the nine SPRINT 20 | 5 machines recently installed, and thanks to their enormous performance capacity, the limits have significantly shifted in favour of the production lathes.

“For the price of one multi-spindle auto, I can purchase 4, if not 5 fully-equipped SPRINT 20 | 5 machines. This comparison alone shows that our decision-making scope has become far larger”, says Wolfgang Hafen. He cites the ease of use and programming as well as the short set-up times as the basis for high levels of flexibility, as well as the powerful spindle for sophisticated machining tasks, as further benefits of DMG MORI machines. And also in terms of quality, the SPRINT 20 | 5 has impressive performance across the board, as Wolfgang Hafen stresses, summing up: “The manufactured parts are of very high 5 μm accuracy – this is approximately equivalent to grinding quality.”