If you landed on this page, there’s a strong chance you are either participating in a test grind, or are getting ready to participate in a test grind with the team at UNITED GRINDING North America, or one of our competitors. If this is the case, and your test grind doesn’t meet your high standards, or your find yourself making concessions or getting delayed due to lack of preparation, contact us and we’ll get your test grind done right – the first time.

Whether you’re looking to test a tool grinding machine from WALTER, a cylindrical grinding machine from STUDER or a surface and profile grinding machine from BLOHM or MÄGERLE, our skilled US-based sales and engineering teams will work with you to help pinpoint the correct machine and define the process required to deliver the parts you need.

Our US-based Application Engineering Team at UNITED GRINDING North America has centuries of combined experience, and we tapped into that experience to bring you this cheat-sheet to help you make sure your next test grind earns a passing grade.

These are the elements that go into a successful test grind.
 

• Coolant Management Systems
  • From coolant delivery to filtration to cooling the coolant itself, coolant provides myriad benefits and comes with many options. Coolant is an undeniable requirement for any successful test grinding process. 
• The Right-Sized Filtration System
  • The grinding machine you’re using, and the process you’re testing requires varying amounts of coolant to achieve the results you’re proving out. Having the right size pump, coolant reservoir, and the correct filtration medium will all have an impact on the success of your test grind.
• Aligned Expectations
  • Nothing will kill a successful test grind faster if both parties go into it with different objectives and goals. Making sure you are on the same page as the engineer running the test grind is paramount going into any test grind.
• Sample "Finished" Part
  • A sample of the finished, in-tolerance part, while not a requirement, is helpful to compare the part that’s produced in the test grind to the part that both parties recognize as “in spec”. 

For best results, make sure you have an open line of communication between yourself and the Application Engineers conducting the test grind. They’re briefed thoroughly on the project, but questions always come up once they dive in. 

Once lines of communication are established, we move onto the goal of the test grind. This is simply the key condition that needs to be met, and it can vary. Can the machine grind the part in the cycle time quoted, within the specified tolerances, and hold repeatability?

If steps 1 and 2 are done well, the test grind usually runs pretty smoothly. The correct parts are on hand to properly test, the objective is clear and it’s easy to communicate with each other about anything that comes up.

Our Application Engineers gather all the info that they can during the test grind, with a crucial factor being the accurate measurement of the parts. At UNITED GRINDING North America, we have an inspection lab with millions of dollars worth of measuring equipment in a room that’s specifically climate controlled for gathering precise measurements. In the off-circumstance where we don’t have the right piece of equipment to gather the required measurements, we’ll ship the part to a specialist who is able to gather these measurements for final confirmation.  

After your test grind is complete and measurements have been recorded, we’ll provide your finished, in-spec parts so you can run additional tests or measurements if required. We’ll schedule a call to review the process, tooling, workholding, and all relevant aspects of the test grind. Next steps can be determined at this point. Chances are, you now have exactly what you need to feel good about your precision grinding machine purchase.

• Our team always starts slow during a test grind. We’re not running things at full speed. Doing so would not be a wise move while we’re still learning the part. 
• When we get a grinding application test request, our goal is to make the production better. First, we meet the required specs on the print. 
• After that, we can chase the improvement of the desired outcome, whether that’s geometry, tolerancing, cycle time or surface finish. 
   

You may not have a UNITED GRINDING machine in mind or an application that needs a CNC test grind right now, but someday you will. When that day somes, talk to us about your part, and the outcome you'd like to see.