Setting honing and lapping machines for production
Overview
This standard identifies the competences you need to prepare and set up honing and lapping machines, such as horizontal, vertical honing machines, rotary and reciprocal lapping machines, in accordance with approved procedures. This involves selecting the appropriate workholding devices, and mounting and positioning them to the machine in the correct location for the type of operation being carried out. You will be expected to select the appropriate honing mandrels, stones, discs and grit to use, check them for defects and mount and secure them to the machine spindle. You will also be expected to mount the workpiece, and to check that it is correctly positioned and aligned before starting the honing or lapping operations.
You must set up the appropriate mechanisms, stops and controls for stroke lengths, stroke over-run, speed of stroke, RPM, and stone pressure, as applicable for the particular operations and machine type used. Making adjustments to settings to achieve specification, and solving machine-related problems during production, will also form part of your role.
Your responsibilities will require you to comply with organisational policy and procedures for the machine setting activities undertaken, and to report any problems with the honing and lapping machines, equipment or setting up activities that you cannot personally resolve, or are outside your permitted authority, to the relevant people. You will be expected to work with a minimum of supervision, taking personal responsibility for your own actions and for the quality and accuracy of the work that you carry out.
Your underpinning knowledge will provide a good understanding of your work, and will provide an informed approach to the setting up procedures used. You will understand the honing and lapping machines used, and their application, and will know about the workholding devices, honing stones, equipment, relevant materials, consumables and setting up procedures, in adequate depth to provide a sound basis for carrying out the activities, correcting faults and ensuring the work output is to the required specification.
You will understand the safety precautions required when working with the machines and their associated tools and equipment. You will be required to demonstrate safe working practices throughout, and will understand the responsibility you owe to yourself and others in the workplace.
This standard does not cover CNC activities, for which other standards apply.
Performance criteria
You must be able to:
- work safely at all times, complying with health and safety and other relevant regulations, directives and guidelines
- follow the correct specifications for the component to be produced
- determine what has to be done and how the machine will be set to achieve this
- mount, set and secure the required workholding devices, workpiece and cutting tools
- set the machine tool operating parameters to achieve the component specification
- check that all safety mechanisms are in place and that the equipment is set correctly for the required operations
- complete the required production documentation
- deal promptly and effectively with problems within your control and report those that cannot be solved
Knowledge and Understanding
You need to know and understand:
- how to work safely at all times, complying with health and safety and other relevant regulations, directives and guidelines
- the hazards associated with setting honing and lapping and how to minimise them and reduce any risks
- how to start and stop the machine in normal and emergency situations
- the importance of ensuring that the machine is isolated from the power supply before mounting honing mandrels, stones and workholding devices
- the importance of wearing the appropriate protective clothing (PPE) and equipment, and of keeping the work area clean and tidy
- the basic operation of the various honing and lapping machines, and typical operations that they can perform
- how to handle and store honing and lapping equipment and stones safely and correctly
- how to extract and use information from engineering drawings and related specifications (to include symbols and conventions to appropriate standards) in relation to work undertaken
- how to interpret first and third angle drawings, imperial and metric systems of measurement, workpiece reference points and system of tolerancing
- terminology used in honing and lapping in relation to the activities undertaken
- the range of workholding methods and devices that are used on honing and lapping machines
- the methods of mounting and setting the workpiece in/on the workholding devices, and the tools and equipment that can be used
- the various honing and lapping operations that are used to produce the required profiles, and the types of stones, discs and grits that are used
- how to check that the honing mandrels, wedges and stones are in a safe and serviceable condition
- the methods of mounting and securing the mandrels and discs to the machine spindles
- how to set up the various machines for the particular operations being performed
- how the various types of material will affect the feeds and speeds that can be used
- the application of cutting fluids with regard to a range of different materials
- filtration requirements, and how to recognise when filters require changing/cleaning
- the need to conduct trial runs, and to check that the machine is set up and running safely and correctly
- problems that can occur with setting up of the honing and lapping equipment, workholding devices and machine operating parameters, and what to do if problems occur
- the extent of your own responsibility and to whom you should report if you have problems that you cannot resolve
Scope/range
Scope Performance
- Carry out all of the following activities during setting up:
- obtain and use the appropriate documentation
- adhere to procedures or systems in place for risk assessment, personal protective equipment and other relevant safety regulations and procedures to realise a safe system of work
- follow safe practice/approved setting up procedures at all times
- ensure that correctly adjusted machine guards are in place
- check that the honing stones or discs are in a usable condition
- hold components securely without distortion
- leave the work area and machine in a safe and appropriate condition on completion of the activities
- Prepare one of the following types of honing or lapping machine in readiness for production:
- horizontal honing
- vertical honing
- rotary disc lapping
- reciprocating machines
- Position and secure workpieces, using four of the following workholding methods and devices:
- chucks
- pots
- magnetic chucks
- face plate
- jigs/fixtures
- collets
- vee-blocks
- magnetic blocks
- clamps
- angle plates
- Select, prepare and mount all the following for honing machines:
- selecting mandrels and wedges to suit bore size and through or blind hole
- selecting honing stones for specific materials and applications
- checking stones for damage
or. select, prepare and mount all the following for lapping machines:
4. selecting discs/pads for specific materials and applications
5. selecting appropriate grits for specific materials and applications
6. checking discs for damage
- Prepare honing or lapping machines, to include all the following, as applicable to the machine type:
- RPM or reciprocating speed
- stroke over-run length
- stone or disc pressure
- stroke length
- stroke speed
- Set up honing machines to finish two of the following features:
- through holes
- blind holes
- tapered holes
or set up lapping machines to finish all of the following features:
4. flat faces
5. parallel faces
6. angular faces
- Hone or lap components made from one of the following types of material:
- ferrous
- non-ferrous
- Set the machine to produce components within all of the following quality and accuracy standards, as applicable to the operations performed:
- tolerance to relevant standard
- surface texture 8 µin or 0.2µm
- components to be free from stone marks, burrs and sharp edges