Programming CNC mills, lathes, wire-EDM, turn-mill centers, and Swiss-type lathes

Major highlights of PartMaker Version 2011 include powerful milling functionality, more vivid set-up documentation, a more flexible tooling library, improved simulation of unique machine tool architectures, and a host of additional productivity enhancements.

PartMaker Version 2011 features the PowerSHAPE Companion for PartMaker, an optional module to allow users to design 3D models, repair poor quality 3D data, and modify 3D geometry to improve Design for Manufacturability (DFM). This new optional module features the powerful Solid Doctor utility, which allows users to read and repair models from all sources and tackle the common problems that can be found when translating low-precision and incomplete 3D data. This is done by detecting and repairing faults in engineering models and generating a valid, high-precision solid model ready for programming in PartMaker.

PartMaker Version 2011 lets users manage tool inventory in a universal manner using Master Tools Databases. Master Tools Databases can be edited, manipulated, and stored through external database programs, such as Microsoft Excel, and individual tools can be quickly imported for specific jobs. This approach makes programming more productive by allowing the user to choose previously created tools, enabling the reduction in the size of a given tool library for a particular programming job. Tools are interchangeable between PartMaker’s Tool Files and the users Master Tools Database. This feature will also allow individuals without access to or familiarity with PartMaker to manage the tool inventory available to the CNC programmers.

Bar-fed mills are a new breed of machine tool technology that is growing, and PartMaker introduces a number of features for handling the unique programming issues presented by these machines. PartMaker Version 2011 simulates the architectures and machine kinematics of bar-fed mills in its 3D simulation module and supports the bar-fed mill offerings with robust post-processors and vivid simulation of machines such as Willemin-Macodel, Bumotec, Chiron, Mazak, Star, and others.

PartMaker Version 2011 features a host of improvements to the PartMaker Documentation Wizard (PDW) module including a number of new standard set-up sheet templates as well as the ability to create mid process set-up sheets. Mid process set-up sheets display a picture of the part being machined at each step in the machining process, as well as a graphical view of the tool used in that process. Such set-up sheets can be a great way to communicate to shopfloor personnel exactly how to process a part, speeding up setup time and reducing the possibility of errors.
PartMaker Version 2011 includes a number of enhancements to the software’s surface machining strategies. These improvements include the addition of a more powerful Surface Swarfing strategy, makeing programming swarfing easier and more accurate. The new version also includes the addition of 4-axis swarfing, allowing users to perform more sophisticated milling on machines only capable of 4-axis cutting, which includes most Swiss-type lathes on the market today.

Three-dimensional simulation in PartMaker Version 2011 is much faster than previous versions – more than 50% faster in many cases – with this increase in speed particularly helpful for cutting simulation of complex parts with a number of features. The version also lets users see and verify all the toolpaths at once when programming on a solid model. By simply clicking on a hole or profile on a solid model, PartMaker will place the user into the profile or hole group where that feature has been defined.

EASTEC BOOTH #5326

Partmaker Inc.
Ft. Washington, PA
partmaker.com