Alphacam V6’s latest developments to support one-hit machining will be highlighted by manufacturing software specialist Alphacam on Stand 5567 at MACH 2006, which takes place at the NEC between 15th-19th May.



Key enhancements to Alphacam V6 include faster and more intuitive operation, as well as new functionality to provide combined milling and turning operations within an integrated programming package.



Alphacam will also be demonstrating the effectiveness of its leading-edge manufacturing systems alongside the unique benefits of Autodesk’s Inventor 3D mechanical design software, following the recent signing of a Unique Application Reseller agreement with Autodesk. In addition, visitors to the Alphacam stand will have the opportunity to win a licence of its advanced 5-axis programming software in a free prize draw.



Alphacam V6 enables customers to create complete libraries of user-configurable machining strategies for all their components. Operators need only input the part geometry to be worked on, select the required machining style – including multiple roughing, turning, drilling and finishing routines, complete with nominated tooling and associated speeds and feeds – and the system will produce fully specified CNC machining programmes at the touch of a button.



Alphacam’s ability to combine any number of stored machining routines provides true ‘drag and drop’ compilation of new machining strategies, which can be checked quickly and easily using the system’s advanced visualisation tools. As a result, Alphacam V6 not only substantially reduces programming time and improves programming quality, but also minimises the skill levels required for ‘right first time’ programmes to be produced by inexperienced users.



In parallel, the system’s consistent application of manufacturing parameters to programmes produced by different operators allows companies to capitalise on in-house best practice, as well as achieve cost savings through standardisation and rationalisation of their tooling inventory.



Other enhancements in Alphacam V6 include seamless importation of product data from a wider variety of CAD systems, including Parasolid, SolidWorks and both Catia V4 and V5 parts files. Alphacam also employs automatic feature recognition, which enables features of the product model to be instantly identified and extracted for subsequent processing. Furthermore, the system’s parametric module has been upgraded to further streamline the specification and manufacture of families of products - by enabling new machining programmes to be created from existing parts simply by entering numerical values for product variables.



Like previous Alphacam software releases, Alphacam V6 is available world-wide in all major languages. It is also backed by local customer helpdesks, advanced on-site or remote system support, comprehensive product training programmes and the company’s networking, installation and IT consultancy services.



About Alphacam

Alphacam, Radan, Jobshop, Pathtrace and Cabinet Vision are principal brands of Planit Holdings plc. The organisation’s product range encompasses design to manufacturing applications and Enterprise Resource Planning software solutions for companies operating throughout the metal, woodworking, stone and sheet metal manufacturing sector. In addition, Planit International offers leading retail design software. The group is a multi-million pound global business, with operations in Europe, the Americas, Taiwan and Japan, as well as a network of approved distributors and dealers throughout North and South America, Asia, the Middle East, South Africa and the Pacific Rim.



For further information on Alphacam, please visit: www.alphacam.com.



-ENDS-



Editors’ Note:

For further information, please call Alphacam on: +44 (0) 24 7671 3434

Or visit: www.alphacam.com

Editorial enquiries to Rob Bloom at Anderson Burnbreck Ltd on: +44 (0)1242 518399.