This section provides an overview for ball milling services as well as their applications and principles. Also, please take a look at the list of 5 ball milling service companies and their company rankings. Here are the top-ranked ball milling service companies as of November, 2024: 1.Kadan Consultants, Inc., 2.Alabama Specialty Products, Inc., 3.Jurman Metrics, Inc..
Table of Contents
A ball milling service is a cutting method used in milling machines and NC (Numerical Control) machine tools. It employs a cutting tool with a rounded, ball-shaped endmill tip. This spherical tip is particularly suited for cutting complex 3D curved surfaces, including both convex and concave shapes. Ball milling excels in operations where other end milling techniques struggle, such as peripheral cutting on R surfaces and grooving. Unlike other methods, ball milling achieves higher precision and requires less labor when machining curved surfaces.
In addition to ball end mills, tools like square end mills, radius end mills, and other types of end mills, such as tapered end mills, are commonly used. Tapered end mills gradually narrow down towards the tip.
Ball milling services are particularly effective for machining curved surfaces. They are frequently employed for copy milling and radius machining in NC machine tools. While primarily used for curved surfaces, ball milling can also handle flat surfaces, pockets, and various other forms. However, its spherical blade tip means it cannot perform machining without an R (radius).
Using 4-axis and 5-axis milling machines allows for cutting various shapes, making ball milling services ideal for manufacturing complex parts such as automobile and aircraft components, molds, etc. Additionally, preventing the zero peripheral velocity point at the tool tip extends blade life and increases work speed.
Ball milling services are essential for cutting 3D curved surfaces, crucial in the creation of increasingly complex molds and parts. This method enables a high degree of precision in finishing curved surfaces, potentially reducing the time needed for final manual polishing.
The primary drawback of ball milling is the spherical blade tip, which leaves a cusp when cutting flat surfaces, leading to a less desirable surface finish. To improve this, machining paths are overlapped, which increases cutting time. Furthermore, the accuracy of the machined surface depends on the contact point between the ball mill and the material. By tilting the ball end mill for optimal cutting, one can achieve high precision and prevent tool breakage. However, adjusting the angle to match the material's curved surface complicates the programming process.
Tilting the endmill is not feasible with a 3-axis machine; a 5-axis machine, however, can facilitate time-saving and enable high-precision cutting.
*Including some distributors, etc.
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Jurman Metrics Inc., established in 1973 and headquartered in Monroe, Connecticut, is a manufacturer and supplier of CNC and conventional machining services. The company specializes in diverse part manufacturing, from prototypes to medium-volume production, CNC turning, and vertical milling services across many industries, including semiconductor, automotive, and scientific instrumentation sectors. It offers CNC milling, turning, mechanical assembly, and prototyping services with tight tolerances. Its CNC machining tools handle various materials, including steel, aluminum, plastics, and ceramics. It delivers precision parts, close-tolerance components, and custom mechanical assemblies tailored to customer needs.
Kadan Consultants, founded in 2001 and located in Huntington Beach, California, is a manufacturer and fabrication shop offering tooling, fabrication, assembly, and machine tool inspection services. The company's CNC machining services include CNC turning and vertical milling. Its other services are tooling (assembly, modification, repairs, and certification), prototyping, waterjet cutting, fabrication, and TIG and MIG welding. The company also offers secondary services such as alignments and installations, reverse engineering and scanning, third-party inspections, and measurement device rentals. The company primarily serves the aerospace sector, but has over the years expanded to other industries: automotive, power generation, transportation, and entertainment.
1860 GEL Limited has been a manufacturer of CNC milling, machining, and spare parts since 2016 based in Greater Manchester, UK. The company uses advanced CNC milling and machining technologies to produce high-quality and precise parts that meet the specifications and requirements of the customers such as the manufacturing of various components used for carpet looms like grippers, spool frames, yarn guides, threading hooks, and more to weave different types of carpets. It also facilitates companies that need custom-made parts by subcontracting manufacturing services such as medical, oil and gas, renewable energy, and automotive industries.
Alabama Specialty Products, Inc. (ASPI) was established in 1980 in Alabama as a manufacturer of metal fabrication and engineering products. The company designs corrosion monitoring and materials evaluation products for the analysis of various metals and alloys along with various laser fabrication and precision machining services which include cladding, cutting, etching, welding, and tube cutting. There are also tissue-slicing products to prepare thin slices of biological tissues for microscopic examination and analysis to help the medical industry along with the rest of the products that serve the oil and gas, chemical processing, water treating, and petroleum industries.
Ranking as of November 2024
Derivation MethodRank | Company | Click Share |
---|---|---|
1 | Kadan Consultants, Inc. |
50.0%
|
2 | Alabama Specialty Products, Inc. |
33.3%
|
3 | Jurman Metrics, Inc. |
16.7%
|
Derivation Method
The ranking is calculated based on the click share within the ball milling service page as of November 2024. Click share is defined as the total number of clicks for all companies during the period divided by the number of clicks for each company.Number of Employees
Newly Established Company
Company with a History
*Including some distributors, etc.
*Including some distributors, etc.
Country | Number of Companies | Share (%) |
---|---|---|
United States of America | 3 | 75.0% |
United Kingdom | 1 | 25.0% |