WFL M100 Millturn

The M100 uses multiple CNC-controlled automatic steady rests that the Siemens 840D sl control positions and clamps automatically as the cutting sequence progresses along the shaft. For a 6-meter turbine rotor shaft weighing 4,000-5,000 kg, the steady rests clamp at specific locations to support the shaft against gravity and cutting forces, then reposition under program control as the machining zone moves. This eliminates manual steady rest adjustment — a major source of setup time and operator-induced error on long shaft programs.

BTA (Boring and Trepanning Association) drilling uses a hollow drill tube with external coolant delivery through the tube and chip evacuation through the tube interior, enabling deep holes (up to 25x diameter) with better chip control than gun drilling. On the M100, BTA drilling is used for hydraulic passages, cooling channels, and lightening bores in large shafts and rotors. The main spindle rotates the workpiece during drilling to assist chip evacuation and maintain hole straightness. Gun drilling is used for smaller-diameter deep holes where BTA tooling is too large.

With BTA tooling, the M100 can drill to 25x the bore diameter. For a 50 mm bore, this means 1,250 mm depth in a single pass. For 80 mm bore, up to 2,000 mm. Gun drilling can reach similar depth ratios for smaller diameters (20-50 mm). Bore depth is also limited by physical clearance within the machine's working envelope, which must be confirmed for specific programs.

The conventional approach of a large turning center (e.g., a 900 mm swing lathe) plus a large horizontal machining center involves two separate setups, two workpiece alignments, inter-machine transport of heavy parts, and the cumulative error stack of two independent setups. The M100's complete machining approach performs all turning, milling, drilling, and deep-hole drilling in one alignment, eliminating inter-machine transport (which is risky for large forgings), reducing setup time, and eliminating the concentricity error that accumulates when parts are re-chucked between machines.

Yes. WFL maintains application centers where prospective customers can conduct test cuts on their actual parts before committing to purchase. For the M100 class, WFL typically invites customers to their Linz facility or regional application centers to run representative programs, validate process capability, and confirm cycle times and surface quality. This investment in pre-sale application work is standard WFL practice and helps customers build the business case for the machine investment.