A Wire EDM System removes material by controlled sparking rather than by cutting force, which is what makes it possible to machine hardened steel and carbide after heat treatment. Supplied to medical device manufacturers, this Wire EDM System is configured with Siemens control with automatic wire threading. wire electrical discharge cutting with skim passes for finish and taper is carried out on equipment that holds ±0.005 mm across a full shift, not only on a first piece.
Tolerance is applied where it does work rather than across the whole drawing. Critical features are held to ±0.005 mm, non-critical dimensions follow the general machining tolerance, and the difference is stated in the quotation rather than discovered later.
Specification
| Process | Wire electrical discharge cutting with skim passes for finish and taper |
|---|---|
| Material / configuration | Siemens control with automatic wire threading |
| Size / capacity | cutting rates to 250 mm²/min in steel |
| Tolerance | ±0.005 mm |
| Surface finish | wire-cut finish, Ra 0.2–1.6 µm |
| Application | wire edm system for medical device manufacturers |
| Inspection | Dimensional report, material certificate, first article report on request |
| Lead time | 7–15 working days for samples, 3–4 weeks for production |
| Minimum order | 1 piece for prototypes, from 50 pieces for production pricing |
Manufacturing process
Work is carried out with wire electrical discharge cutting with skim passes for finish and taper. Tooling, speeds and fixturing are recorded with the part number, so a repeat order starts from a proven process instead of a fresh setup.
Material is purchased against a certificate and checked on receipt, so the composition is known before any cutting starts. Work in progress is identified by part number and operation, and the finished parts are deburred, cleaned and protected before they leave the machine area.
Typical applications
Most of the work supplied in this category falls into the following examples.
- Hardened mould inserts and die sections.
- Carbide punch and die profiles.
- Aerospace turbine slot features.
- Medical cutting instruments.
- Gear and spline prototypes.
Quality control and documentation
Critical features are measured on calibrated equipment in a controlled room, and the results are filed with the job so that a repeat order can be compared with the first.
Material certificates to EN 10204 3.1, dimensional reports and first article inspection reports are issued with the shipment where the application requires them. Calibration dates and measurement uncertainty are recorded alongside every result.
Ordering, lead time and packaging
Packaging is specified by the part: individual protection for finished surfaces, separation for assemblies, and export crating with a packing list for shipment.
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is wire EDM compared with milling?
Wire EDM holds profile accuracy around ±0.005 mm with no cutting force on the part, and it produces internal corners limited only by the wire radius, typically 0.15 mm.
Can hardened material be machined directly?
Yes. Material at 60 HRC and above is routinely cut after heat treatment, which removes the distortion that would otherwise be introduced by hardening after machining.
Do you keep tooling and programmes for repeat orders?
Fixtures, tool lists and verified CAM programmes are retained for the life of the part number, so a repeat release runs on the same setup as the first batch without a new proving run.
Drawings are reviewed for manufacturability before quotation, and any feature that adds cost without adding function is pointed out at that stage rather than after the parts are made.
