Subcontractor automates milling to best contract backlog

  For over thirty years, Ingenieur Ltd. has been a household name in the machining of complex, critical components for the aerospace, defence, space, and oil and gas sectors.

In 2015, the subcontractor shifted premises to a larger, 12,000 sq ft factory unit in Chandler’s Ford to better suit hosting visits from aerospace supply chain clients and customers. At the time, management considered automating some of their milling contracts, but the volumes did not justify it.

Six years later, when the COVID-19 restrictions were being lifted, the company became part of the CTN group of five subcontractors across Hampshire, Kent, Cambridgeshire, and Norfolk. Suddenly, the operation at Chandler’s Ford swung from very quiet, to very, very busy.

To relieve a production bottleneck, Kingsbury initially loaned Ingenieur Ltd. a refurbished Hermle C 40 U 5-axis machining centre from their Gosport showroom in February 2022. The machine was subsequently purchased, alongside a brand-new Hemle C 400 5-axis machine, delivered in June 2022.

The machining centre was also linked with an automated HS Flex pallet exchanger, enabling extended periods of unattended running for light-out manufacturing.