Since 2004, Bourn & Koch has been the foremost authority on Blanchard vertical rotary surface grinders, building new machines, providing expert parts and service for existing machines, and remanufacturing and rebuilding machines to new condition. Bourn & Koch also owns and services Mattison, a manufacturer of both horizontal reciprocating surface grinders and vertical rotary surface grinders. An integral part of any grinder using a magnetic chuck is the chuck controller, a device for energizing and de-energizing the magnetic chuck. Over time, this controller fails and requires replacement. It is also needed for any new Blanchard grinder and is typically replaced on all remanufactured and rebuilt Blanchard grinders.

For years, the industry gold-standard for magnetic chuck controllers was Magna-Flux. They were renowned for building the best controller available. Magna-Flux was Bourn & Koch’s trusted supplier for years. Many other companies held Magna-Flux in high regard for the quality of their chuck controllers. When Magna-Flux decided to no longer build new controllers, Bourn & Koch knew it was the right time to start developing their own magnetic chuck controller.

Technology hasn’t changed much in the world of chuck controllers. The majority of the other available controllers on the market are based on technology that has been around since the 1970s. When Bourn & Koch decided to develop their own chuck controller, they knew it had to be something forward looking, using today’s technology to provide their customers with a sound solution that improved upon the design.

Peter Mischler, Bourn & Koch’s engineering manager, is fond of acronyms. Besides being a machine tool guru, he’s great at coming up with acronyms and names for Bourn & Koch’s new products. His name for the new magnetic chuck controller is MagIC, short for Magnetic Integrated Chuck Controller. MagIC features a modern touch screen design with both local and remote-control modes and internal sensing for diagnostics, all forward looking features for tomorrow’s manufacturing workforce. Improvements on the design include the ability to use residual power levels for magnetic holding power, programmable demagnetization cycles, and a smart demag feature that will demagnetize the chuck in under one second. Fast demagnetization is key for production environments and reduces the “swarf to swarf” time in grinding.

Another key feature in MagIC is the use of optimal voltage for magnetization. Inherently, magnetization of an electromagnetic chuck generates heat. This can cause the chuck face to warp over time, causing issues with flatness and parallelism, requiring that the chuck be dressed, reducing the overall life of the chuck. With the use of optimal voltage, the heat generated is lower, reducing the warping that is caused by traditional chuck controllers.

MagIC is capable of being integrated on both new and legacy grinding machines, allowing you to keep running your Blanchard or Mattison for years to come. The interface can also be connected to the internet allowing for remote diagnostics and software updates as further advances are made.

To learn more about replacing your existing magnetic chuck controller with MagIC on your Blanchard or Mattison, contact Bourn & Koch today at 815-965-4013 or email [email protected]. To learn more about how this technology improves our new and remanufactured Blanchard grinders, email [email protected].

Bourn & Koch is excited to participate in the Motion+Power Technology Expo (M+PT) to showcase our gear manufacturing machines. You can learn more about the show by visiting https://motionpowerexpo.com/.The show will be held this September 14-17 in St’ Louis. While Bourn & Koch is well known in the gear manufacturing industry for their expert support of Barber-Colman and Fellows machine tools, the machines we are bringing to M+PT will showcase the solutions they can provide for new and remanufactured gear manufacturing machine tools.

Bourn & Koch will feature their flagship horizontal gear hobbing machine, the 400H, in their booth at Motion+Power Technology Expo 2021.  Capable of producing large diameter, high quality gears in a compact footprint, the 400H allows for a highly efficient way to hob long spline shafts and gears on large shafts for a variety of industries, including aerospace, agriculture, heavy equipment, and defense. The 400H’s predecessor is the Barber-Colman 16-16, a machine still used to this day by many gear manufacturers. The Bourn & Koch 400H provides a way to upgrade your Barber-Colman to today’s technology with standard single and multiple cut cycles, a Fanuc 0i-F CNC control with our easy to learn conversational programming, a power-programmable CNC hob swivel, automatic hob shift, along with crown and taper hobbing cycles. Additionally, the machine will feature an integrated probe arm assembly, designed to be used in carbide re-hobbing applications to measure tooth to tooth spacing and for automatically detecting profile length.

Also on display in our booth, is their new Fellows 10-4 CNC remanufacture package. While remanufactured gear shapers have been provided by Bourn & Koch for decades, this new package provides a direct drive work-spindle and infeed axis along with numerous mechanical improvements over a typical retrofit. Bourn & Koch has long provided quality OEM remanufactures of Fellows 10-4 gear shapers, but this new package, featuring a Fanuc 35i, provides an economical CNC gear shaping machine with the quality and support that Bourn & Koch is known for. Loyd Koch, co-founder of Bourn & Koch, was integral in bringing this “new product” to market with our engineering team, so its pedigree is based in a practical approach to providing a quality gear manufacturing machines for job shops and large manufacturers alike.

If you are interested in attending the event, reach out to our team at [email protected] to request a free guest pass to the event. We’re all in with AGMA and excited to be a part of this show!

MT3 is a versatile platform capable of grinding, milling, and turning in one setup. The precision that is required for medical components and the toughness of the materials such as titanium and surgical steel in medical machining requires an approach to machining that reduces setups and allows for the best process (or processes) to be used to produce the part. Today’s Medical Developments recently featured MT3 in their magazine to give their readers a glimpse into the machine and its specifications for medical machining.  You can read the article by clicking here.

For medical machining, there numerous considerations for machine tool selection. Spindle speeds, horsepower, machine working envelope, programming, and versatility are all considerations that are taken into account. The versatility of MT3 allows maximum productivity for your company when machining medical components. MT3 can take the place of three machines and take setups down to one. The machine features a large work envelope that can handle parts up to a 48″ swing. The ability to mill, turn, and grind on the machine means that a complete part can be produced in one setup, reducing work in process and allowing you to more quickly react to your customers.

Medical components have tough materials that require a machine with enough power to effectively process them and high spindle speeds to optimize the use of your tools. With a 30kw motor capable of 10,000 RPM, MT3 has the capability to remove material efficiently. When coupled with our robotic cell and Alien claw gripper, the right spindle and tool can be programmed for each part of the process, making the machine flexible enough to handle a multitude of medical components such as hips, knees and spines.

To learn more about MT3 and how it can benefit your medical machining processes, contact us by clicking the button above or email [email protected].

Bourn & Koch has a long reputation for successfully providing quality CNC remanufactured gear shaping machines. We’ve remanufactured thousands of machines since 1975.  As OEM for Fellows, we are able to provide the most comprehensive remanufacture and rebuild services for your gear shaper. Besides remanufactured Fellows 10-4 gear shapers, we’ve recently developed a rebuild & retrofit package for the Fellows 10-4 shaper, which provides all of the benefits of a CNC retrofit that is a more cost effective way for you to upgrade to CNC gear shaping.

We also remanufacture both the 36-6 and 50-8 gear shaping machines, providing large diameter capability in a compact footprint. Check out this video of a remanufactured 36-6! We typically have remanufactured Fellows gear shapers in stock and ready to ship. Check out our stock machines section on the website to see what we have ready to ship ASAP!

We’ve also remanufactured numerous other gear shapers such as the Lorenz LS-424, providing new CNC technology and upgrades to the machine. Check out a picture of the fished machine below! We challenge you to reach out to us for remanufacturing your gear shaping machine tools, no matter what brand they are! Whether it’s a Fellows shaper or another brand, we provide a comprehensive remanufacture and upgrade to new CNC technology with conversational programming!

Contact us today to learn more about what we can provide or to request a quote!

Bourn & Koch is excited to announce that we will be hosting Richard King, renowned hand-scraping expert, to teach a week-long class at our manufacturing plant in Rockford, Illinois. This year marks our fourth class with Mr. King, who has taught hundreds of machine tool builders the art of hand scraping. The dates for the class are August 19th through the 23rd. Rich’s hands-on classes cover the basics of machine tool scraping and Biax power scraping, with a goal of students being able to scrape to 20 points per inch. Each student will work on a personal project under Rich’s guidance. Additional topics will be covered and a tour of Bourn & Koch’s facility is also included.

As one of the last true American Machine Tool Builders, Bourn & Koch is proud to say we personally scrape nearly every machine tool we rebuild. The process of hand-scraping is vital to the precision of a machine tool. Many of our machine tool assemblers and service technicians are experts at hand-scraping way surfaces. We continue to hold a class every year, in the hopes of keeping the lost art of scraping alive.

There are only a couple of spots left in the class. Email [email protected] to reserve your spot in the class today! To learn more about Richard King and his experience in machine tools visit www.handscraping.com.

Bourn & Koch is looking for feedback from our customers on their Blanchard grinders! Blanchard built a great grinding machine and we have continued that tradition since our acquisition of them in 2004. We value your opinion of Blanchard grinders and want to include your thoughts on the features of the machine and design of new models.  To share your feedback, please click the below link and complete the survey.

Click Here to Start the Survey!

The Blanchard Grinder survey will have multiple questionnaires over the course of the next 3-6 months. If you would like to be contacted for the next round of questions, please make sure to click “Contact for next round of survey?” at the beginning of the form. To learn more about our new Blanchard grinders, please contact us at 815-965-4013 or via email at [email protected]. For repair parts or field service, contact us at 815-965-4013 or via email at [email protected].

Bourn & Koch is a provider of field service and preventative maintenance for nearly 30 American machine tool companies. Since 2004, our field service technicians have expertly serviced thousands of machines from Bullard, Blanchard, Barber-Coleman, Fellows, DeVlieg and many more.

As we continue to grow as a company, one of our main focuses is the growth of our service department. We understand that no one can afford machine down-time. This is why Bourn & Koch has decided to build a team comprised of factory-trained preventative maintenance technicians. Our quick response team is here to assist your company with machine down situations, as well as advise on a preventative maintenance plan to avoid the next machine down situation. Whether you have a manual Blanchard surface grinder from 1940 or a new B&K 100H gear hobber, our experts are here to help maximize your machine tool up-time and profits in your shop.

Individually based on your company’s needs, our dedicated technicians will create a plan of action for keeping all of your Bourn & Koch products operational and productive. We will thoroughly inspect and evaluate your machine from top to bottom. Then, our experts can provide maintenance recommendations and schedule a wellness check for all of your Bourn & Koch products. Our technicians also offer training to educate your in-house maintenance personal on monthly checks and maintenance for your machines. Each contract is built to suit your company’s needs and expectations.

Maximizing machine up-time is crucial to maximizing profits in your shop. So why wait? Contact one of our service representatives at [email protected] today for further information!

You can find the majority of American machine tool companies our aftermarket & service team supports right here!

Bourn & Koch, Inc. and FANUC worked together on a video case study. Bourn & Koch requires controls that can support every manufacturing application we work on.  We build machine tools for a wide variety of applications. The support that we receive from FANUC made it an easy decision to standardize on their CNC controls. FANUC  provides a product that meets each one of our needs.

It has become increasing more difficult to find experienced machine tool operators. Many of our customers need a machine that someone with little or no experience can easily learn to run. An important advantage of working with FANUC is that we are able to incorporate Bourn & Koch’s proprietary conversational HMI software. This allows us to provide a machine that nearly anyone can learn to program and operate.

Check out this great video case study below to learn more about our partnership with FANUC. You can learn more about FANUC at their website by clicking here.

Contact one of our representatives at [email protected] or by calling (815) 965-4013 and ask to speak with someone from our Machine Sales team.

Not only will Bourn & Koch be showcasing our machine tool solutions all week at IMTS 2018, we are pleased to announce that we will be hosting an open house during the week of IMTS 2018 as well! We are inviting the global manufacturing community to receive a behind-the-scenes look into how high-quality precision machine tools are still being built, right here in America!

Tours will be held at 10 am on September 11th & 13th (Tuesday & Thursday). Included in the tour will be an exclusive look into our massive print room where we have over 2,500 years of combined engineering knowledge from Blanchard, Fellows, Springfield, DeVlieg, Bullard, Barber Coleman, and many more classic American Machine Tool companies! Also, you will get a full factory tour including our shop floor where we remanufacture machines to OEM specifications and build brand new machines by incorporating new technology and design into our grinders, hobbers, and gear shapers. The most exciting part is that our newly redesigned and re-engineered Blanchard 22AD-42 will be on display for demonstration during the tour!

Our facility is located in Rockford, Illinois which is approximately 90 miles from McCormick Place. If you interested in taking a tour of Bourn & Koch’s facility but are unable to make it on Tuesday or Thursday (Sept. 11th & 12th), other days are available by appointment only.

For more information or to register for the Open House, please call (815) 713-2305 or email [email protected].

 

Bourn & Koch provides field service and preventative maintenance for nearly 30 American machine tool companies. Since 2004, we have expertly serviced thousands of machines from Bullard, Blanchard, Barber-Colman, Fellows, DeVlieg and many more. Our field service technicians are factory-trained to repair your machine quickly, reducing downtime and guesswork about which parts are required for repair. Our field service technicians are also based throughout the United States and travel worldwide to provide expert repair services for all machine tools that we support.

Machine tool uptime is the key to maximizing profits in your shop. One way to maximize uptime is to ensure your machine is in top shape with a preventative maintenance visit. A preventative maintenance visit allows for a factory-trained field servcice technician to thoroughly inspect and evaluate your machine from top to bottom. A thorough check of all machine systems such as hydraulics and lubrication is performed along with verification of alignments and documentation of all possible maintenance issues. Any identified issues can then be repaired before they cause serious downtime, keeping your machine and your shop productive!

To help you keep your American machine tools productive, we are offering a special on all service support orders and preventative maintenance visits through the month of May. Simply include the special code of BKSERVICE on your purchase order to your customer care representative when placing your order.  We will discount the total of your service support or preventative maintenance visit by 5% or $500.00, whichever is the lesser.

Act now to request a quote and reserve your technician as this special will not last long! Contact [email protected] for further information!