CNC Work
Thanks to our generous partners, Haas Automation, and our skilled team of student technicians, we have the capability to CNC school-related projects. Although we mandate students make their own projects to maximize learning, we recognize the time required and the complexity involved with learning automated machining. Therefore, we offer to do it with you.
Eligibility
Your part must be school-related and deemed CNC-worthy by our CNC supervisor. CNC-worthy is defined as having a feature requiring the compound movement of the CNC’s. Short deadline is not an acceptable reason for CNC eligibility. Please contact our CNC Supervisor with any questions regarding eligibility.
Submitting a Project
To submit a part, you must pick up a CNC Work Packet from the Mustang ’60 office and turn it back into the office with:
Contact, billing, and part information.
Fully defined and toleranced engineering drawing.
Electronic Solidworks part files–emailed to CNC supervisor.
If a work packet has been approved by the CNC supervisor, that does not mean we guarantee to complete it–you will still need to see if a tech will take on the project. Once a student tech has agreed to machine the project, the tech and the student will agree to the material, tooling, and a timeline. It should be noted that we do not guarantee any surface finishes or tolerances within a specific budget or timeline. We have very skilled student techs capable of professional manufacturing, but they work hourly. Parts that have to be reworded or redone are still paid for.
Timeline
Our student machinists have work and school commitments just as you do and will complete the work at the earliest convenience, but please submit your work early and be flexible. We do not turn a project away based on time; however, projects are on a first-come, first-served basis. You should expect at least a week from the time a tech agrees to machine your project (not from when you drop off the packet).
If there are no techs available to machine your project or none want to take your project on, your parts may not get taken on. Alternate plans should be made in case we are unavailable to complete your project. If you decide to manufacture your parts by some other means, please let us know so we may close our your packet.
Material, Tooling, and Cost
The student who submitted the project will be responsible for purchasing the material and possibly tooling, as well as a minimum of $50/hr labor, depending on the funding source. The tooling and materials become the property of the client once the parts from that work packet are complete. Although we charge hourly with tooling and materials as additional charges, we are still significantly cheaper than a private job shop.
The student tech who will machine your parts will designate what material needs to be purchased. At that point, it is your responsibility to purchase the materials. If you are “yellow tagged” and square up your stock beforehand, you may save yourself a significant amount of time and money by not having the machinist do it for you. However, consult your machinist before doing this.
Tooling must be purchased for each project unless it can be adequately made using existing shop tools. It is often a good idea to purchase back-up tooling in case some were to break so the project can stay on track.
Your Involvement
You have the option to be involved in the process to certain extent so you can still take away some knowledge. You also have the option to participate in the posting of the code, the set up of the machine, and the initial running. If you would like to be present for all of it, just ask! By helping clean the machine and/or the shop or deburring parts you might also save yourself some cost. For questions, please contact Walter Minehart at wheynemi@calpoly.edu.
