According to statistics from the Japan Tool Association, China has become the world's largest consumer of machine tools, followed by Japan, the United States, and Italy. From the perspective of tool output value, the output of cemented carbide tools has continued to increase in recent years, while high-speed steel tools have begun to show a downward trend. The import and export volume of cemented carbide has increased significantly. The main export targets are Asia, followed by Europe, and then North America and other regions.
High-speed machining has been widely regarded as a machining technology that increases output and reduces manufacturing costs. The concept of dry machining or micro-lubrication is now the main goal of the processing industry to reduce environmental protection and production costs. For tool manufacturers and coating suppliers, the most important thing is productivity. Cutting performance (cutting speed, cutting amount per unit time) is increased by 20%, and manufacturing costs will be reduced by 15%. More and more stringent processing requirements require further development of tool materials and coatings, improvement of processing conditions and improved tool design.
Judging from the current use situation, the market share of domestic cemented carbide indexable tools is lower than that of imported tools. The main reasons are as follows: 1. The product quality awareness is not strong. Some domestic tool manufacturers lack sufficient quality. awareness. Domestic indexable inserts have poor material quality, few varieties, and incomplete specifications, which makes it difficult to improve the quality of cutting tools. In terms of product appearance quality, the appearance, color and texture of imported knives are obviously better than domestic knives. In terms of product performance, compared with domestic tools, imported tools have high dimensional accuracy, good stability, high durability, and high removal rate. The tools and their accessories have good interchangeability, and the accuracy requirements can be met after general assembly. . 2. Pre-sales and after-sales services are not perfect. Many foreign tool companies have thoughtful services including selecting tools for users, supplying, adjusting tools, and replacing them in time. However, many domestic tool manufacturers are not doing enough in this regard, and the service is simple and extensive. 3. Small workshop production methods still account for a large proportion. Due to economic reasons, the small workshop production methods of some domestic tool manufacturers still account for a large proportion. The processing personnel have low technical level and simple equipment, which makes it difficult to guarantee product quality. It is still difficult to eliminate some common quality problems of tool products caused by the quality of tool parts processing and assembly quality.
Expert analysis believes that tool materials have entered the development era represented by cemented carbide. Compared with high-speed steel, cemented carbide has better performance and higher cutting efficiency. Together with superhard materials, it is the realization of modern Cutting technology is an important guarantee for efficient machining. Without good tool materials, any tool innovation and advancement in cutting technology lack the necessary material foundation. Fundamentally solving this problem will involve the adjustment of the industry structure, speed up the construction of a production base with cemented carbide materials and tool research and development capabilities, and rapidly increase the proportion of cemented carbide tools in all tools.