Start of series production of 2 mm shank drills

MPK Kemmer PCB Tools again took a leading position as a manufacturer of modern circuit board tools with a 2 mm shank drill. The demand for these drills has risen rapidly on the Japanese market, since PCB Tools put it into full-scale production in August.

MPK Kemmer's General Manager, Thomas Neuschl, explained the background to the development of this new type of drill: "In order to achieve adequate cutting speeds with micro-size tools, and therefore to achieve better quality drilled holes, Hitachi has developed drill spindles turning at up to 380,000 rpm." Conventional drills would have difficulty withstanding the physical forces generated at such speeds. The diameters of the spindles and bearings therefore have to be reduced. As a result, the diameter of the clamped shank of the drill bits has to be reduced, from 3.175 down to 2 mm.

Machines turning at such high speeds are increasingly common in Japan, and are also now being used in Korea and Taiwan. "Because we have carefully been observing the market, we began developing suitable drill bits a year ago" says Neuschl. Over recent months, they had to pass quite a few test runs at different customers in Japan. "Thanks to the good results, we have been able to qualify as manufacturers of 2 mm shank drills for a large producer of circuit boards in Japan."