LARGER ISSUES

摘要

Big machine tools are just like smaller ones. And they're not. rdatively speaking, one shop's big bruiser is another's minimachine. So for this discussion a "big" machine tool can be defined as a machining center with a work envelope larger than a 36" cube or a lathe that can handle a workpiece greater than 2.5' in diameter. Defining what constitutes the step beyond big is less clear; most probably it is determined by a machine's degree of specialization as well as its size (See sidebars on pages S2,S8 and S10).