CAM Programming vs. Manual Programming in Medical Machining

The manufacture of medical devices involves some of the most sophisticated machining processes found in industry today. From a machining perspective, the machine tools that make up the “back bone” of medical device machining are 5-axis Computer Numerical Control (CNC) Mills, Wire EDMs (Electrical Discharge Machining) and Swiss-type lathes. For years, computer aided manufacturing (CAM) software has been used to automate the programming of the first two of those machining operations: 5- axis CNC Mills and Wire EDMs. However, CNC Swiss have been slower to move CAM.