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H&C Solutions: results our customers can measure

At H&C, we pride ourselves on the partnerships we develop through helpful insights into providing our customers better products, processes, and productivity. Our consulting solutions are based on decades of experience in the field.
Customer-Focused Services

Five ways we keep your floor running

These case studies only briefly touch the surface of our deep expertise, but they’ll no doubt touch on challenges you face at your own operation. Every one follows the same discipline: define the problem, test the fix on the customer’s own machine, and measure the result.
Case Study
Kennametal End Mill Test

The Client

Contract manufacturer of machined components in Western N.Y.

The Challenge

Shorten the cycle time of a roughing operation, improve tool life, and increase throughput.

The Solution

H&C's representative recommended a 1-inch diameter Kennametal Harvi 2 five-flute end mill with a 43-degree flute angle and ALTIN PVD coating (KC643M grade). The tool runs with coolant and excels in steel, cast iron, stainless steels, and titanium.

The Benefit

  • Roughing process reduced from 45 minutes to 2.6 minutes
  • Spindle speed increased from 1,700 RPM to 2,670 RPM
  • Feed increased from 3.5 IPM to 60 IPM
  • SFM increased from 450 to 700
  • Passes reduced from 2 to 1
  • End mills purchased per year cut from 34 to 17
  • 288 hours of scheduled machine time saved per year
45 min → 2.6 min
Roughing cycle time
2×
End mill life
288 hrs
Machine time saved / year
Case Study
Kennametal Tap Test

The Client

A local contract manufacturer tapping blind holes in 17-4PH stainless steel.

The Challenge

Poor productivity and tap life on a blind-hole tapping job using a high-speed steel OSG 10-32 2B tap with an oxide-coated surface.

The Solution

H&C recommended testing a Kennametal tap with a chromium carbide carbon (CRCC) coating. Kennametal technicians came to the customer's facility and ran the test on their machine, on their parts.

The Benefit

  • Speeds and feeds more than doubled
  • Tapping cycle reduced from 1.06 minutes to 0.443 minutes
  • Tap life increased from 164 holes per tap to 1,000 holes per tap
  • Tap usage on this job dropped from 25 taps per year to 4
  • Cost per piece dropped from $1.73 to $0.66
  • 24 hours of machine time freed per year
164 → 1,000
Holes per tap
$1.73 → $0.66
Cost per piece
2×+
Speeds and feeds
Case Study
Increase Tool Life, Decrease Expense

The Client

An Upstate New York contract machining company working with copper.

The Challenge

Drills were loading with chips and breaking while creating threads. Taps were tearing threads and, at times, breaking too.

The Solution

An H&C application engineer suggested coating select tools with CRN to reduce edge buildup, then ran testing to prove out the new tooling before the customer committed.

The Benefit

  • Significant improvement in the quality of pre-tapped holes and threads
  • 5-to-1 tool life increase with drills
  • 8-to-1 tool life increase with taps
  • Overall reduction in machine time and tooling costs, with a measurable productivity gain
5:1
Drill life increase
8:1
Tap life increase
Fewer
Breakages and rework
Case Study
The Trouble With Burrs

The Client

Rochester-area contract manufacturer machining high-temp alloys.

The Challenge

The material was causing burrs at the intersections of the thread crest. The customer had already tried inserts from multiple manufacturers without the results they wanted.

The Solution

An H&C application engineer visited the shop, reviewed the process and tooling in person, and concluded that a Kennametal top cresting LT style of insert would solve the problem.

The Benefit

  • Dramatic increase in thread quality
  • Secondary deburring operations eliminated entirely
  • Higher quality product at reduced cost
0
Secondary deburring ops
On-site
Engineer diagnosis
Higher
Thread quality
Featured Result

Tool life tripled, $27,000 saved annually

H&C ran Kennametal’s Beyond Grades KCP10 and KCP25 in a roughing and finishing application against a major competitor at a CNC machining and manufacturing plant out of Oneida, NY. The result: tool life tripled, and the customer realized an annual cost savings of $27,000.

Head-to-head testing

Same machine, same material, same operator. Only the tooling changes.

Measured, not estimated

Tool life tracked across real production runs, not lab conditions.

Cost math included

Every study translates tool life into annual dollars saved.

Want a test like this on your floor?

Visit our special requests and promotions page for a quick response to requests for quotes, or to try a tool such as an insert, drill, mill, or grinding wheel.
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