A turret punch or turret press is a type of punch press used to form metals by punching.
A typical CNC turret punch has a choice of up to 60 tools in a "turret" that can be rotated to bring any tool to the punching position. Any simple shape (e.g., a square, a circle, or a hexagon) can be cut directly from the sheet. Any complex shape can be cut out by making many square or rounded cuts around the perimeter. As, press tool requires a matching punch and die set, there are two corresponding turrets, above and below the bed, for punch and die. These two turrets rotate in precise synchronization with their alignment carefully maintained. Several punches of identical shape may be used in the turret, each one turned to a different angle, as there is usually no feature to rotate the sheet work piece relative to the tool.
A punch is less flexible than a laser for cutting compound shapes, but faster for repetitive shapes.
Most turret punches are CNC-controlled with automatic positioning of the metal sheet beneath the tool and program of that particular tool is selected. A CAM process first converts the CAD design for the finished item into the number of individual punch operations needed, depending on the tools available in the turret.
Benefits:
The biggest advantage of a CNC turret punch press is the speed of getting production-quality parts due to the extreme variety of standard punches used to make different shapes. The price per piece is low when you are looking for purchase of large quantity of parts. The cost comes mostly from the programming time needed to get the machine up and running. Once all the programming is complete and proven, the parts can usually be made with a “set it and forget it” mentality.
Another advantage of CNC press production is the extraordinary design flexibility in the configuration and size of features within the part. Newer machines make the nibbling of very large and complex features a practical reality. This works well for applications such as custom machine builds, enclosures, and low volume runs.
When it comes to high volume prototyping, CNC turret press technology is often a good choice.
