In order to reduce the time in mold/die manufacturing, shortening the CAM process is effective. For example, if the time for modeling or model changing to improve toolpath efficiency can be shortened, significant efficiency can be expected. This article introduces "Surface Plus," an additional option for CAM-TOOL that contributes to reducing work time in mold/die manufacturing.
Developed to reduce man-hours in mold/die design
The background of this development was to response the need of cutting down the mold/die design process. Create smooth surface and Fill hole on models are essential for quick and highly accurate calculations, but these tasks are complex and it takes lots of time when editing mold/die models with many free-form surfaces. Surface Plus makes these operations easy. There are four main functions: Delete Surface, Move Surface, Boolean Trim, and Fill Surface.
▲ All Four functions of Surface Plus
Main functions and features of Surface Plus
1. Delete Surface
This function is used when modifying the shape of a model, such as when generating a hole-filling surface automatically by recognizing the contours of a shape in order to create a high-quality toolpath. 
▲ Example of using the Delete-Surface function
2. Move Surface
This function is used to stretch/contract or move model surfaces. By freely moving the cursor and adjusting gaps created by moving surfaces, it automatically fills and extends the moved surface and the surrounding surfaces through trimming. 
▲ Example of using the Move-Surface function
3. Trim
Trims the specified surface with trim type (sum, difference, and Intersection). The preview display allows you to check the trimmed shape, so you don’t need to get back to re-edit after the change.
▲ Example of using the Surface-Trim function
4. Fill Surface
A single surface that maintains continuity can be easily created from lines or complex curved edges. The created shape can be checked on the preview display, which helps to suppress the backtracking after the change.
▲ Example of using the Fill-Surface function
In some cases, 40~50% work time in mold/die manufacturing was shortened after implementation
CAM-TOOL is software for fast and accurate mold/die manufacturing. It is suitable for milling operations that require high-precision surface finishing, and the use of Surface Plus can maximize machining efficiency. It will be one of the effective options for mold/die manufacturers and various parts manufacturers looking to shorten the work time in mold/die manufacturing.✔ Flexible and easy surface plugging and filling of holes, significantly reducing editing man-hours
✔ There are cases where work time has been reduced by about 40~50% after implementation
“CGS is a Japanese software development company, and CGS ASIA is the distributor in Thailand, so we can reflect customer requests in our product development. We will develop software that meets the needs of future users and update various functions in cooperation with the head office," says Mr. Amnath, Application Engineer.
"In recent years, mold/die shapes have become extremely complex due to the needs of the market and changes in production systems, and I hear that it takes a particularly time-consuming and labor-intensive to modify mold/die models. In addition, the shortage of labor in the industry is also contributing to the problem. We believe that the implementation of Surface Plus as a solution to these problems will help to reduce the cumbersome process of mold/die manufacturing and shorten the work time," says Mr. Koizumi, Technical Advisor.