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Celebrating 77 Years of Sandvik Coromant

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Celebrating 77 Years of Sandvik Coromant

October is about celebrating longevity in business. This includes our long term relationship with our partners. This year, Headland turns 70 years old. Our partner, Sandvik Coromant, turns 77 years. Learn more about Sandvik’s interesting history below.

The meaning of “Coromant”

“Coromant” is a merger of the word “corona” and “diamant”. Corona means the sun’s brightly shining atmosphere. While “diamant” is Swedish for diamond, the hardest material known to man.

Timeline

1942: Sandvik AB decided to include cemented carbide products in its manufacturing program. Wilhelm Haglund commenced as president of the small carbide metal division, Sandvik Coromant.

1944: Grinding stations were set up to help customers regrind and repair their tools. Customers could also attend training in cemented carbide tool maintenance at these stations.

A visit to these stations often resulted in reduced costs and increased productivity.

1954: Development of turning tool Gammax, and scrapers. This became the first product with mechanically clamped “indexable inserts”.

1961: Introduction of insert 170.6, more commonly known as KNUX. It became a top seller – a position that the insert held for more than 30 years. The peak of KNUX manufacturing included production of more than 200,000 inserts per week.

1965: In Sandviken, the first Coromant School started its five-day courses. Sandvik Coromant also launched its Ejector drill with brazed cemented-carbide inserts. It became an innovation in long-hole drilling. This completely new method of drilling introduced Sandvik Coromant to many new customers. It increased the company’s reputation in product development.

1969: Sandvik Coromant became the first in the world to introduce heat-resistant carbide inserts, Gamma Coating, or GC. The coating made inserts more heat resistant and increased customers’ metal-cutting performance by up to 50%. This created the foundation for today’s generation of multi-coated inserts for turning, milling and drilling.

1972: Sandvik Coromant’s yellow coat became an important symbol of its brand.

1976 – 1980: Development of Block Tools, a system for rapid tool changes in turning commenced from 1976. 1980 saw the introduction of these tools at the IMTS Chicago Fair. It formed the start of using modularity to provide better use and greater versatility of machine tools.

1982: Launch of Direct Distribution increased delivery reliability and improved production planning. This included reaching the main markets in Europe in a day or 2 via central stores.

1990: Launch of the Coromant Capto®, a single holding system for both rotating and stationary spindles. It provided a new and efficient means of combining and organizing tooling. This included reducing tool-changing time in machinery. Today, Coromant Capto (Latin for “I am gripping”) is an established system. It is an ISO standard around the world.

1991 – 1995: More supporting tools and guides (like CoroGuide & CoroKey) available for customers. These help customers selecting the appropriate cutting data and finding the right inserts.

1997: Sandvik Coromant offered to repurchase used cemented carbide inserts for recycling. This underlined the company’s commitment to environmental responsibility.

1998: Sandvik Coromant established 3 central warehouses. These are in the Netherlands, the United States and Singapore. This resulted in faster, more efficient deliveries to even more global customers.

2000: Volkswagen awarded Sandvik Coromant its “Corporate Supplier Award – The Leading Edge” prize. Sandvik Coromant launched E-commerce & its recycling service.

2002: Microsoft’s Bill Gates awarded Sandvik Coromant as one of the best XML applications worldwide. 2002 saw the introduction of the CoroMill Century face mill.

2005: The indexable insert drill CoroDrill 880 reached the market. The step technology of the centre insert makes it possible to double the feed, resulting in an extremely high hole quality.

2008: Sandvik Coromant developed Silent Tools™ after acquiring a Norwegian anti-vibration tool company. The damping adaptors from Silent Tools™ allow for increased cutting parameters. They also allow for a secure, vibration-free process with close tolerances. As well as a high metal-removal rate, and an excellent surface finish.

2013: Sandvik Coromant developed and launched Inveio. It is a uni-directional crystal orientation in the insert alumina coating layer. This gives tools a new level of wear resistance and tool life.

2014: Sandvik Coromant opened flagship Sandvik Coromant Centres. These are in Sandviken, Sweden and Langfang, China.

2016: CoroPlus, Sandvik Coromant’s digital machining solutions hit the market. It connects solutions for increased security and efficiency. These solutions are for design, planning, and monitoring of machining performance. These include the optimization of machining processes.

2017: The launch of PrimeTurning, a new methodology that enables turning in all directions.