MachiningCNC Lathe / Multitasking MachineUncompromising craftsmanship
in the manufacturing of spindles

To be machines that can always cut very well with precision

Because we introduce machine tools that are not inexpensive, we want them to always retain their cutting performance and machining accuracy and contribute to improvement of machining quality and productivity—this is a wish shared by all our customers.
However, you can encounter practical problems such as failures or malfunctions if you use the same machine for both roughing and finishing, noticeable variations in dimensions if heavy-duty and light cutting are performed repeatedly, and spindles not being able to withstand the performance of hard turning for process-intensive machining. These may be due to insufficient rigidity attributable to the machining and assembly accuracies of the spindles and bearings or insufficient rigidity related to the structure of the machine body.
Positioning the delivery of high-rigidity and high-accuracy machines free from such phenomena as a fundamental principle for design and manufacturing, Okuma enforces strict quality controls.
In fact, Mr. Katsuda still remembers the things he heard from customers when he was assigned to a manufacturing subsidiary in Taiwan to provide technical service guidance to distributors in Asia and technical guidance to partner companies: "The true value of high rigidity and high accuracy becomes apparent after using Okuma machines for 10 years." "The introduction of Okuma machines improved the status of my company." "We want to introduce the 5-axis machining center and multitasking machine from the cover of the catalog someday." as well as other comments.
Needless to say, every word of these customers provides great encouragement to all the employees of Okuma, including masters.

Okuma's monozukuri (making things better than ever) is passed down to successive generations

How did you become a master? "At every place I was assigned, there were older generations of staff who were eventually called master craftsmen, and I learned everything from them, including ways of deriving optimum machining processes and procedures from drawings, a wealth of knowledge and practical skills, and accurate and fast ways of working," says Mr. Katsuda. At the same time, he gobbled up knowledge about not only spindle machining but also the processes before and after it. While he worked on a wide range of models, he was also involved in the installation of delivered machines and improved his capabilities as a multiskilled worker.
As an instructor in the Monozukuri Dojo, he strives to teach mid-career trainees all the skills he acquired based on this experience. His goal is for 100% of trainees to pass National Trade Skill Testing & Certification and to foster multiskilled workers. To this end, he is also focusing on machining training for younger workers at the Okuma Technology and Skill Tournament to raise the level of their skills.
In order to deliver products that exceed the expectations of customers who wish to someday introduce state-of-the-art Okuma machines, young trainees today work with machines and workpieces in the Dojo.