1. Is retrofitting my machine a good investment?

A. In most cases, the quick return on investment in a MTI retrofit is a solid business case. Ask yourself, “What would the cost be to replace this machine with a new one?”. Knowing that an existing asset which is likely already paid for, will perform as well or better than a machine costing at least three or four times more makes the decision all that much easier.

Use our Return on Investment (ROI) calculator to see how quickly your investment will pay for itself.

2. My machine has slow rapids. Is it a good candidate?

A. In most cases, yes your machine is a good candidate for retrofit. The rapid feed rates of a machine are not nearly as important as how quickly and smoothly it can cut. Percentage wise, very little time is spent rapiding in the air on a typical job. The vast majority of time is taken up with actual cutting. MTI has successfully retrofitted machines as old as 30 years. These machines still outperform newer machines of similar size.

3. What types of machines can be retrofitted?

A. There is basically no limit on the types of machines that the MTI control can be integrated onto. The control has been successfully integrated on old machines, new machines, gantrys, mills, lasers, water jets, robots, welders, boring mills, grinders and lathes just to name a few. The MTI control has virtually unlimited capacity in handling all types of I/O. All styles of tool changers are supported as well as pallet changers.

The MTI controller can interpolate up to 8 axes. Rotation tool center point (RTCP) is supported for most kinematics. Gantry, follower, differential pair and virtual axes are also supported.

4. Will Constant Velocity wear out my machine?

A. No, this is a myth. It is counter intuitive but you your machine will actually last much longer. The smoothness of the motion generated by the MTI control puts far less stress on mechanical components than all other controls. Machine tools equipped with the MTI control will exhibit absolutely no vibration during cutting. The motion can be thought of similar to highway driving versus city driving in your car.