Buying guide to purchase a CNC Machining Center for Stone

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Purchasing a Machining Center for Stone is a large investment you don’t want to get wrong

There are tons of CNC machines available for the marble and granite industry and every manufacturer claims to have the best machines. It is not easy to get the right Machining Center if you don’t have enough experience or don’t know what questions to ask. There are countless features and add-ons to consider although most of them can be attached later, it normally works out cheaper to get them build-in or attached straight away to avoid machine down time later on. The list below is by no means a complete list of what to consider when bying a Machining Center for Stone, but it should give you a good starting point and enough info to find a CNC machine to suit your needs and hopefully increases your countertop, vanity, staircase production or whatever else you produce in your marble and granite workshop.

Budget

Space available

determine max size of the machine

What tasks is the machine required to do

how many work pieces per day
edge profiling
edge polishing
standard cutouts
polishing undermounts
drilling holes
draining grooves
draining boards – flat
draining boards – inclined
letter engraving
bas-relief
2D art work (3-axis)
3D art work (5-axis)
cutting slabs
polishing slabs
capitals and columns

Workbench

required size
is it easy to get up to setup the suction cups and reference points
is it easy to load the stone

Tool holders

amount of tool-holders required
single tool on each cone
multiple tools on one cone(stacked tools)
special holder for angled gearbox
special holders for draining groove wheels
can the machine be programmed for manual tool change

Tool presetting

laser or touch probe system
can it measure length and radius of tools
is it working for stacked tools as well

Suction cups

what system is used to position suction cups on the bench correctly
double action (suction on top and bottom)
single action (suction only on top)
height of suction cups to allow free movement for tools
are the rubber seals easy to replace
vacuum hoses and connection easy to work with
do the suction cups allow for easy piece movement (air cushion, retractable PVC or rollers)

Work piece positioning

what system is used to position the work piece precisely
can the work piece be placed anywhere or are there fixed points

Spindle motor

direct or belt driven
lock to stop tool from spinning inside the cone
sensors to check if tool is present or not

Vacuum pump

big volume vacuum tank
system to separate air and water to stop water entering the pump
will the machine stop on pressure loss or when sucking water

Water

is your water pressure sufficient to stop the diamond tools from burning or wearing to fast
does the CNC machine manufacturer allow to use recycled water for internal and external tool cooling

other features

manual or automatic central greasing system
Air conditioned electrical cabinet for warmer areas to avoid overheating
low worktable to ease loading and unloading for the operator

Maintenance

how long is the warranty period
what is covered by the warranty, parts and labour
Camera with remote software to solve problems or to order parts
free expert telephone and on-line diagnostics

Computer control system

what operating system is used (windows, Linux, DOS,..)
how many tools can be programmed in
how many tools can be programmed in
HOLD function to temporarily interrupt the program (e.g. to remove an offcut…)

CAD CAM software package (even more important than the machine)

does it come with a full easy to use CAD system
get them to draw some of your more complicated benchtops, not only a rectangle table
can it import and export DXF files
can you use your existing CAD software with the machines post processor (CAM)
is there a 3D program simulation to exactly see what the machine is programmed to do

Network connection from office to machine

what connection is required to transfer the G-Code or other CNC files
ethernet LAN
wireless
serial RS232

Training

how much training will you get (can never be enough)
machine training
software training

TIP: Ask the machine manufacturer if they can get you in contact with companies which are running their machines in your area. This will allow you to find out how good their service is, how happy other customers are with the machines, if the CNC improved their production output of marble and granite products…

Overall just make sure that the machine can do everything you expect it to do.