Circular Knives

Precision Edge are a specialist tooling company supplying premium quality machine knives to customers across the UK and beyond.  For over 25 years, we have worked with customers from just about every sector you can imagine to come up with robust solutions for all kinds of manufacturing and packaging operations.  The products we are frequently called upon to supply include straight blades, bagging knives, serrated knives, packaging knives and rotary scraper blades.  However, a large portion of our work is concerned with the development and production of various types of circular machine knives, which are used for a diverse range of applications.  To understand the prevalence of this type of tool, it’s good to consider the principles which go into their development.

Why do cars have wheels instead of legs?  That may sound like a funny question, but their are sound engineering reasons why manufacturers would forego the agility and adaptability which are inherent to the way humans and animals move about, in favour of a system which involves circular components rotating about a fixed point.

Our feet and legs are an amazing system; with them we can walk, run, climb stairs, jump, hop, swim, pedal a bicycle, and perform all manner of other complex movements.  But this versatility comes at a cost: all of these movements involve a back-and-forth motion, which limits the speed at which we can move.  A sprinter will never be able to run as fast as a car, because each time they take a step, they must accelerate their foot to propel themselves forward, accelerate the foot at the end of the stride, and bring the foot forward ready for the next stride.  Eventually, the joints in our legs would not be able to go any faster without overheating.

A wheel, on the other hand, is effectively constant in its motion: as it continues to turn, it propels the car forward, with continuous momentum.  This kind of system is therefore more efficient for the simple task of propelling a vehicle forward, and minimizes wear and tear.

When it comes to designing production machinery, these principles still hold true.  A 5-axis CNC machine is the last word in accuracy when it comes to producing intricate forms in a variety of materials, but can you imagine how long it would take for a CNC robot to complete a simple task like trimming the pages of magazines, or putting the perforations in a teabag?  Simple circular knives are mush better suited to these jobs.  Also, how expensive would it be in terms of power and maintenance to use complex engineering equipment to produce simple product packaging?  Circular slitting knives in the right machine are the logical choice for this task.  There are many variations of these tools for different applications, for example circular dished top knives for the paper and textile industries.

To learn more about circular knife design, its applications, and what the professionals at Precision Edge can bring to the table, contact our team today.