Case Study: Guhring UK achieves 18× cutter life and major cost and downtime savings with Markforged Metal X

Guhring UK Groove Milling Cutter

Guhring UK, the British arm of Guhring, was engaged to solve a tooling problem for XCEL Aerospace: an existing solid carbide groove milling cutter wore out after only 10 parts when machining high‑silicon cast aluminum, yet XCEL needed to produce more than 100 parts per month. To address this, Guhring turned to a Markforged solution, using the Markforged Metal X 3D printer to fabricate a redesigned cutter body.

Guhring increased the cutter’s tips from three to five, 3D‑printed the new H13 tool‑steel body on the Markforged Metal X, and brazed on PCD tips. The Markforged‑enabled tool now machines more than 180 parts before replacement, yielding substantial tool cost savings, reduced downtime and convenient re‑tipping to restore near‑new performance.

Guhring