Comment

May 2009

OMAC machine tool working group update

The OMAC Machine Tool working group met during the February ARC Forum in Orlando, Fla., and agreed on the following changes to the group:

• Sub-teams will be organized in a task-oriented manner instead of the present domain orientation. They will have defined deliverables and must include a stakeholder and a technology provider. Sub-teams will disband once their assigned tasks are completed.
• The group will use virtual collaboration technology to as great an extent as possible to allow us to collaborate not only in a place convenient but in our own time. This will allow participation from smaller companies that cannot afford travel to face-to-face meetings and enable easier entry into OMAC for industries that are not presently represented.
• We established three sub-teams under the new structure:
• The STEP-NC Sub-team will develop, test, advocate for, and facilitate the adoption of the STEP-NC CNC/CAM data standard (ISO 103003-328). 
• The Machine Tool Subprograms Sub-Team will develop, test, advocate for, and facilitate the adoption of standard CNC subprograms to enable portability for machine-specific functions.
• The Spline Toolpaths Sub-team will develop, test, advocate for, and facilitate the adoption of spline toolpaths.

Anyone interested in participating in the OMAC Machine Tool working group or one of its sub-teams should contact the working group chairman, David Odendahl.