Leave your turning center alone: This is automatic tool change

If you walk through the Sandvik Coromant factory in Gimo (Sweden), you quickly learn to stay alert. The floor is busy, the machines are focused on their work, and the small automated guided vehicles (AGVs) can appear at your side without a sound. Each one is named after a Lord of the Rings character, so it’s not unusual to see the mythical Gandalf or steadfast Frodo rolling past on their way to pick up the next batch of materials.

We were there to watch automatic tool change (ATC) in action, running steadily in the middle of all this activity. It fits naturally into the pace of the place: consistent, predictable, and designed to keep production moving without adding stress to the team.

Step behind the scenes with Bo Hammarberg and Niklas Larsson, Product Manager and Manufacturing Engineer at Sandvik Coromant, and see automatic tool change in action as they talk about the challenges it solves and the shift it brings to turning.

In turning centers, efficiency evolves by spotting patterns and acting on them with the right combination of knowledge and tools — but one of the most significant barriers to productivity has always been the moment everything must stop. When the tool wears out, the operator steps in, the machine goes idle, and valuable minutes slip away. Across the industry, this pattern repeats thousands of times a day: small interruptions that accumulate into major losses.

For years, this has been the accepted compromise in turning and for many manufacturers, it has become a critical bottleneck, one that the industry no longer has the workforce to absorb.

When skilled labour becomes scarce, downtime becomes expensive

In one case, a U.S. customer built a new production unit with 40 machines and needed 100 trained operators to run them. They could find just five. 

This shortage reshapes how manufacturers think about time, utilization, and risk. Manual tool changes require skill, attention, and availability — three things in increasingly short supply. With every routine manual change or delayed swap, machine utilization drops and cost per part rises.

“The skills gap is here and now.”
— Bo Hammarberg

This is the landscape Sandvik Coromant stepped into when developing automatic tool change for turning centers, closing the final gap in automation that has held turning back for decades.

A simple idea with transformative impact

“Turning machines have always struggled with the number of tools,” Niklas explains. “Since you only have twelve positions on a turret, you are often very limited.”

ATC effectively solves this limitation by combining an external tool stand with robot-managed tool change. Turning centers can now access up to 40 additional tool positions, expanding capability without altering the machine footprint. Tools are monitored automatically, swapped autonomously, and prepared by technicians outside the machine while it keeps cutting. The system is built on machine-adapted clamping units with a Coromant Capto® interface, ensuring stable tool changes and compatibility across setups.

“The biggest technical advantage is machine uptime.”
— Niklas Larsson

“Now we can change cutting tools both on static turning tools as well as rotating tools, which no one else can do in the industry today on turning centers,” Bo says.

While convenient, the true value lies in the ability to machine continuously, enabling unmanned or lights-out production. “With multiple sister tools, you can run the machine unmanned for long periods,” Niklas says. Using VERICUT, the entire automatic tool change sequence can be simulated and verified virtually before it ever reaches the shop floor, adding another layer of certainty to unmanned production.

Automation that protects both performance and people

The benefits extend beyond productivity. Turning centers are notoriously tight spaces — cramped, sharp, difficult to maneuver. Operators risk cuts and bruises during manual tool handling, especially when rushing between machines.

“With ATC, that risk disappears,” Bo explains. “If you change the tools with the robot, you put safe distance between yourself and potential injury.”

Safety is fundamental to Sandvik Coromant and reflects its commitment to manufacturing wellness, where resilient processes, sustainable operations, and healthier working environments form the foundation of progress.

“We don’t make machines. We make them better.”
— Bo Hammarberg

For decades, turning has lagged behind milling and multitask machines in automation maturity. Even highly advanced systems relied on manual tool changes — a missing piece that prevented full lights-out manufacturing.

“Automatic tool change is the next step in the machine development when it comes to turning centers,” Bo says. “And now we have come to a breakthrough, where you can have automatic tool change as you have on all other machine concepts today.”

The dedication invested in this project is not to be underestimated. “When I started working here three years ago, I was handed this project,” Niklas recalls. “Here we are now, with machines fully up and running. I’m extremely proud.”

Machines evolve and we make them better

ATC marks a shift in how turning centers work. By taking over a task that once demanded time, focus, and experience, it frees skilled people to work where their judgment actually matters. The machine keeps cutting; the operator keeps creating value.

Its impact also represents two habits that define a future-ready workshop: embracing new technology and automating for success. Both reduce the pressure on scarce expertise and create room for clearer thinking, smarter decisions, and steadier production.

Remove the repetitive work, and consistency follows. Automate the tool change, and the machine finally runs the way it was built to without unplanned breaks and surprises. This is how reliability becomes part of daily progress, and how manufacturing wellness takes shape on the shop floor.

“As a mechanical engineer, I love new technology… This is the future.”
— Niklas Larsson

With automatic tool change for turning centers, the future is constantly on the move: running, cutting, and producing with minimal downtime and maximum potential for productivity.