Japanese Cutting-Edge
Solutions for Metalworking
Japanese Cutting-Edge
Solutions for Metalworking
News
July 16, 2025
By: Takashi Haga
Deputy editor-in-chief, SEISANZAI Japan
Rather than competing on marginal advantages, NS TOOL chooses to differentiate through innovation. As a pioneer in small-diameter cutting tools, the company has established a dedicated R&D center at its Sendai Plant to focus on precision micro-machining.
The building, constructed after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, incorporates a vibration-isolating structure to reduce even subtle ground movements. The center conducts extensive test cutting to meet rising demands for automation and 5-axis machining, accumulating sample workpieces and data to support advanced tool development. The goal is to create added value through new machining technologies.
Busy measuring tools and workpieces in the inspection room
The Development Center was completed in October 2019, more than five years after the earthquake. However, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed public introduction of the facility.
Built with high-precision manufacturing in mind, the center features a custom “all-round vibration isolation” structure jointly developed with a construction firm. This system combines multiple vibration control devices and dampers to suppress a wide range of vibrations—from major earthquakes to micro-level tremors.
“To achieve accuracy at the 0.001 mm level, you have to care about vibrations people can’t even feel,” says Takamasa Endo, head of the R&D Division. “Our research and development efforts extend beyond the tool itself.”
Even the air management system is carefully engineered. Outside air can be brought in indirectly via heat exchange and is circulated using air conditioning for consistent temperature control. The team even built their own ±0.5°C temperature-controlled room to test how temperature variations affect micro-machining results. “By doing it ourselves, we can add more depth to our technical proposals,” Endo explains.
The two-story center has a dedicated test machining floor on the ground level, equipped with a wide range of machine tools optimized for micro-machining. Since customers use diverse equipment, the center also houses machines from many manufacturers. Through repeated test cutting, the center accumulates data and samples to support development of cutting tools and micro-machining techniques. The second floor features a seminar room with capacity for up to 150 attendees.
“We aim to develop original NS TOOL products that no other company can offer,” says Takamasa Endo, Head of R&D
NS TOOL focuses on creating truly original tools—products that are “different,” not just “better.” As a pioneer in ultra-micro end mills like the “Micro Edge” series and CBN tools, the company has long led the market in innovation. It continuously pursues improvement to ensure stable, high-precision performance, but the core development philosophy remains to create tools with distinctive value.
A key theme today is supporting customer needs for automation and labor-saving. “Our mission is to develop tools that enable stable, unmanned operation for 24 hours. That aligns with our manufacturing guidelines—to provide consistently high-performance products with no variation,” Endo notes.
The company is also advancing development for 5-axis machining tools. While 5-axis machines are improving in performance—particularly in reducing accumulated error—adoption in Japan still lags. To encourage broader usage, NS TOOL hosted a 5-axis seminar in October 2023, which also served as the center’s first large-scale public unveiling.
In response to challenges facing the manufacturing sector, NS TOOL’s Development Center delivers added value by combining tool development with machining technology proposals.
NS TOOL Sendai Factory – Development Center
Address: 2-8 Matsuzaka-daira, Taiwa-machi, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan
Tel: +81-22-347-0567
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