BIZOMAT MAKEOS · Manufacturing
Drilling Cycle Planner (Speed, Feed, Thrust, Power and Time)
What speed and feed do I run this drill at, will the machine and workholding take the thrust, and how long will the holes take?
Drilling plan for a batch of holes: spindle speed, cutting power, torque and approximate thrust (the same method as the drilling power tool), motor power and thrust against the limits, time per hole including the drill point, clearance, peck retracts and positioning, and the total time for all holes.
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How this tool works
Inputs, units and where to find them
| Input | Unit | Typical source |
|---|---|---|
| Drill diameter | mm | Drill diameter. |
| Cutting speed | m/min | Cutting speed for the drill and material. |
| Feed per revolution | mm/rev | Feed per revolution. |
| Specific cutting force | N/mm² | Specific cutting force of the material. |
| Point angle | ° | Point angle of the drill. |
| Machine efficiency | % | Spindle drive efficiency. |
| Spindle power available | kW | Spindle power of the machine. |
| Thrust limit (workholding or part) | N | Largest thrust the fixture, part or machine should see. |
| Holes | ||
| Hole depth | mm | Depth of each hole. |
| Number of holes | Number of holes. | |
| Approach and breakthrough clearance | mm | Extra travel for approach and breakthrough. |
| Peck depth (0 = no pecking) | mm | Depth per peck for deep holes (0 for continuous feed). |
| Time per peck retract | s | Time for each retract and return when pecking. |
| Positioning time between holes | s | Rapid move time from hole to hole. |
What each input means
Open an input to see what it is, its units, the worked example and the common mistakes, with a small diagram.
What this means: Drill diameter
- What it is
- Diameter of the twist drill, which is the size of hole it cuts.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in mm: millimetres. The form accepts 0.000001 mm to 200 mm. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 10 mm as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Effect on the result
- Spindle speed falls in inverse proportion; power and thrust rise in proportion.
What this means: Cutting speed
- What it is
- Surface speed at the outer corners of the drill, from the tool maker’s cutting data for the work material.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in m/min: metres per minute. The form accepts 0.000001 m/min to 1000 m/min. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 80 m/min as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Effect on the result
- Spindle speed and power rise in proportion; thrust does not change.
What this means: Feed per revolution
- What it is
- How far the drill advances along its axis for each spindle revolution.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in mm/rev: millimetres per revolution. The form accepts 0.000001 mm/rev to 3 mm/rev. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 0.15 mm/rev as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Effect on the result
- Power, torque and thrust rise in proportion; feed time falls.
- Get it right
- Per revolution, not per minute: feed rate = spindle speed × feed.
What this means: Specific cutting force
- What it is
- Cutting force per square millimetre of chip for the work material, from the tool maker’s data or a machining reference.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in N/mm²: newtons per square millimetre (equal to MPa). The form accepts 0.000001 N/mm² to 10000 N/mm². Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 2000 N/mm² as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Effect on the result
- Power, torque and thrust are all proportional to kc.
What this means: Point angle
- What it is
- Included angle at the drill tip. It changes the thrust and the length of the cone drilled before the hole reaches full diameter.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in °: degrees of angle. The form accepts 60° to 180°. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 118° as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Get it right
- Included angle across the point, not the half angle.
What this means: Machine efficiency
- What it is
- Share of the motor power that reaches the drill after belts, gears and spindle bearings.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in %: percent: the number is read as a percentage, so type 8 for 8 %. The form accepts 20% to 100%. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 80% as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Effect on the result
- Motor power needed = cutting power ÷ efficiency.
What this means: Spindle power available
- What it is
- Power the machine spindle can deliver continuously, from the machine maker’s power curve.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in kW: kilowatts. The form accepts 0.000001 kW to 1000 kW. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 7.5 kW as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Get it right
- Read the power at the spindle speed you will run; many spindles give less power at low speed.
What this means: Thrust limit (workholding or part)
- What it is
- Largest axial thrust the workholding, the part or the machine should take, from the fixture design or machine data.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in N: newtons. The form accepts 0.000001 N to 1000000 N. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 3000 N as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
Holes
What this means: Hole depth
- What it is
- Depth of each hole at full diameter; the tool adds the drill point cone and the clearance itself.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in mm: millimetres. The form accepts 0.000001 mm to 2000 mm. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 30 mm as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Effect on the result
- Feed time per hole rises with depth.
What this means: Number of holes
- What it is
- Number of holes of this size and depth drilled in the job.
- Units and format
- Enter a plain number with no unit. The form accepts 1 to 1000000. Use a whole number. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 20 as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Effect on the result
- Total time is time per hole times the number of holes.
What this means: Approach and breakthrough clearance
- What it is
- Extra feed travel for approaching the surface and breaking through the far side, added to every hole.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in mm: millimetres. The form accepts 0 mm to 100 mm. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 2 mm as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
What this means: Peck depth (0 = no pecking)
- What it is
- How deep the drill feeds before each retract to clear chips from the hole.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in mm: millimetres. The form accepts 0 mm to 1000 mm. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 0 mm as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Get it right
- 0 = no pecking: the hole is drilled in one continuous feed.
What this means: Time per peck retract
- What it is
- Time for each peck: rapid out of the hole, rapid back in and resume feeding.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in s: seconds. The form accepts 0 s to 60 s. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 1.5 s as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
- Get it right
- Used only when the peck depth is above zero.
What this means: Positioning time between holes
- What it is
- Rapid travel time from one hole to the next, added once for each hole.
- Units and format
- Enter a number in s: seconds. The form accepts 0 s to 600 s. Required: the tool does not calculate until every input is valid.
- Example
- The form opens with 2 s as a worked example. It is an illustration, not a recommended value: replace it with your own figure.
Method and formulas
- n = 1000 v_c ÷ π D; power P = f v_c D k_c ÷ 240,000 kW; torque = P × 30,000 ÷ π n; thrust ≈ 0.5 k_c (D ÷ 2) f sin(point ÷ 2) (as the drilling power tool).
- Travel = depth + point length D ÷ [2 tan(point ÷ 2)] + clearance; feed time = travel ÷ (n f).
- Pecks = ⌈depth ÷ peck⌉ − 1, each adding its retract time; positioning added per hole.
- Example: 20 holes 10 mm × 30 mm take about 2.4995 min at 2,546.5 rpm.
Limitations
- Thrust is approximate; the chisel edge can add considerably, especially without point thinning.
- Tool changes and spot drilling are not included.
- Example values are illustrations. Replace them with values for your actual task.
Typical uses
- Plan a drilling operation in a CNC program
- Check thrust against fixturing and thin parts
- Estimate cycle time for a pattern of holes
Who it is for
- Machinists
- CNC programmers
- Manufacturing engineers
What you get
- Speed, feed rate, power, torque and thrust
- Time per hole
- Total time for all holes
Interpreting the result
- Peck only as deep as chip evacuation needs: every retract costs time.
References
- Machinery’s Handbook, 29th edition (Industrial Press, 2012), printed pp. 1084–1092, 1089. Topic reference; no source tables or recommended settings are reproduced.
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Open the Drilling Cycle Planner (Speed, Feed, Thrust, Power and Time) calculator