Mailing address
DAM Ústí nad Labem, s.r.o.
U Tonasa 2
403 31 Neštěmice
Owner and managing director
Daniel Smolař
tel .: + 420 475 507 325
fax : + 420 475 507 167
mob .: + 420 602 418 715
e-mail : smolard@dam-ul.cz
Welding address
DAM Ústí nad Labem, s.r.o.
Areál TOS Varnsdorf, a.s.
Říční 1774
407 47 Varnsdorf
GPS: 50°53´22,7"N 14°37´37,3"E
Metalworking address
DAM Ústí nad Labem, s.r.o.
PZ Tonaso Neštěmice, a.s.
U Tonasa 2
403 31 Neštěmice
GPS: 50°40´13,3"N 14°6´39,0"E
DAM Ústí nad Labem
Design of the main structural part

The column of a horizontal milling machine produced by TOS VARNSDORF a.s. has been selected as an example for a comparative design study.
The new column design is based on the original column and has been created as a steel plate welded structure using aluminium foam – an unconventional material – as filling. The new design is supported by static and dynamic calculations using the finite element method.
There are several reasons for this approach:
- the need to respect the interface dimensions of connecting components
(interface for linear guideways of the X and Y axes and interface for drive and linear measurement components), - the need to respect the outside dimensions of the column in relation to the machine’s covers,
- the possibility to compare design calculations for the two columns thanks to the similarity of their dimensions.
| Measurement results for the column structures: | Standard column | Sandwich column | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weight | 4 330kg | 2 785kg | -36% |
| Column rigidity along the X axis | 100% | 169% | +69% |
| Column rigidity along the Z axis | 100% | 154% | +54% |
| Modal properties of the structure | |||
| Front-to-back mode shapes along the Z axis | 100% | 127% | +27% |
| Right-to-left mode shapes along the X axis | 100% | 223% | +123% |







