Appleton Stainless was selected by a food, dairy, and bio-pharmaceutical industries customer looking to machine instrument tee bodies. This highly regulated application required that the metal fittings be machined to close tolerances and applicable material standards. By applying our precision machining capabilities directly to the customer’s needs, we were able to deliver a complete solution on schedule.

These instrument tee bodies varied in size from 1/2 x 1” to 1-1/2 x 2”, but were all manufactured from 316L stainless. We elected to use conventional CNC turning and milling strategies to cut the parts quickly and precisely from standard round bar stock. Light polishing followed, establishing a 20RA outer surface. Dimensional tolerances were held to ±0.002”. Fitting and documentation travel throughout the manufacturing process, ensuring high levels of output quality.

All fittings were manufactured and delivered on a 3-week schedule, allowing the customer to react quickly to changing equipment regulatory standards. All machined components were held to A-276 standards. Our understanding of industry requirements, an ability to comply with new industry standards, and our timeliness of lead times in a competitive market allowed us to really deliver on this project in high pressure circumstances.

If you’d like to learn more about this project, see the table below, or contact Appleton Stainless today.

Instrument Tee Bodies Highlights

Project Name
Instrument Tee Bodies
Project Description
These instrument tee bodies are used within food, dairy and bio-pharmaceutical applications.
Capabilities Applied/Processes
Primary:
Cutting (from Round Bar)
CNC Turning
CNC Milling
Secondary:
Light Polishing
Equipment Used to Manufacture Part
CNC Lathe and CNC Mill
Overall Part Dimensions
Range: 1/2x1 up to 1-1/2x2
Tightest Tolerances
+/- 0.002
Material Used
316L, AL6XN
Material Finish
20ra
In process testing/inspection performed
Certified Material Test Report (CMTR)
Industry for Use
Food, Dairy, Bio-Pharmaceutical
Delivery/Turnaround Time
Stock to 3 weeks
Delivery Location
North America
Standards Met
A-276