Manufacturing Functional and Aesthetic Metal Housings for High-End Coffee Machines

About Customer and Product

The client is a professional supplier of high-end coffee machines, known for exceptional extraction performance, intelligent features, and minimalist industrial design. Their products cater to boutique coffee shops, upscale restaurants, and private consumers who pursue a quality lifestyle.

Recently, the client partnered with WayKen to manufacture a critical coffee component—the precision-machined metal housing. As the core structure for both the machine’s appearance and internal architecture, this housing demands exceptional assembly precision and a refined surface finish.

Project Requirements & Structural Challenges

In this project, the client required a highly customized solution: 15 sets of precision housings delivered within just 3 weeks. This tight schedule placed high demands on our production capabilities, management efficiency, and flexibility for batch orders.

The coffee housing features an open structure, large dimensions, thin walls, and detailed features like tight R angle – all of which require advanced equipment and extensive machining experience to ensure accuracy and surface quality.

Thanks to thorough DFM discussions in the early stages and clearly defined standards, WayKen successfully delivered high-quality parts on schedule. Let’s take a closer look at how we achieve precision housing parts.

Managing Deformation and Complexity

A tight tolerance housing with thin walls and deep cavities required a step-by-step strategy to ensure stability and surface quality.

1. Controlling Deformation in Thin-Walled Open Structures

The first machining consideration focused on the open, thin-walled structure of the metal housing, which resembles an unsealed enclosure. Compared to a fully enclosed design, this type of structure offers less internal support and is easier to deform during machining.

Therefore, to ensure dimensional stability and part quality, we developed a systematic machining strategy that addresses potential deformation at every stage of the process.

Clamping Strategy to Maintain Stability

First, a well-designed clamping strategy is necessary. This housing part is machined from a solid blank, with over 90% of the material removed. Such heavy material removal generates significant cutting forces that can shift the blank and affect accuracy.

To keep stability, we used locking screws to secure the blank firmly to the machine. After machining the inner cavity, we also developed a custom fixture based on the inner cavity to support the part during reverse-side processing and minimize deformation.

Step-by-Step Machining to Reduce Deformation Risk

When processing the inner cavity, the material is the most removed—another key to reducing the risk of deformation.

The entire machining process for the coffee housing follows a structured three-step approach – from roughing to semi-finishing to finishing:

• Roughing: A large-diameter tool is used at low speeds to control cutting depth and relieve material stress. Spiral or equal-height tool paths help balance cutting forces. Most material is removed at this stage, with 0.2–0.5 mm of stock left for subsequent steps.
• Semi-Finishing: A smaller tool removes areas inaccessible during roughing, leaving a uniform margin of 0.2–0.5 mm.
• Finishing: With a small, consistent allowance remaining, we apply light cutting parameters – small depth of cut, high speed and feed rate – for high-precision results and an excellent surface finish.

2. Mastering Tight Radii & Deep Features

Complex local geometries required advanced machine capabilities and careful toolpath programming.

Beyond the overall structural machining strategy, many local features of the housing part also place high demands on equipment capability and programming expertise.

For example, there are many fillets at the bottom of the inner cavity of the housing part. Due to assembly requirements, these fillets are not large. The picture below is a more typical R angle. The edge of the inner cavity is required to leave R3, but the peripheral structure of the part is blocked, and the depth reaches 104mm, far exceeding the limit depth that the 3mm cutting tool can process.

If the cutting tool is processed vertically from the direction of the arrow, the bottom structure cannot be processed. The housing part needs to be tilted to the lower left, as shown in the right picture, to avoid structural obstruction as much as possible and shorten the distance the tool needs to extend. There are many structures that need to be angled like this.

However, relying on 3-axis machines would have necessitated multiple setups, increasing error risk and time. Instead, WayKen employed advanced 5-axis CNC machines, enabling multi-angle rotation and one-time clamping, greatly improving accuracy and efficiency.

What’s more, our engineers conducted numerous programming trials to ensure optimal tool access and interference-free machining for all deep features.

Achieving Refined Surface Texture with High-Speed Finishing

In this project, the coffee machine’s outer housing must not only meet functional standards but also present a premium visual appeal. The surface should be smooth, yet retain fine, uniform machining lines that highlight the precision and beauty of industrial design.

To achieve this effect, we use small-diameter tools paired with ultra-high-speed spindles running at 32,000 RPM. This combination enables micron-level, high-frequency cutting that minimizes vibration and enhances surface quality.

By applying a carefully planned tool path, we ensure the material removal process tends toward the plastic flow mode, producing consistent, parallel tool marks that enhance the housing’s mechanical texture and luxurious appearance.

Feedback

After receiving the housing parts, the client praised the overall precision and detailing of the parts. Assembly was seamless, and the mechanical surface finish was especially well-received by end users.
WayKen is committed to providing reliable, high-quality machining services—from early-stage technical support to precision manufacturing—helping our clients efficiently achieve their product goals with confidence.