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When part quality is of the utmost importance then the safest option is to completely process each part before moving to the next. In cases where there are a number of spindle tools required for each part however, this can be time consuming because of the tool changes. At the other end of the spectrum is the situation where quality takes a back seat to speed of processing. In this case you might use one tool in every location it is required on the plate before selecting the next required tool. This will certainly speed things up, but the risk or poor quality parts due to plate movement is greatly increased.

Zoning is a useful tool because it gives an easy compromise between these two situations. Effectively it splits the plate into a number of zones so that each tool does all that is required of it within that zone before the next tool is selected. If part tolerance is a greater concern, then the zones can be made smaller. If you are in a hurry and part quality is less of an issue, then you can make the zones larger.

By far the easiest way to apply zoning is to use the On Screen Sequencing Tool.

1.Click on the box that represents the type of zoning you want to apply (vertical or horizontal) so that it is highlighted.

2.Drag the handles to create the size of zones that you want.

3.Press the Optimize Order button so that the sequencing can be re-ordered taking into account the desired zoning.

The Sequencing Options dialog will be displayed and at the bottom of the window you will find the zoning options. Here you can select whether the sequence should snake or zig-zag through the zones.

If you have individually sequenced parts you should ensure that the Preserve Internal Part Order check box in the Sequencing Options dialog is ticked.

Each of the new zones will be set up as a separate Group in the sequencing list.