Definition
Lights-out production is CNC machining that runs unattended — evenings, overnight, or continuously — with the machine feeding its own material, completing parts in one operation, and evacuating them without an operator. It converts idle machine hours into output without adding labor.
Where it Fits
In Depth
The requirements, honestly listed
One-operation completion; bar-fed material; programmable part evacuation; chip and coolant control; tool-life headroom; and above all a proven-out, stable process. Machines don't fail lights-out — unproven processes do.
How Eurotech gets shops to lights-out
The machine capability (sub-spindles, evacuation systems, bar capacity) is table stakes across the lineup; the differentiator is that Eurotech's turnkey delivery proves the process before it runs dark, and lifetime training keeps every shift competent. The KelTec result — 185 parts per shift from one machine with one operator floating across others — is a lights-out-adjacent staffing model any production shop can copy.
PROOF
Common questions
How many unattended hours can I expect?
Bar capacity × cycle time, bounded by tool life — the time study models it.
What parts should go lights-out first?
Stable runners with the highest labor content.
What about failures at night?
Process proving, conservative tool life, and sensor options; and Eurotech's engineering support is 24/7 — literally.
Is this the right fit for your part?
Send a print and Eurotech's application engineers return a free time study — real cycle time and per-part cost on your actual component.
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