burrer

Burrer is a term encountered in manufacturing and milling with multiple related meanings depending on context. It derives from burr, the rough edge or protrusion that can remain on a workpiece after cutting, drilling, or shaping. As an agent noun, burrer can refer broadly to either an operator who forms burrs or a device that forms burrs. In common industrial practice, however, the term is more often applied to equipment or personnel tasked with removing burrs, though the more standard word is deburrer or deburring tool.

Deburring tools and processes are used across metalworking, plastics, and woodworking to improve finish, reduce stress risers, and prepare parts for assembly. They include manual scrapers, rotary burrs, grinding wheels, abrasive brushes, ultrasonic deburring, and CNC deburring cycles. While not standardized, some catalogs or informal usage may still refer to a burrer as a deburring tool or operator.

Alternate senses: The word burrer may appear as a surname in some regions, but such usage is rare and not tied to a single notable figure. Because of its ambiguity, the term burrer is less common in technical writing than deburrer or deburring tool.

See also: burr, deburring, deburrer, chamfering.