Archives

2008

June

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June Cover

Counting down to IMTS - Part I

Stringing Along Energy Development

The Right Software Led to Shop Success

The Proof is in the Plastic

Carbide to the Rescue

The Rule of Ones

A Swiss Turning Center Turns Problems into Profits

 

May

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May Cover

The Strategy and Tactics of Hiring

Better Management Through Resource Integration

Stitch-welding a Labor of Love

EASTEC 2008 Preview

Five Axes, One Setup, Endless Results

‘Cutting’ Air is No Way to Make a Profit

 

April

April Cover

Breaking the Mold

Cut Out for the Part

You’ve Got to Know When to Hold Them

From Bottleneck to Breakthrough

Getting by With a Little Help from Friends

Snacks Sold Separately

 

March

March Cover

Polishing Off the Work

Loyalty On Its Own Terms

'Impossible?' No Such Word at Liberty Steel

The Name of the Game is Change

Where Reality Meets the Road

WESTEC 2008 Preview

 

February

February Cover

Efficiency Wins Work

Murder, Inc.

Taking Leads from Customers' Needs

Waterjet to the Rescue

Injecting Speed into the Mold Business

Success at More Than 300 Miles Away

Out With the Old, In With the New

 

January

January Cover

Doing it Right Depends on Planning

Green Chemistry Cures the Bacteria Blues

A 'Novel' Idea

Software Makes the Front Office as Efficient as the Shop Floor

Confidence and Savvy Lead to Success

Rifle Maker Guarantees Accuracy

No Second Chances

Accuracy With the Right Touch

 

2007

December

December Cover

Nightmare on Outer Drive West

A Sign of the Times

Quality Never Takes a Tumble at a Finishing Shop

Excess Capacity? No Such Thing

Ford is Driven Lately

Greasing the Skids for Oil Exploration Production

Tapping the Power of Lasers and Brakes

 

November

November Cover

Scale Nearly Unbalances Profits

Metal-cored Wire Offers Speed and Savings

Internal Job Shops Get a Leg – or Maybe a Hip – Up

Excellence Leads to Customers

Getting a Grip on Workholding

Building In Critical Cutting

 

October

October Cover

German Automotive Parts Via Alabama

Rock, Paper, Scissors, Waterjet!

Taking a Bite Out of the 'Sandwich-Cutting' Costs

Putting Manhole Covers on a Diet Saved Half a Million Bucks

Anticipating Needs Leads to Success

Solutions for Short-Run, Light Stamping

Accurate Holding Speeds UK Shop's Production

 

September

September Cover

The Key to Keyseating

Making the Right Investment in Marketing

Commonality Is the Key

'Trifecta' Success

Necessity is the Mother of Trunnions

Strength in Numbers

If at First You Don't Succeed . . . Get Better Software

 

August

August Cover

The Most Popular Products by Readers’ Acclaim

When Good Looking Products are Needed,
Laser Cutters Deliver

The Coolest Machining Around

Profiting Like Cats and Dogs

 

July

July Cover

Shop Finds the ‘Holy Grail’ of Welding

Cast Iron Waste No Longer Wastes Time

One Good Turn Increases Throughput

The Right Cutting Tool Helps a Shop Across the ‘Finish Line’

When You Care Enough to Hone the Very Best

A Place for Everything and Everything in Its Place

Alternatives to ‘That Old Black Magic’

The Match Game: Customers vs. Growth

EASTEC Roundup

 

June

June Cover

20 Percent Productivity Gain Built In

Getting Its Head Out of the Point Cloud

Punching Up Production

Speed is Life

30 Years of Experience Pays Off

MAN 2007 Workholding Survey Results

Shop Develops Expertise in Processes, Not Parts

Aerospace Manufacturing Places Tough Demands on Cutting Tools

Waterjet Helps Place a Manufacturer’s Quality a Cut Above

Principles of Machine Setup

 

May

May Cover

Tighter Tolerance EDMs Pay Off for Medical Manufacturer

Plasma Cutting

Lathe Turns Into a Cost SaverLathe

Cutting Tool Management Leads to Increased Profit

Getting Estimates Right the First Time

Software Turns a 100-Year-Old Idea into Reality

WESTEC

Robot Cell Software Cuts Programming Time

Ultrasonic Machining Found to be a Sound Idea

 

April

April Cover

Scratching a Niche

Coolant Change Increases Tool Life 20 Percent

Engraving Bull’s-eyes ID Marking Needs

Deburring Turns Into a Cinderella Story

Grinding Away Inefficiencies Leads to Profits

Less Is More When It Comes to Sawing Equipment

Modernization Cuts Cycle Time in Half

 

March

March

Not Your Father’s Space Shuttle

Nesting Isn’t Only for the Birds

Laser Unit Cuts Tube and Time

The Right Cutting Tools Prevented ‘Meltdowns’

The Right Match of Components Cuts Costs 50 Percent

Quick-Change Artists

 

February

February

A San Diego Medical Firm Prototypes With a ‘Personal’ CNC Machine

Get the Most from CNC Automation Investments

Office Furniture Manufacturer Seeks Excellence, Not Compliance

Stand and Deliver – Profits

Robot Adds Horsepower to Motorcycle Aftermarket Shop

There’s No Neutrality About Swiss Turning

 

January

January

Grinder Improves Tap Manufacturer’s Bottom Line

Button-Type Face Mill Reduces Machining Time 60 Percent

Waterjet Technology Doubles a Small Shop’s Sales in the First Year of Use

An Aerospace Job Shop Turned to the ‘Dark Side’ to Beat Parts Distortion

In-House Saws Put a Shop a Cut Above the Competition

From Bar to Box in Half the Time

 

Industry News

Workholding Sales Up Compared to 2007
Shipments of workholding equipment from the U.S. were $63.6 million for first quarter 2008, up 4.4 percent from first quarter 2007, according to the Advanced Workholding Technology Group – AWT – formerly the Workholding Product Group, The Association For Manufacturing Technology.

Fastener Patent Infringement Suit Settled
PennEngineering, Danboro, PA, announced a settlement agreement with Richard Manno & Co., Inc. that resolves allegations that Manno sold, or offered for sale, products that infringe PennEngineering’s intellectual property. Details of the settlement agreement were not disclosed. PennEngineering develops and manufactures PEM self-clinching, broaching, weld, and surface mount fasteners.

Tesco Technologies to Operate Under Seco Tools Name
Tesco Technologies Inc., Novi, MI, has dropped the Tesco identity and will carry the Seco Tools Inc. name. Seco acquired Tesco in 2004. Tesco was known for its Jabro brand line of tooling, targeted at mold and die, medical, and aerospace applications. Jabro is a Seco Tools Inc. brand.

FARO and DPI Strike Licensing Deal
FARO Technologies, Inc., Lake Mary, FL, a maker of portable computer-aided measurement hardware and software, announced that it acquired an exclusive license from Dimensional Photonics International, Inc. DPI is a provider of high-speed, high-accuracy digital shape scanners – for global rights to develop, manufacture, and sell DPI technology and products. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

KUKA Robotics Celebrates 35 Years
KUKA Robotics Corp., Clinton Township, MI, celebrates its 35th year in the robotics industry with an open house at its headquarters. The robot manufacturer will showcase more than 15 operating robotic demonstration cells.

Student Wins CNC Software Contest
CNC Software, Tolland, CT, developer of Mastercam CAD/CAM software, announced that the winner of its Innovator of the Future contest for the 2007/2008 school year is Bernie Sievers, a student in the Advanced Manufacturing Program at Vincennes University, Vincennes, IN.

Industrial Wireless Communications in Flux
A recently completed market study from Venture Development Corp., Natick, MA, focused on shipments of products for on-site industrial monitoring and control.

Sandvik Coromant Boosts R&D Facility
Sandvik Coromant, Fair Lawn, NJ, a manufacturer of cutting tools, will increase the size of its research and development department by nearly 20 percent, adding 40 new employees during the next three years. Between its R&D department and the research center for cemented carbides in Vastberga, Sweden, the company employs more than 200 employees.