Metalworking Activity Contracted Marginally in April
By: Jan Schafer
The GBI Metalworking Index in April looked a lot like March, contracting at a marginally greater degree.
#economics
Investing in Automation, Five-Axis to Increase Production Capacity
By: Nathaniel Fields
To meet an increase in demand, this shop invested heavily in automation solutions and five-axis machines to ramp up its production capabilities.
The Cool Parts Showcase Seeks Innovative 3D Printed Parts
By: Stephanie Hendrixson
Do you solve problems with 3D printing? Enter your 3D printed parts in this contest from The Cool Parts Show.
Random Thoughts About Reshoring and Buying American
By: Peter Zelinski
What will be the effect of the supply chain disruptions of recent years? Here are several observations related to where companies produce and how we think about a manufactured product’s origins.
#zaxis
Translating a Prototyping Mindset to Production
By: Evan Doran
The experimental mindset that benefited BDE Manufacturing Technologies as a prototype job shop has given it an adaptable edge as a production facility.
How to Accelerate Robotic Deburring & Automated Material Removal
Pairing automation with air-driven motors that push cutting tool speeds up to 65,000 RPM with no duty cycle can dramatically improve throughput and improve finishing.
Form Tapping Improves Tool Life, Costs
By: Evan Doran
Moving from cut tapping to form tapping for a notable application cut tooling costs at Siemens Energy and increased tool life a hundredfold.
Lessons on the Journey Toward Shop Automation
By: Brent Donaldson
By necessity, small and mid-sized American job shops are automating production, whether through swift, dramatic upgrades in capital equipment, or slow, methodical changes to processes and procedures on the shop floor.
#thesetup
Simulation and Tooling Secure High-Value Work
By: Evan Doran
Simulation software and careful attention to tooling parameters have enabled Major Tool to take on ambitious projects with its complex machinery.
Reinventing a Precision Shop With a Data-Driven Mindset
By: Nathaniel Fields
When this machine shop lost 90% of its business within three months, a reinvention was in order. Here's how it survived after quickly falling on hard times.
How Modal Testing Can Reveal Dynamic Machining Responses
By: Tony Schmitz
Tool-holder-spindle-machine combinations each have a unique dynamic response in the same way that each person has a unique fingerprint, which can be revealed using modal testing.
#viewfrommyshop
Help Operators Understand Sizing Adjustments
By: Mike Lynch
Even when CNCs are equipped with automatic post-process gaging systems, there are always a few important adjustments that must be done manually. Don’t take operators understanding these adjustments for granted.
#cnctechtalk
How to Calibrate Gages and Certify Calibration Programs
By: George Schuetz
Tips for establishing and maintaining a regular gage calibration program.
#qualitygagingtips #Basics
Precision Manufacturing of Large and Complex Parts
Explore Tech-Max, a CNC machine shop that specializes in precision machining large and complex parts ranging from 10 in. to over 10 ft.
#videoVFMS
Shop Replaces Two Verticals With One Horizontal
By: Eli Plaskett
By trading two VMCs in to help finance the purchase of a new HMC, this shop was able to significantly increase production and move to lights-out machining.
Automated CAM Programming – Is Your Software Really Delivering?
A look at the latest automation tools in Autodesk Fusion 360 software and how forward-thinking machine shops and manufacturing departments are using them to slash delivery times and win more business.
#topshops
Why Towns Want Manufacturing Plants
By: Peter Zelinski
A manufacturing facility can harness and focus the native ability of people growing up in a town, and channel this into livelihoods and homes for the town’s next generation. Is this something we lost sight of and are now seeing again?
#zaxis
