Quality articles from February 2004

Quality archives from February 2004

Who answers customer questions?(From The Editor)(Editorial)
February 1, 2004... I recently saw a startling story on CBS' "60 Minutes." It was a piece about outsourcing, not manufacturing jobs, but service sector jobs. Companies such as Delta Airlines, IBM, Hewlett Packard and Dell Computer use India to answer customer and...

Coming Events.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
February 1, 2004... MARCH * Implementing SPC, Chicago, March 1-3. Stat-A-Matrix, (800) 472-6477. * South-Tec, Charlotte, NC, March 2-4. SME, (800) 733-4763. * Level II infrared Training Certification, San Diego, Feb....

External costs challege industry.(Industry News)
February 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- "External, non-production costs add approximately 22% to unit labor costs of U.S. manufacturers (nearly $5 per hour worked) relative to their major foreign competitors, and are the primary competitive challenge facing...

Hyde Park Electronics LLC.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Hyde Park Electronics LLC (Dayton, OH), a provider of ultrasonic sensing technology, has received Ohio's Governor's Excellence in Exporting Award,

Entela-Grand Rapids.(Business News)(vibration testing capability expanded)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Entela-Grand Rapids (Grand Rapids, MI), a supplier of laboratory testing and engineering services, has expanded its vibration testing capability with the addition of a new 6,600 pounds of force (lbf.) shaker with 2-inch stroke.

Renishaw (Hoofman Estates, IL), a supplier of position-feedback systems, and RLS Merilna Tehnika d.o.o. (Ljubljana, Slovenia) have jointly developed a range of miniature magnetic rotary encoders.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Renishaw (Hoffman Estates, IL), a supplier of position-feedback systems, and RLS Merilna Tehnika d.o.o. (Ljubljana, Slovenia) have jointly developed a range of miniature magnetic rotary encoders. The frictionless, noncontact encoders are...

Hytec Inc.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Hytec Inc. (Los Alamos, NM), specializing in equipment to test scientific instruments, has achieved ISO 9001: 2000 registration.

Feinfocus.(Business News)(FeinFocus USA Inc.)(Inimar)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Feinfocus (Stamford, CT), a manufacturer of high-resolution X-ray inspection systems and tubes, announces its new partnership with Inimar, an electronics distribution company headquartered in Denmark. Inimar now represents the entire line of...

Agilent Technologies Inc.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Agilent Technologies Inc. (Palo Alto, CA) now offers ISO 17025 calibration services for complex electronic test instruments.

Sun-Tec Corp.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Sun-Tec Corp. (Novi, MI) has achieved accreditation to ISO 17025 and ANSI/NCSL Z540.

Torotel Products Inc.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Torotel Products Inc., a subsidiary of Torotel Inc. (Kansas City, MO), a manufacturer of precision magnetic components primarily for the aerospace and defense industry, has achieved AS9100 registration.

Fredon Corp.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Fredon Corp. (Mentor, OH) has received ISO 9001: 2000 and AS 9100A: 2001 certification. Fredon offers complete manufacturing solutions for precision machining and assembly needs.

Thunder Scientific Corp.'s.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Thunder Scientific Corp.'s (Albuquerque, NM) calibration laboratory has Received accreditation from the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program.

Avalon Precision Casting Co.(Business News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Avalon Precision Casting Co. (Brook Park, OH) has received ISO 9001: 2000 accreditation.

NDT acquisitions complete.(Industry News)(Agfa-Gevaert Nondestructive Testing )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... EVENDALE, OH -- GE Aircraft Engines (GEAE) has acquired the Agfa-Gevaert Nondestructive Testing (Agfa NDT) business unit. Agfa NDT will be combined with GEAE's nondestructive testing business and be renamed GE Inspection Technologies. Jeff...

Quality initiatives increase savings.(Industry News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... CHAPEL HILL, NC -- Each year companies save up to 100% of annual revenues through successful implementation of quality initiatives, according to research and consulting firm Best Practices LLC. Benchmarking research conducted by Best...

Valenite Die & Wear.(People News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Thomas R. Shearer has been appointed manager of sales and marketing for Valenite Die & Wear, Walmet Division (West Branch, MI), a manufacturer of cemented carbide tooling.

ITT Industries, Cannon.(People News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... David Bland has been appointed vice president and controller of ITT Industries, Cannon (Santa Ana, CA), a designer and manufacturer of electronic components.

QuadTech Inc.(People News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Michael Cronin has been named director of sales and Jill Curry has been named director of marketing at QuadTech Inc. (Maynard, MA), an electronic test equipment manufacturer.

SwRI.(People News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Rodney M. Weber has been named assistant director of institute quality assurance in institute quality systems at SwRI (San Antonio), an independent, nonprofit, applied research and development organization.

NSL Analytical Services Inc.(People News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Gary Schaner has been appointed metallurgist for NSL Analytical Services Inc.'s (Cleveland) materials testing and failure analysis group.

Cyon Research Corp.(People News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... Peter Marks has been elected to the board of directors of Cyon Research Corp. (Bethesda, MD), a provider of analysis and consulting for engineering technology markets.

Society of Manufacturing Engineers.(Association News)(SME fellows have been elected)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) has elected nine industry leaders as SME Fellows. The 2003 member Fellows include: David Arnold, Dennis S. Bray, Thomas Charlton Jr., Fukuo Hashimoto, Bruce M. Kramer, Don A. Lucca, Brij B. Seth,...

The SME College of Fellows was created to honor members who have made outstanding contributions to the field of manufacturing.(Association News)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The SME College of Fellows was created to honor members who have made outstanding contributions to the field of manufacturing. A Fellow is a member recognized by the manufacturing community as a contributor to the social, technological and...

American Measuring Tool Manufacturers Association.(Association News)(elected officials)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... The American Measuring Tool Manufacturers Association has elected its 2003-2004 officers. The elected officers are: James R. Popovic, president; Kenneth W. Swanson Jr., vice president; end George J. Schuetz, secretary/treasurer.

Robotics orders rise.(Industry News)
February 1, 2004... ANN ARBOR, MI -- New orders for industrial robots jumped 28% through September 2003, according to figures released by Robotic Industries Association (RIA), the industry's trade group. North American robotics suppliers received orders for...

Manufacturing services website launched.(Industry News)(www.shopmatch.com.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... SAN DIEGO -- ShopMatch has launched a Web marketplace for manufacturing services at www.shopmatch.com. The Web site matches up job shops with manufacturing companies and engineers looking to create custom parts. The site simplifies the process...

Brown & Sharpe to relocate.(Industry News)(Quonset Davisville Port & Commerce Park in North Kingstown)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2004... NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI -- Brown & Sharpe win relocate its operations to the Quonset Davisville Port & Commerce Park in North Kingstown, RI. A 100,O00-square-foot facility will be designed with expansion in mind. The target date for the new...

Needs vs. wants.(Quality Mailbag)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... Dear Editor, I think promoting American manufacturing is a great goal. The way that I see things, the American consumer has completely lost touch with the value of an item in the pursuit to "have it all." Whenever we open our wallets,...

Bewildering GD&T.(Quality Mailbag)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... Dear Editor, The article, "3-D and GD&T Takes a Concept to Production," (Quality, August 2003, p. 44) is bewildering. Author Mark Poster's versions 1 through 4 contain ambiguities produced by the use of bilateral tolerances that are...

The true costs.(Quality Mailbag)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... Dear Editor, I think you made an excellent point with Sematech ("Can't Keep It All," Quality, November 2003, p. 6). I remember when I first heard of that group, no one was sure it would succeed, but it did and it is a lesson for all U.S....

Not so bad.(Quality Mailbag)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2004... Dear Editor, The reason the recovery doesn't seem as robust as you expect ("A 'Curious' Recovery," Quality, December 2003, p. 6) is because the recession was much milder than reported. The recession of 2002, billed as "the worst economy...

Statistical quality techniques in advertising? Using quality techniques in nontraditional ways can improve the bottom line.(Probing The Limits)
February 1, 2004... Imagine using statistical quality techniques in a marketing department. Sound unlikely? It doesn't have to be. In fact, a new marketing company is using Taguchi methods of designed experiments to improve the effectiveness of its clients'...

Calibration ingredients: common sense information to include in your calibration procedures.(Other Dimensions)(Editorial)
February 1, 2004... Editor's note: Columnist Hill Cox continues his multipart series that focuses on developing custom calibration procedures particular to an individual manufacturer's circumstances. Accurately written calibration procedures are critical in...

Rockwell hardness test: Rockwell hardness testing can determine the hardness of most metals, alloys and plastics.(Quality 101)
February 1, 2004... Stanley P. Rockwell invented the Rockwell hardness test. As a metallurgist for a large ball bearing company, he wanted a fast, nondestructive way to determine if the heat treatment process they were doing on the bearing races was successful....

Critical to quality characteristics.(Quality Brain Teasers)
February 1, 2004... Anyone who has faced a production problem with a need to solve the problem by using production data can relate to the notion of a brain teaser. The brain teasers presented here are based on real-world situations that are encountered by workers...

Video overlay technology may make cars safer: from the Olympics to the automotive industry, a new technology enters the marketplace.(Quality Innovations)(Dartfish USA)
February 1, 2004... A technology that thrilled fans viewing the Olympics on television last winter is being marketed to the U.S. automotive industry as a way to make cars safer. MTS Systems Corp. (Eden Prairie, MN), a global supplier of testing products has...

At the center of quality: spotlighting the ideas, solutions, products and companies that impact our industry.(Advertisement)
February 1, 2004... ideas The Measure of Manufacturing Success Industrial metrology has come a long way since the first engineers measured workpiece dimensions to determine if they met design specifications. They knew that dimensional information was the...

Simplicity key to CMM fixturing: fixturing for CMMs takes some imagination.(Quality Measurement)(coordinate measuring machine)
February 1, 2004... Fixturing is one way to increase the productivity of a coordinate measuring machine (CMM). Parts ranging from a 1-millimeter valve for an artificial heart to the entire fuselage for a jet fighter can benefit from fixturing. When it comes to CMM...

Lasers speed first-article inspection: a supplier to the aerospace industry turned to noncontact laser inspection and cut first-article inspection time in half.(Quality Test & Inspection)(Aerospace Manufacturing Technologies)
February 1, 2004... Delays along the supply chain have the same effect on manufacturing as lane closings on highways. Nowhere is this more apparent than in quality inspection. "Better processes in design, analysis, machine tools and cutter technology have...

MES reduces FDA compliance costs: medical device manufacturers face stringent regulations. Manufacturing Execution Systems can help reduce the cost of compliance.(Quality Software & Analysis )(Food and Drug Administration)
February 1, 2004... Medical device manufacturers, like manufacturers in other industries, must control costs, ensure product quality and shorten time-to-market. For the life science manufacturing industry, a noncompliant product or process does not simply result...

Process standardization proves profitable: the demand for higher product quality has resulted in an increasingly complex value chain.(Quality Management)
February 1, 2004... Increasing customer sophistication and the constant demand for improved product quality are changing the rules for sustaining and growing profitability for manufacturers. Global competition, fierce price wars and eroding brand loyalty are...

Software cuts casting costs.(Case Studies)
February 1, 2004... Grenville Castings Ltd. (Ontario, Canada) manufactures high quality, low pressure and permanent mold aluminum castings. As its business expanded, Grenville, which operates from three manufacturing facilities in Ontario, faced tighter delivery...

Data management software.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... MeasurLink 6.0, global data management software, incorporates new features such as real-time 3-D graphical part representation, a Windows XP-style tool bar and a Crystal report plug-in for report writing. The software also provides sampling...

Video measurement system.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The Sprint Mini, a noncontact video inspection system with interactive capabilities, delivers accurate measurement; live video imaging on a color LCD monitor; digital readout with skew adjustment; and crosshair generator, edge detection and...

Microscope system.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The C1 Digital Eclipse Modular Confocal Microscope System has laser features for positioning and selection, as well as additional software for advanced instrument control. Combining optical and electronic technologies, the system uses a...

Frame grabber.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The MVS-8501 frame grabber is designed for high-speed analog cameras that use the latest scan CCD sensor technology. The unit is backward compatible with standard speed analog interlaced with progressive scan cameras. Software tools include...

Workholding chuck.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The Detroiter II manufacturing chuck for workholding and EDM electrode manufacturing applications can be set up for vertical or horizontal manufacturing, as well as turning and grinding. After a workpiece is mounted to a fixture, it can be...

PC card.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... Designed for use in temperatures ranging from -40 C to 85 C, the Stratus-X-ND PC/104 card enables high-speed data acquisition without interruptions. The 16-channel analog input card with 16-bit resolution has a one mega-sample buffer. The...

Prisms.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... Rhomboid Prisms for laser and imaging displacement applications are available in two sizes. The prisms have a toleranced beam deviation of [+ or -] 30 arc seconds, a 1/8 wave surface accuracy and a 40-20 surface quality. Schmidt Prisms are used...

Strain survey.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... Strain survey testing for high-speed, rotational devices helps engineers understand how their designs can be improved to increase life and performance while reducing material costs, as well as validate their finite element models. The testing...

Surface sensors.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... These surface sensors have a non-marring, self-aligning, two-coil thermocouple Teflon surface sensing tip that provide 95% of the reading in less than 3 seconds. The unit operates in temperatures up to 288 C. The sensors are available in...

Digital imaging.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... Spot Insight cameras come in 4 Megasample Color Mosaic, 12-Megasample 3-Shot Color and 4-Megasample Monochrome models, each with 2,048 x 2,048 resolution sampled at 20 MHz x 14 bit. Software features include predefined image setups, 14 f/s...

Powertrain testing.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The DynoLab PT Dynamometer Test Cell Supervisory System has version 4.1 of the DynoLab Test Executive. The software provides support for high-speed wireless communications between the test cell sensors and control console. The system also has...

APQP software.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... Form Vision software allows for Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) in real-time. Operators can manage and track APQP performance and readiness and identify potential problems for effective preventative action. An on-board tutorial...

SPC software.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... Synergy 2000 LE Version 4.0 has 10 new features and program enhancements, including moving average and moving range chart, three gage repeatability and reproducibility charts, customized column heading for various user interfaces, program...

Measurement system.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The ProfileScan 4000 measures extruded profiles in real-time. Profiles pass through the multi-camera gage head where they are measured by a noncontact laser and camera system. The PC-based graphical user interface simplifies the input of part...

Torque wrench.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The DB dial-indicating torque wrench provides users with torque inspection and tightening capabilities. The easy-to-read dial measures and adjusts torque from both clockwise and counter clockwise directions. Accuracies in each of these...

X-ray ion analysis.(New Products)
February 1, 2004... The Fischerscope X-ray and WinFTM software tests metal ion concentration in electrolytes of electrolyte baths. Using the new control system, the Fischerscope X-ray analyzes electrolyte baths for the ion content of one or two metals, eliminating...

The world trusts Minitab for quality.(product of the month)(Advertisement)
February 1, 2004... Minitab is the leading provider of software for quality improvement and statistics education. We have been meeting the data analysis needs of professionals for more than 30 years, and bring our commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction...