Modern Applications News articles from February 2002

Modern Applications News archives from February 2002

Reader response: More on integrated supply. (Editorial Viewpoint).
February 1, 2002... Last November's article by Olaf Klutke, president, GKI Cutting Tools, prompted this response from Mark Flynn, a foundry process engineer. As Klutke observed, the concept of integrated supply strives to slash the vendor base and delegate...

Well, good enough, it's perfect. (Editor's Corner).
February 1, 2002... You know when you've touched a nerve. Posing the question of "Good Enough vs. Perfect" in last month's column seems to have "awakened a sleeping giant" among metalworkers. Your response to the question has been remarkable in volume,...

Productivity remains stable. (Industry News).
February 1, 2002... Despite evidence of a recession and a global business downturn, U.S. manufacturing firms report the manufacturing productivity has maintained a steady rise. Third-quarter productivity statistics show a 2.2% rise, following a revised...

2001 Machine tool consumption off 31.2%. (Industry News).
February 1, 2002... October 2001 U.S. machine tool consumption totaled $206.73 million, according to AMTDA, the American Machine Tool Distributors' Association and AMT -- The Association For Manufacturing Technology. This total, as reported by companies...

Lasers down during third quarter 2001. (Industry News).
February 1, 2002... At $105.2 million for third quarter 2001, shipments of industrial laser equipment and systems for North America and U.S. exports were down 37% from year-earlier levels, according to the Laser Systems Product Group of AMT -- The Association For...

Internet's influence widens. (Industry News).
February 1, 2002... According to figures released recently by the Census Bureau, about 42% of all U.S. households logged on to the Web in 2000, up from 18% three years earlier. People find news, shop, and do research online; but, it is the need for instant...

TOCCO, Inc. (Companies).
February 1, 2002... TOCCO, Inc., a Park Ohio Company, has acquired all intangible assets of MOCO Thermal Industries, located in the Cleveland, OH facility of FECO, TOCCO's partner.

The Sullivan Corporation. (Companies).
February 1, 2002... The Sullivan Corporation of Hartland, WI has purchased the manufacturing rights to Alpha Workholding Solutions of Raleigh, NC.

The International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS). (Companies).
February 1, 2002... The International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) has appointed GES Exposition Services general contractor for IMTS 2002.

Haas Automation, Inc. (Companies).
February 1, 2002... Haas Automation, Inc., Oxnard, CA, has achieved ISO 9001:2000 registration.

People.
February 1, 2002... * Liam Shanahan has been promoted to general manager at Atlas Engineering, Kent, OH. John Buda has joined the company as director-marketing and sales. * Enduro Industries, Inc., Hannibal, MO, has appointed Andrew Moline as its new vice...

Flexible tower and dedicated fixture team up to boost uptime. (Spotlight).
February 1, 2002... Running a high-density tower with machinable jaws on one pallet and a dedicated holding fixture on a second machine pallet increased this four-axis mill's output significantly. That was the case at Civacon/Knappco Corp. (Kansas City, MO)....

Tables join for modular fixturing. (Spotlight Products).
February 1, 2002... Two tables are joined together by standard system spacer blocks to fixture larger parts. The Demmeler modular fixturing system can handle parts from 6' to more than 100' with equal ease. The added space between tables allows the welder easier...

Machine tool and shop accessories. (Spotlight Products).
February 1, 2002... This free, four-color 175-page 2002 catalog of machine tool and shop accessories features products such as spring-type live centers, heavy-duty 5C collet closers, and quick-change power chucks. The catalog contains complete product...

Grippers have higher force and capacities. (Spotlight Products).
February 1, 2002... PGN-plus parallel grippers extend the capabilities of the PGN series, in terms of highter forces, increased loads, and better efficiency. Its newly designed jaw guidance spreads forces and moments of the gripper over several surfaces of a...

Third arm makes clamping easy. (Spotlight Products).
February 1, 2002... The optional Z-axis (third arm) malleable iron attachment for the Strong Hand 90[degrees] angle clamp allows welding of three-axis workpieces by providing X, Y, and Z clamping surfaces. It creates an integrated welding vise that allows the user...

Swing-action hydraulic clamps. (Spotlight Products).
February 1, 2002... This family of swing action clamps (models LE/LF TE/TF) for workholding provides higher repeatability and reliability for clamping workpieces to jigs and fixtures. Their design provides more clearance to clamping points and features a...

Long-stroke high-speed power chucks. (Spotlight Products).
February 1, 2002... The LS-HS series 24" through 36" three-jaw wedge-type power chuck's minimal jaw-force loss permits the turning of large diameter work parts with small diametrical features, as well as the turning of large frail work parts requiring light...

Expanded line of rotary tables. (Spotlight Products).
February 1, 2002... Introducing an expanded line of rotary tables for improved workpiece manipulation on any type of machine tool. Dozens of standard models are available, from basic manual tables up to five-axis, four-spindle CNC styles with drive/controller...

Knife edge clamp. (Spot Light Products).
February 1, 2002... The knife edge clamp, which tightens a workpiece with a quarter turn of the screw, is made of hardened steel and has sharp edges to bite into clamping castings and rough cut material. It is available in three sizes: MB-6 cam screw (3/8-16),...

Hydraulic collet closer. (Spot Light Products).
February 1, 2002... The Tri-Grip 5C high-pressure hydraulic collet closer for heavy-duty clamping is suitable for custom work-holding applications in vertical and horizontal machining centers. It operates three collets at a time, each one on a uniform 21/2"...

Vise holds irregular shapes. (Spot Light Products).
February 1, 2002... The versatile Vacu-Vise fixturing system is suitable for holding thin, flat or irregular shaped ferrous and nonferrous parts. Reduced part setup time makes it suitable for any size production run or prototyping. Its two-piece anodized aluminum...

High grip force in limited spaces. (Spot Light Products).
February 1, 2002... The series GRS gripper features an angled cam drive that provides a high grip-force-to-weight ratio. The gripper's parallel jaw motion simplifies jaw tooling and is ideal for gripping parts of varying size. Also, the unit's low-profile design...

Fast, friendly CNC programming simplifies complex mold design. (Cover Story).
February 1, 2002... Cutting melds for packer seals, for use in critical blowout protection devices on oil and gas rigs, requires CNC programming software that handles complex specs while being easy to use. When Lowrance (Houston, TX) installed new CNC lathes...

Oil-based lubricants favored for more efficient machining. (Management Perspective).
February 1, 2002... This is another exclusive Man--Modern applications news interview with an industry leader: Channing reeder, marketing manager, for Chevron Lubricant and Specialty Products Company. MAN -- Modern Applications News: Would you explain...

Low-temperature black oxide process keeps finishing in-house, increases capacity: To keep pace with its "fast track manufacturing system" in a new facility, old methods of finishing tools promised to derail the system. (Coatings / Finishing).
February 1, 2002... To keep pace with its "fast track manufacturing system" in a new facility, old methods of finishing tools promised to derail the system. When it moved to new 250,000 sq.-ft. facilities, Mate Precision Tooling (Anoka, MN) decided it was...

Machining graphite EDM electrodes with high-speed spindles. (EDM).
February 1, 2002... The popularity of EDM continues to grow, and with it, the demand for graphite electrodes to produce dies and molds for more complex, extremely accurate parts with an excellent finish. High-speed CNC machining centers can be programmed to...

Dynamic drive press increases output 25%, extends tool life 50% in stainless steel. (Forming/Fabricating).
February 1, 2002... Feeling the squeeze from its automotive OEM customers, a German exhaust system components manufacturer operates a new technology knuckle-joint press to meet expectations at lower costs. A global supplier with plants in five countries, Zeuna...

Indexable insert drills double feed rate over conventional indexable drills. (Holemaking/Drilling/Boring/Tapping).
February 1, 2002... WDS type indexable drills with PVD coating grade AC350 inserts deliver stable tool life and high feed rate drilling for a wide range of applications. Manufactured by Sumitomo Electric Carbide Inc. (Mt. Prospect, IL) from tough die steel,...

350[degrees]F walk-in oven. (New Products and Literature).
February 1, 2002... No. 889 is a 350[degrees] F gas-heated walk-in oven with workspace dimensions 36"W x 282"D x 48"H. A 350,000 BTU/hr unit installed in a modulating natural gas burner heats the workplace, while a 10,000 CFM, 7 1/2-hp recirculating blower...

Alternative to surface grinding. (New Products and Literature).
February 1, 2002... The IG 280SD rotary surface grinder is an alternative to conventional surface grinding. Its 20-hp precision bearing grinding spindle, coupled with greater wheel grinding surface area contact, yields faster cycle times. Along with its 27" swing...

Hot stamping numbering machine. (New Prodcuts and Literature).
February 1, 2002... When used with a hot stamp press, the model 250P automatic numbering machine has been adapted to stamp a colored numbering sequence into a product. It can be used to "brand" a consecutive number into a product when used with a conventional...

Auxiliary equipment -- fork trucks: This month I would like to continue talking about auxiliary equipment by focusing on PM for fork trucks. (Mike Breen on Preventive Maintenance).
February 1, 2002... This may seem off the beaten path, but I think it is important that all aspects of part production are covered in a good PM program. What would happen if you couldn't move the finished part from the machining area to the loading dock? Fork...