Modern Applications News articles from March 2008

Modern Applications News archives from March 2008

Uh, oh, there's talk of the 'R' word: hard landing or soft landing, there's bound to be an economic reckoning--with the bogeyman Recession peaking out of the closet--now that the housing bubble has burst and consumers are up to their necks in debt.(EDITOR'S CORNER)
March 1, 2008... It's fortunate that we commemorate the birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the third Monday in January. The civil rights leader deserves to be remembered, not only because of his role in our history, but because his birthday is...

A third of small businesses may seek more credit.(Industry News)
March 1, 2008... Nearly one-third of the small manufacturing businesses participating in the latest Small Business Research Board--SBRB--study will request credit level increases during 2008, according to the results of a poll. The study of owners and...

Workholding company acquires Motion Control firm.(Industry News)
March 1, 2008... DE-STA-CO, Auburn Hills, MI, acquired Industrial Motion Control, LLC, which has annual revenues of approximately $50 million. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. DE-STA-CO manufactures work-holding and flexible industrial automation...

Robotics firm wins Dayton Business-of-the-year.(Industry News)
March 1, 2008... Motoman Inc., West Carrollton, OH, was named Manufacturing Business of the Year for 2007 in the sixth annual Business of the Year program sponsored by the Dayton Business Journal and Soin International. Entries were judged on written...

Lubrication firm leadership transition.(Industry News)
March 1, 2008... Chuck Boelkins, son of current owner of lubrication system manufacturer, UNIST, Inc., Grand Rapids, MI, assumed ownership of the lubrication maker on January 1. He purchased the company from Wally Boelkins. Formed in 1957 as Uni-Mist,...

Rosy outlook for advanced manufacturing technique according to survey.(Industry News)
March 1, 2008... According to a survey of manufacturers of laser-sintering systems, e-Manufacturing is on the brink of revolutionizing parts manufacturing. Conducted by EOS of North America, Inc., Novi, MI, at the K 2007 trade show in Dusseldorf and Euromold...

Eugene Gartlan, Innova Robotics CEO, dies.(Industry News)
March 1, 2008... Innova Robotics & Automation, Fort Myers, FL, announced its CEO, Eugene Gartlan, died January 25, following a brief illness. Innova's board of directors authorized Lloyd Spencer, president and CEO of Innova subsidiary, CoroWare, to act as...

The bull of the woods.(Comic)(Cartoon)
March 1, 2008... INDIVIDUALISM Reprinted Courtesy of Algrove Publishing Ltd., Almonte, Ontario, Canada; anthology reprints available from Lee Valley Tools; www.leevalley.com; US 800.871.8158; Canada 800.267.8767 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Test anxiety: testing tools is a way to keep up with technology, but be judicious about it.(FROM THE SHOP FLOOR)
March 1, 2008... Keeping current with new tools is hard. Harder still is figuring out which tools are worth testing. In my shop, new parts give me the opportunity to test tools that I couldn't in a strict production environment. Sometimes a new tool goes...

Polishing off the work: using magneto-rheological fluid cutting and polishing of materials ranging from exotic sapphire to mundane acrylic, means having a tool that never dulls. Pioneering MRF machining is a company applying it to the shop environment.(MACHINING EXOTIC MATERIALS)(Cover story)
March 1, 2008... In Latin, Quod Erat Demonstrandum--QED--literally means "that what was to be demonstrated." The phrase is used as the last statement in a philosophical or mathematical argument to mean the proof is complete. There's not much call for Latin in...

Loyalty on its own terms: because of performance--not a force of habit--a tool manufacturer invested in several machining centers from the same company.(MACHINING CENTER)
March 1, 2008... There is a difference between being brand loyal and using a brand based on high-quality performance. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Many people buy a particular brand of machine tool because they've always bought that brand," John Powers,...

'Impossible?' no such word at Liberty Steel: efficiency and flexibility, not only in its performance as a company, but in the machines it uses, lets a company specializing in prototyping stay nimble.(LASER CUTTING)
March 1, 2008... Liberty Steel Fabrication Inc. was used to making the difficult seem easy. When faced with creating a part using a press brake that most machine manufacturers said was impossible, it found a source and machine to do it. Liberty Steel,...

The name of the game is change: when Tier 1 aerospace customers change the rules, a shop evolves to meet the demands.(VERTICAL MACHINING CENTERS)
March 1, 2008... Being a contract machining supplier in the aerospace industry is like playing a game of survival of the fittest. If a shop is not evolving with the big guys, it is in danger of falling out of existence. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Hansen...

Where reality meets the road: simulating a solution provides robotic cells that work right out of the box.(ROBOTICS)
March 1, 2008... Progress and time are inextricably linked; each day brings advances, innovations, and ideas. A "Eureka!" moment came to Encore Automation when engineers there had the idea that instead of designing individual customer-specific robotic...

WESTEC 2008 preview: the WESTEC show returns to the West Coast for the Society of Manufacturing Engineers' annual display in Los Angeles.(WESTEC 2008)
March 1, 2008... An estimated 600 exhibitors will be on the Los Angeles Convention Center floor, March 31 to April 3, showing the latest technologies in machine tools, metalworking, and advanced manufacturing at the WESTEC 2008 Exposition & Conference. New at...

Blue chip investment: through the peaks and valleys of business, shop owners found a program to keep the company from folding.(SPOTLIGHT: CAD/CAM)
March 1, 2008... Rick Denny and his step-son, Mike Anderson, have gone through some ups and downs since starting Blue Chip Engineering, Inc., Ramsey, MN, in 1994. The majority of Blue Chip's business is doing overflow work for other shops, making their problem...

Easy to use CAM package.(SPOTLIGHT: CAD/CAM)
March 1, 2008... InventorCAM 2008 integrates into Inventor 2008. The single-window user interface and associativity between the CAD model and NC tool path provides a short learning curve according to the manufacturer, and an efficient flow from the 3D design...

A Wizard at multi-view doc generation.(SPOTLIGHT: CAD/CAM)
March 1, 2008... PartMaker Version 8.5 marks the introduction of the Part-Maker Documentation Wizard, an optional module which lets users create, preview, and print documents with multiple views. Among other improvements, the update features enhancements to the...

Software predicts tools usage.(SPOTLIGHT: CAD/CAM)
March 1, 2008... T-Flex CAD has an adaptable user interface to suit the preferable working method, the current type of project, or the current project phase. T-Flex 11 offers a range of functions from 2D drawing and 3D design to manufacturing, finite element,...

Oven will provide the blues.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The No. 964 is an electrically-heated, 1,000[degrees] F, inert atmosphere oven for bluing steel. Workspace dimensions measure 24"x24"x36". Incoloy sheathed tubular elements of 18 kW heat the unit, while a 750 CFM, 3/4 hp recirculating blower...

Bench marking.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The P5000 bench-type marking machine marks all types of materials up to a hardness of a 62 [HR.sub.C], and features an integrated control unit that operates without computer interface. Using micro-percussion technology, it delivers markings of...

Hand-held pin marker.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The dual-pin, portable, pneumatic PinStamp TMM4215 marker is 4.4 lb but can provide deep marking in a variety of materials using pin diameters ranging from 2.5mm to 10mm. Depth of mark ranges from 0.03mm to 0.45mm. It has a quick-disconnect...

Machinable clamps.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The Pitbull fixture clamp is available in a machinable version. The clamp has positive down force and a low gripping profile. The Machinable Pitbull clamp is made of tool steel and heat treated to about 43[R.sub.C] for long life, yet still...

Taps for a variety of metals.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The KC7542 taps are solid-carbide for use with steel and iron up to 32 [HR.sub.C]. The KC7512 taps are for aluminum and other non-ferrous materials. Each tap's cylindrical shank is designed for use with precision round toolholders including...

Large-format waterjet.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The 60120 JetMachining Center is a large format machine that is ideal for cutting of larger or multiple parts from stock up to 5'x10' and has a footprint of 225"x110". It features a 600 lb abrasive delivery feed system, as well as a traction...

Milling machine has Voice warning.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The Hyper Quadrex 150 MSY is targeted at production of turned and machined workpieces from bar stock up to 2.56" in diameter. It features two horizontally-opposed spindles for turning and C-axis control, plus two full-function tool turrets with...

Solid carbide drills with TiAIN provide slick boring.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... Feedmax are solid carbide drills capable of cutting speeds up to 770 ft/min and high feeds of up to 0.028 in/rev. The drills have a self-centering geometry to eliminate center drilling operations. The drills have a special TiAIN low-friction...

Pneumatic swing clamps.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The 9500 series of pneumatic swing clamps are for installations where hydraulic power is not suitable. The clamps exert a force ranging from 41 lb to 212 lb without deforming delicate parts. They can be used in harsh application environments...

VMC for the durable goods market.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The VMC 6535-40T vertical machining center has a work table size of 75"x35". The machine is designed for aircraft, aerospace, automotive, general industry, contract machining, and other durable goods manufacturing applications. It has cutting...

Swiss-type machine can work three tools simultaneously.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The C100 series of production turn-mill centers has three 14-position tool turrets and identical main and counterspindles. It is designed for production of medium complexity parts turned from bar stock of 30mm to 42mm diameter. The machine...

Heavy-weight punch press.(New Products)
March 1, 2008... The X5 hydraulic turret punch press is a 23 metric ton turret punch press that can fabricate sheet sizes up to 50"x100" with thicknesses up to 0.32". The coordinate table moves the work piece in X and Y directions. The slides move on hardened...

Drill range diameter expanded.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... Allied Machine & Engineering Corp. has expanded the diameter range of its GEN3SYS High Penetration Drilling System. The expanded diameter range includes 26mm to 32mm--1.0236" to 1.2598" and is available in straight and helically-fluted holders...

Two-way drump pump.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... With the turn of a knob, the compressed air powered Reversible Drum Vac will fill or empty a 55-gal drum. Attaches to standard drum connections. No moving parts assures maintenance-free operation. Durable all stainless steel construction....

Haas Automation provides world-class CNC machine tool sales, service & support.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... Haas Automation is the largest unit-volume builder of CNC machine tools in the western world and the largest dollar-volume builder in North America. All Haas products are built in the company's 1-million-square-foot manufacturing facility in...

All about ESPRIT.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... ESPRIT is a high-performance computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) system for a full range of machine tool applications. ESPRIT delivers powerful full-spectrum programming for 2- to 5-axis milling, 2- to 22-axis turning, 2- to 5-axis wire EDM,...

New 2008 Tsudakoma Rotary Tables catalog.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... The 2008 Tsudakoma Rotary Tables catalog has been completely re-designed and includes all the additions to our rotary table lineup. The 88 page catalog features specifications on all standard products, as well as detailed information on table...

Free 34-page marking equipment catalog.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... Numberall Stamp & Tool., Inc., has a free 34-page catalog outlining all types of metal marking equipment. Included with every catalog is a FREE Length Of Impression Ruler, a versatile aid in determining character size and number of characters....

Prototrak CNCs for retrofit.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... ProtoTRAK CNC retrofits are installed in the customer's shop in about a day by a factory-trained technician. Ballscrews are installed in the table and saddle and electronic machine tool error calibration and backlash compensation help maintain...

Turnkey equipment "design" large machining.(Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
March 1, 2008... Ascension Industries offers design fabrication of turnkey process systems. Products and services include: (ASME, China Code and Korean Code) vessels, instrumentation, CNC boring, milling and drilling, CNC laser cutting, and brake press and...

Manufacturing evolution is no theory: "change or die," could be the motto of U.S. industry. Changes are taking place to increase efficiency, but we must also look at changing laws that hamstring industry.(THE LAST WORD)
March 1, 2008... There's a misperception about U.S. manufacturing: Our manufacturing base is dying because of manufacturing moving offshore. To clear that up, let's first look at the facts: 72 percent of the U.S. manufacturing jobs lost during the past five...