Modern Applications News articles from November 2005

Modern Applications News archives from November 2005

Any way, shape or form.
November 1, 2005... No two shops have the same cutting needs, so Amada offers a wide variety of laser solutions, giving every shop--including yours--a custom solution and a unique competitive advantage. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Industrial Darwinism.(EDITOR'S CORNER)
November 1, 2005... Next year while at WESTEC in Los Angeles, I'm taking a side trip to the La Brea Tar Pits. I want to see if there is room in there for all of the manufacturing dinosaurs that are looking for a tar pit in which to fall. This is simply a...

Metalformers expect near-term downturn.(Industry News)
November 1, 2005... Metalforming companies are anticipating a downturn in near-term business conditions, according to the most recent Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report. Conducted monthly, the report is an economic indicator for...

Laser shipments near last year's numbers.(Industry News)
November 1, 2005... At $169.6 million, second quarter 2005 shipments of industrial laser equipment and systems for North America and U.S. exports are roughly equal to shipments of the same quarter in 2004, according to the Laser Systems Product Group (LSPG) of...

Machine tool consumption continues to top 2004.(Industry News)
November 1, 2005... U.S. machine tool consumption for July, the latest month reported, totaled $250.11 million, according to AMTDA, the American Machine Tool Distributors' Association and AMT--The Association For Manufacturing Technology. This total, as reported...

AMT Economic Handbook now available online.(Industry News)
November 1, 2005... The 2005-2006 Economic Handbook of The Manufacturing Technology Industry is now available from AMT--The Association For Manufacturing Technology. This annual guide, compiled from numerous domestic and foreign sources, provides comprehensive...

Native Cuban.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Hello Mr. Mullally: In response to Mr. Weimer's article this month [October, 2005--'I pledge allegiance to...' Los Estados Unidos], I agree with him in many ways.... I am of Cuban decent and first generation born in the greatest...

No tengas miendo.(Letters to the Editor)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Yes, your Spanish is very bad, and a little lazy... if your learning of another language is the same as your thinking, then it is very narrow... so I think we should be more concerned to better ourselves in order to help others, either with...

Laser/punch combination keeps shop 'in the green': by aiming at a very specific niche in the fabrication market with current technology, a small shop keeps its machine status lights "in the green" and its balance sheet "in the black.".(METALFORMING/BENDING/FABRICATING)
November 1, 2005... Resh Inc. (Franklin, MA) began operations in 1988 with three partner/owners, a few pieces of used equipment, and a commitment to a production philosophy of "Green Light Time"--the time the fabrication machines are actually producing parts. ...

Truth in sawing: straight talk about quality.
November 1, 2005... It's one thing to talk quality and another thing to actually make a quality saw. For almost 60 years, superior sawing technology has been Behringer's calling card--and our customers have reaped the benefits. Ask our competitors, even they'll...

New punch press tooling increases throughput 85%: implementing a new punch press tooling system for assembling electrical boxes eliminated outsourced painting and in-house spot welding, while increasing fabricating throughput by 85% and reducing production costs 20%.(METALFORMING/BENDING/FABRICATING)(Cover Story)
November 1, 2005... "We identified our electrical box fabricating and spot welding operations as a choke point in our just-in-time operations," explains Chad Fredricks, plant supervisor for Firelake Manufacturing, LLC (Dassel, MN). The electrical boxes are used in...

Metalforming/Bending/Fabricating.(Directory)
November 1, 2005... The MAN-Modern Applications News Metlforming/Bending/Fabricating Buyers Guide is a complete listing of companies that have responded to our request for and have supplied information on their Metalforming/Bending/Fabricating products for the...

Abrasive waterjet machining centers.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... The Omax Corporation will display and demonstrate three JetMachining Centers including the new 2626|xp abrasive waterjet machining center at FABTECH 2005. The new machine is designed for high-accuracy with a positioning accuracy of 0.001" over...

Auto-darkening welding helmets.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... Miller Electric Mfg. Co. introduces its newest addition to the Elite Performance Series[TM] Helmets, the '29 Roadster, which is designed to match their new project vehicle, a '29 Roadster Pick-up. The new helmet provides the maximum viewing...

New ceramic anti-seize.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... Walter Surface Technologies introduces Rock 'N Roll[TM], a ceramic anti-seize available in paste or spray formulas that will not melt-away under extreme temperature conditions. This product places an inert ceramic barrier between two pieces of...

Carbide cutters for holemaking.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... Hougen Manufacturing, Inc. offers its new annular tools including the Copperhead[TM] annular carbide tip cutters. These new tools feature carbide tip cutting edges brazed onto a steel body to provide greater wear resistance and more...

New Measuring Eyepiece.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... Titan Tool Supply, Inc. introduces its new model AME-5M 10X Angel Measuring Eyepiece for microscopes. The new protractor eyepiece measures 360[degrees] to an accuracy of 5' using a rotary vernier and rotatable crosshair. The white scale on a...

Exit bur removal.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... A double-cut carbide bur for removing exit burs from drilled holes on stainless steel, high nickel alloys, steel tubing, and cast iron pipe is available from Rex-Cut Products, Inc. These tools grind fast to remove exit burs with less vibration,...

PC-based CNC controls.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... Hypertherm Automation offers the Voyager III controller for thermal metal cutting machines. The new six-axes controller features a 15" touch screem display and 2.4Ghz Intel processor utilizing Hypertherm Automation CNC Software Version 6.0. The...

Specialized filters for process sample filtration.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... New fast loop Balston[R] sample filters are now available from Parker Hannifin Corp. designed to offer the benefit of real time sampling with high efficiency filtration. The unique flow pattern continuously flushes the filter cartridge wall...

Totally enclosed semi-automatic saw.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... Kalamazoo Industries introduces its Model K204 totally enclosed semi-automatic saw for wet abrasive cutting. The new saw features front and side access doors, a 15hp SD motor with magnetic starter, V-belt drive, sealed ball bearings, air chain...

Three brands exhibited in one booth.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... At Fabtech International 2005, the MegaFab organization will bring together three well know industry brands under one corporate umbrella. Whitney, Piranha, and Bertsch, will present their product innovations and updates in one booth, these...

Software for punching/profiling/routing.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... JetCam International will demonstrate its newest version of the Expert CAD/CAM software for punching, profiling, and routing technologies at Fabtech 2005. Enhancements include new. advanced common line cutting features for reduced machine cycle...

New MIG guns maximize productivity.(SPOTLIGHT: FABTECH PRODUCTS)
November 1, 2005... Bernard[R] offers the Q[TM]-Gun line of MIG guns with upgraded back end assemblies to improve strain relief and simplify direct plug changeover, and the Centerfire[TM] consumables and Jump Liner technology to minimize welding downtime. The...

Metal-cored wire proves cost efficient for fabrication: in the process of creating a work, few artists ever consider being cost efficient. A Southern California structural and architectural fabricator, however, has proven himself as much a businessman as an artisan for an often eccentric clientele.(WELDING/BRAZING/SOLDERING)
November 1, 2005... Douglas Banks, owner of Banks Welding & Fabrication (Inglewood, CA), has built an empire of twisted steel and eccentric clientele through hard work and a keen business sense. Specializing in both structural and architectural steel design, Banks...

Waterjet propels shop from sheet metal to precision parts: introduction of a different technology to a sheet metal shop pushed it into new, profitable processes and markets.(WATERJET)
November 1, 2005... "We're sheet metal people," says AI Soucie, president, Camm Metals (Tolland, CT). "We didn't ever consider that we'd be machining precision parts." But the decision to invest in a waterjet has allowed his business to expand and prosper. In...

Portable CMM moves into production, inspection roles: portable coordinate measuring machines (CMMs) are changing the complex web of relationships in manufacturing between production and inspection. Once limited to the end of the production line, augmented with occasional in-process checks, dimensional measurement is now being woven into manufacturing at nearly every step.(QC/MEASUREMENT/INSPECTION)
November 1, 2005... A dramatic example is the use of a portable CMM at Gold Shield of Indiana Inc. (Decatur), a molder of large fiberglass reinforced plastic (FRP) exterior components for trucks, buses, personal watercraft and recreational vehicles. From this base...

New turning tools double tool life: catastrophic tool failure on an OD grooving application had dramatic impacts on an auto part supplier's productivity and costs. A change in turning tooling eliminated the costly failures, plus delivered double the tool life.(CUTTING TOOLS)
November 1, 2005... With catastrophic tool failure occurring between 100-130 parts causing damage to work pieces, tool, and even the machine tool, Tekfor USA (Wooster, OH) needed to find tooling that could provide longer tool life and operate more reliably. ...

Challenging sawing jobs are small shop's specialty: the keys to running a successful job shop today are serving a specialty niche and defending that niche with the latest technology. A Wisconsin shop is doing just this by daily tackling the really tough sawing jobs with the latest tools.(SAWING)
November 1, 2005... Most metal sawing shops never make the kinds of cuts that Production Job Services, Inc., (PJS; Brookfield, WI) considers its bread and butter. From dissecting ductile-iron engine blocks for material testing purposes, to slicing through...

Tool control enables shop to 'work smart': although located nearly 100 miles Southwest of Lincoln, in Nebraska's agricultural heart, metalwork flows into a shop from several Midwestern states and then ships around the world because the shop continually improves its technology and processes.(CUTTING TOOLS)
November 1, 2005... "The global economy is forcing companies to stop 'resting on their laurels' and become innovative, harder-working, and smarter than ever," says Scott Volk, vice president, MetalQuest Unlimited, (Hebron, NE), who has been with the company for...

Welding cell boosts production 22%: a robotic welding cell gave an automotive weldment supplier a 22% reduction in cycle time and cleaned-up its welding process.(WELDING/BRAZING/SOLDERING)
November 1, 2005... LuK USA LLC (Wooster, OH), a drive train component supplier for the global automotive industry, needed a new welding cell that met lower cycle time requirements and provided a cleaner environment. The company had an existing assembly cell...

Flexible rotary blast machine.(NEW PRODUCTS AND LITERATURE)
November 1, 2005... Guyson Corporation introduces Model RSSA-6 single spindle blast system that offers flexibility for automated surface treatment in the work cell. This automatic blast machine's spindle may be fitted with a turntable up to a 24" diameter or with...

New coated PcBN grade.(NEW PRODUCTS AND LITERATURE)
November 1, 2005... The new PcBN premium grade BNC300 from Sumitomo Electric Carbide, Inc. features a ceramic-based coating, and machines hardened steels with interrupted cuts. The PcBN substrate is combined with a TiAIN ceramic gold coating for extended tool life...

Fast metal removal.(NEW PRODUCTS AND LITERATURE)
November 1, 2005... The new Minitang inserts from Iscar Metals, Inc. feature four helical 0.315" long cutting edges and a tangentially clamped design. The T490 E90LN endmills can be used for machining 90[degrees] shoulders at high feed rates. Due to the helical...

5C spindle tooling package with rotary indexing system, complimentary!(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... Choose the indexing system that is 33% faster, has a heavier part capacity, stores more programs, has infared capability and has four full lines of display. Choose Hardinge. Free collets and step chucks with purchase--$725.00 value! Hardinge...

Dual color changing comparator display.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... This new color changing display is for use with a linear gauge sensor and allows the user to easily view when a part is out of tolerance, or good within tolerance. The DG-4140E is compatible with more than a dozen linear gauge sensors to fill...

Laser cutting/punching combined.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... The TC 3000 L from Trumpf Inc. combines the advantages of laser cutting and punching in one system. Fabricating complex interior and exterior contours quickly with high quality is only possible with a laser. Forming, beading, offsetting,...

High-speed steel furnaces.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... The HS Brochure describes the line of high-speed tool steel furnaces. Designed with silicon carbide heating elements for operation to 2,450[degrees]F. These furnaces feature an SCR power supply and ceramic fiber insulation for fast heat and...

Turnkey equipment *design* large machining.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... Ascension Industries offers design fabrication of turnkey process systems. Products and services include: vessels, instrumentation, sanitary, polishing, CNC boring, milling and drilling, CNC laser cutting, and brake press and sheet metal...

Free 34-page marking equipment catalog.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... 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....

New reality in high-speed machining.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... Surfware's new Surfcam Velocity[TM], powered by patent-pending TrueMill[TM] technology, dynamically manages tool loads, produces smoother cuts and boosts productivity on any existing CNC. The new revolutionary tool-path engine precisely...

Vibratory finishing equipment.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... C & M Topline manufactures a full line of affordable finishing equipment ranging from rotary tumbler bases with five sizes of rotary tumbling barrels to three sizes of vibratory bench top bowls, along with 3 and 6.5 cu.-ft. rectangular...

Lyndex-Nikken presetters.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... Lyndex-Nikken presetters by Elbo Controlli are full-featured for optimum accuracy in tooling setup, measurement and inspection. For rigid and precise performance each presetter features a ground granite column and base, double recirculating...

Introducing Mastercam X.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... Mastercam X represents the next generation of our popular program, delivering the most comprehensive CAD/CAM package with a new simplified, customizable interface, more power, and faster, robust toolpath calculations. Mastercam X. Clean,...

Clamps and tooling components.(Free Brochures & Catalogs Covering Metalworking Equipment)
November 1, 2005... This 680-page catalog includes toggle clamps, modular fixturing, chuck jaws, drill bushings, pins, knobs, power workholding, handles, supports, feet, locators, vises, and threaded inserts. Carr Lane Mfg. Co.; MO; 314-647-6200; Fax 314-647-5736;...

Quality tune not enough? For the last few decades, one of the most often sung verses of the manufacturing Anthem has been the one that titled Six Sigma is Salvation. The idea was 'make it better and they will come.' Make a widget that is so exacting in terms of dimensions and fits and finishes that the market will have to buy it. Well, guess what?('BY GEORGE')
November 1, 2005... The song became a worldwide hit and now everyone is singing it--there are two Chinese versions, two Korean, several English, as well as Hindi and the traditional quality song dialects, German and Japanese. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When...