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Shop strategies related articles
There are 47 articles related to shop strategies.
alue stream mapping is an invaluable tool
used to identify waste in day-to-day
operations. Fortunately smaller companies can
follow 10 specific steps to prepare for and
achieve value stream mapping.
The FABRICATOR®, 9/1/09
You may think your gas welding and fabrication operation is on track, but what you may not see could hurt you in the long run. Performing a safety and performance audit will help you evaluate the safety and efficiency of your operations, minimize liability, and help ensure compliance with local ...
www.thefabricator.com, 9/1/09
What is plasma cutting, and when is it your best metal cutting option? What information do you need to choose the right plasma system? This article answers these questions and more about plasma cutting.
By: Kent Swart, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 8/11/09
Implementing a customer-focused strategy can position companies for long-term health. A loyal customer will stick with a company through tough economic times, employee turnover, and even the occasional price increase. This article focuses on how integrated customer relationship management tools can ...
By: David Lechleitner, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 8/11/09
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By: Bernard Swiecki - www.thefabricator.com, 8/1/09
LAI International, Scottsdale, Ariz., is a precision manufacturers that
supplies specialized parts to many of the most-demanding OEMs in
the world. Even with that success, the company realized there was
still room to improve. As a result, it embarked on a lean journey and
is seeing immediate res...
By: Dan Davis, Editor-in-Chief - The FABRICATOR®, 8/1/09
Tough economic conditions have hit the construction industry as hard
as they have many other industries. These problems in commercial
construction are affecting structural steel fabricators. New
technologies are especially benefiting four important structural steel
fabricating processes by reduc...
By: Michael Bishop, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 5/19/09
Although tough times are upon us, an economic downturn doesn’t have to put all plans on hold. If you own a middle-market company (one that has a transaction price between $5 million and $250 million) and you are interested in selling it, a slumping economy is no reason to hesitate. In fact, putting ...
By: George Spilka - The FABRICATOR®, 3/19/09
Art Hedrick, longtime consultant to the sheet metal stamping industry, has observed three internal factors that can negatively affect an operation. In this economic climate in which so much is at stake, you want to make sure that your business does not suffer from these self-destructive characterist...
By: Art Hedrick, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 2/10/09
The medical device industry segment holds promise for growth, and profit for stamping companies willing to work within its regulations and challenges.
By: Kate Bachman, Editor - www.thefabricator.com, 1/27/09
Considering that raw data from the shop floor forms the basis for all production reports, companies need to eliminate possible shortfalls in collecting this data. That's where automatic data collection can help.
By: James Finnerty - The FABRICATOR®, 9/30/08
Ace Metal Crafts has promoted its own brand of lean that, more than anything, gives employees ownership over the process.
By: Tim Heston, Senior Editor - The FABRICATOR®, 8/26/08
Operating an angle grinder is a tough job. Find out what angle grinder manufacturers are doing to make the tools more user- friendly, including lightening the weight, enhancing antivibration measures, and improving safety.
By: Amanda Carlson, Associate Editor - The FABRICATOR®, 8/26/08
Welding codes are designed to improve the quality and efficiency of welding and are used to qualify welders. Predominate among welding codes in the U.S. are those authored by ASME and AWS. This article provides a brief overview of the similarities and differences in these codes.
By: Carl Smith, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 8/26/08
Lean, a popular term in manufacturing, most often is associated with organizing and eliminating waste on the shop floor. However, lean is also very effective in the office environment. Having a lean operation across the board improves efficiency, productivity, and safety. This article discusses the ...
By: Michael Taubitz, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 8/26/08
When the going gets tough, businesses have a tendency to make broad, sweeping budget cuts, sometimes without taking into consideration the long-range effect of the proposed cuts. Key investments in certain areas can streamline processes, improve operations, and ultimately have a positive effect o...
By: Dave Lechleitner, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 7/29/08
Diverse customer base—from heavy equipment to medical—key to Blessing Industries’ success
By: Tim Heston, Senior Editor - The FABRICATOR®, 5/13/08
...
By: Jim Romeo, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 3/25/08
Material is the largest cost component for stamping companies, but does not receive much management attention. An annual material buy program can help stamping plant managers make substantial cuts in their material costs and other costs associated with the purchasing department.
By: Frank Rubury - www.thefabricator.com, 10/9/07
To achieve a competitive position against low-cost countries, tool- and diemakers must reduce costs by at least 25 percent and shorten lead-time by about 50 percent.
By: Gary Gathen - The FABRICATOR®, 9/11/07
As part of its conversion from traditional to lean manufacturing principles, Oregon Metal Slitters wanted to initiate quick-changeover practices in its production operations. It also wanted to achieve this internally, without the overview of an outside consultant, so that the practice would be susta...
By: Colin McLoughlin - www.thefabricator.com, 5/8/07
IRMCO, a 93-year-old manufacturer of environmentally friendly lubricant technologies for the metal forming industry, is not only surviving but thriving in an industry that's facing tough times with plant closures, downsizing, and fierce foreign competition.
www.thefabricator.com, 3/13/07
Unlike get-rich-quick schemes that promise to double your money in days or weeks, lean manufacturing is an ongoing improvement program that will be in place for as long as your company is in business. Learn the basics of lean in Part I of this two-part series.
By: Chris Hoff - The FABRICATOR®, 10/10/06
The most important parts of lean implementation are preparation—especially an objective assessment and development of the business and technical cases for lean—leadership that can get things done, appropriate training, resolution of people issues, and well-designed deployment methods.
By: Richard G. Kallage - The FABRICATOR®, 7/11/06
Well-managed companies have taken aggressive steps to reduce “at-rest” inventory by revamping their supply chains to support smaller, more frequent shipments. Industry sources have reported that some of the best performing stamping companies are turning inventory 28 times annually.
By: Frank G. Rubury - www.thefabricator.com, 4/11/06
Successful implementation of Six Sigma requires support from management, good planning, and undertaking of projects to move Six Sigma forward.
By: S. Manivannan, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 3/7/06
If your welding shop hasn't implemented lean manufacturing initiatives, it's only a matter of time, the experts say. Learn and brush up on your understanding of lean manufacturing to see what tools might help boost your productivity and efficiency.
By: Stephanie Vaughan, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 10/11/05
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By: Paul Cameron - The FABRICATOR®, 3/8/05
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By: Kathleen McLaughlin, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 9/14/04
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By: Dan Davis, Editor-in-Chief - The FABRICATOR®, 8/10/04
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By: Stephanie Vaughan, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 5/4/04
The metal stamping industry is facing many challenges, such as increased raw material prices, pressure from automotive industry OEM and Tier 1 and Tier 2 customers to cut costs, and increased competition from low-cost offshore stampers.
www.thefabricator.com, 4/6/04
In this article, The FABRICATOR® attempts to shine the light on opportunities for improvement in both the front office and on the shop floor. In this case, the light is on the lights—as well as the heating and ventilating system and other energy-sapping devices.
By: Dan Davis, Editor-in-Chief - The FABRICATOR®, 2/26/04
Lean manufacturing is more than a buzzword. It is key to improving a company’s floor performance, customer responsiveness, and, ultimately, its bottom line. Yet few manufacturers truly understand what it takes to implement the concept.
By: John Leibert, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 6/12/03
A growing manufacturing base in the Southeast spurred Thompson Steel in the mid-1990s to research what type of equipment to purchase for its new facility in Fountain Inn, S.C. The steel supplier had been shipping coils of slit steel from its plants in Baltimore; Franklin Park, Ill.; and Rome, Ga., a...
www.thefabricator.com, 6/12/03
Service can make or break a business. Of the top nine reasons consumers give for buying a specific product, eight pertain to the abilities of the customer service system, for example, responsiveness, technical skill, and professional attitude.1
By: Vicki Bell, Web Content Manager - www.thefabricator.com, 4/10/03
The idea of removing paper from the factory floor is getting more attention these days. However, paper removal should not be the only goal.
By: John Leibert, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 8/29/02
Job shops are coping and many are thriving in spite of an uncertain economy, new steel duties, and a shortage of qualified workers. Shops from around the country comment on workloads, purchasing new equipment, lean manufacturing, and quality certifications.
By: Tony Carroll, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 7/11/02
You never know who in your company might be a diamond in the rough, waiting to shine. Giving everyone in your company the opportunity to take risks and learn from their mistakes is the best investment an employer can make.
By: Gary Conner, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 6/12/02
Do you doubt the merits of daily record keeping to improve welding reliability, standardize welding procedures, avoid excessive costs, and increase productivity? Read on. You won't any longer.
By: Jesse Grantham, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 2/14/02
Terrorist attcks on U.S. soil have given domestic manufactuers cause to rethink the entire process of keeping inventory and metting customer demands.
By: Matthew Goodfellow, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 2/14/02
TRUMPF, Freudenberg-NOK, and Aero Gear Inc. share their experiences with lean manufacturing here and present the benefits and challenges of implementing it in the machine tool-making, automotive supply, and job shop environments.
By: Tony Carroll, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 2/14/02
The number of opportunities to steer your company wrong during a move toward lean manufacturing are myriad. Knowing a few of the common ones may help you achieve your goals without a lot of headaches.
By: Gary Conner, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 10/25/01
Dealing with work loads, delivery schedules, and many other responsibilities doesn't leave managers with much time to consider factors that justify equipment improvements.
By: Steven T. Snyder, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 9/4/01
Mastering the flow of work through your shop is your most important taks if you are attempting Toyota's approach to lean manufacturing.
By: Gary Conner, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 8/16/01
All manufacturing operations need to reinvent themselves to compete in today's marketplace. What can you do to change? Try going lean.
By: Gary Conner, Contributing Writer - www.thefabricator.com, 2/19/01
The big order is in—now what? After you've reviewed the capacity of your shop and the customer's schedule, help can come from shop floor control software, which gives a business control not only over the manufacturing operations but also the total flow of material into and out of the shop.
By: Phil Davis, Contributing Writer - The FABRICATOR®, 2/19/01
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