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Trans FX Inc

AmeriStar

Trans FX Inc.
2361 Eastman Ave.
Oxnard, CA 93030
www.transfx.com
rbordonaro@transfx.com

By Amber L. Cleveland

OPENED: May 1993

WHY:Trans FX's founders were involved in implementing emerging technologies while working at General Motors' California Advanced Design Studio. In the U.S., the auto industry was among the first to embrace digital technology for product design and development. Recognizing that these new digital tools were revolutionizing the automotive design process, the founders decided to create TFX and bring this technology to the forefront in other industries.

Although this new approach was game-changing, our company prides itself most on understanding how to maximize efficiency and speed, while sustaining design integrity/fabrication quality and recognizing our clients' budgets and schedule constraints.

CAPABILITIES:
TFX provides custom solutions: project development and management, design and CAD engineering, reverse engineering, 3-D scanning, bonding, painting, sculpting, mockups, prototypes—both full-sized and scaled models. 

Our CNC machining and composites capabilities are extensive. CNC capabilities include nonmetallic large-scale tooling and patterns, milled components, and machined core components.  Among our composites capabilities are high- and low-temp E-glass pre-preg systems; high-performance carbon pre-preg systems; ambient cure wet resin systems; honeycomb and foam core construction; and high-temp epoxy tooling

SHOP WORKHORSE(S): 

5-axis Gantry Router, 30' x 15' x 10' AFC Paint Booth With Mixing Room
2- and 3-axis Gantry Mill, 16' x 8.5 x 3.5'  Autoclave
3-axis Mill, 30" x 60" x 24"   Climate-controlled Room
CNC Hotwire, 10' x 10' x 5' Sanding Booth

MOST UNUSUAL OR MEMORABLE PROJECT:
AmeriStarAs a new company dedicated to designing and fabricating creative works using emerging technologies and CNC equipment, we were perfectly positioned to take on our most memorable and iconic project: the Batmobile. Our mission was to develop a new Batmobile (Figure 1) for the blockbuster movie "Batman Forever."

We used a digitally driven design process that made it possible to engineer and fabricate the car's chassis concurrently while designing and fabricating the car's body and interior. We believed that if implemented correctly, this digital process would eliminate many of the upstream labor-intensive development and fabrication tasks.  Our intuition was correct, and we successfully fabricated the first Batmobile using digital design and fabrication technology.

This process led to several process improvements: shorter design and fabrication schedules, higher overall quality, and better integration with the film's visual effects. Most important, we successfully fabricated a world-famous, iconic vehicle that exceeded our customer's expectations and has delighted Batman fans everywhere. Fortunately, this project has led to countless other opportunities, including the development of another Batmobile and other recognizable film properties and vehicles.

GREATEST CHALLENGE:
Avoiding dramatic swings in work loads is our greatest challenge. Many projects that we receive are short-term, urgent projects. We have interspersed longer-term projects into our schedule to avoid those swings.  Additionally, we have expanded our area of expertise to avoid market fluctuations.

LOOKING AHEAD:
We've experienced a recent increase in production, and we expect this trend to continue.  As industries start to rebound or anticipate a rebound, projects are ramping up again. We look forward to being able to meet the fabrication needs of those industries.

ADVICE FOR WOULD-BE SHOP OWNERS:
Hire good people, schedule your work carefully, and communicate with your team regularly. Additionally, set goals and benchmarks and review where you are in respect to those goals.

CONTACT:
Rick Bordonaro
Trans FX Inc.