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More from Eric Lundin
Fabricator switches saw blade, improves throughput
- By Eric Lundin
- Dec 2, 2013
- Sawing
- Article
When fabricator SF Tube Inc. noticed a falling productivity in its welding department, it discovered poorly cut tube that required an added step, end facing, before welding. The band saw blade was the culprit, which led to one change, a different brand, but ultimately a handful of improvements in productivity.
Souping up old draw benches
- By Eric Lundin
- Oct 24, 2013
- Tube and Pipe Production
- Article
Superior Tube Co. Inc., Collegeville, Pa., a fabricator that draws tubing for small-diameter applications, recently set about to improve material flow through its plant. Realizing that moving 60- and 70-year-old draw benches likely would damage the motors and motor controllers, which were the original equipment, the company developed a plan to upgrade the hardware at the same time. The result is a quantum leap in motor efficiency and monitoring capability.
- From The Fabricator
A new perspective on the debt
- By Eric Lundin
- Oct 17, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
The good news is that Congress finally drafted a spending bill that a majority agreed to (but not too enthusiastically); the bad news is twofold. First, some in government seem even more out-of-touch than ever. To quote Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev: "This is not a time for...
- From The Fabricator
Celebrating Manufacturing Day
- By Eric Lundin
- Oct 9, 2013
- Arc Welding
- Blog Post
The many John Q. Publics who think that manufacturing in the U.S. is dying—or worse, who think it’s already dead—got a chance to see what they’ve been missing on Oct. 4, when more than 800 manufacturers throughout the U.S. opened their doors for tours. The main goal of Manufacturing Day is...
- From The Fabricator
Attractive sculptures, day or night
- By Eric Lundin
- Oct 7, 2013
- Arc Welding
- Article
Solar Sculptures™, which comprises an artist, a public spaces planner, and an electrical engineer, designs sculptures that use motion sensors and LEDs to come alive at night.
- From The Fabricator
Nero fiddled, Congress quibbles
- By Eric Lundin
- Sep 30, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
On a July evening in 64 A.D., a fire erupted in Rome and is said to have burned for days, eventually destroying three districts and severely damaging seven more (out of a total of 14 districts). Legend has it that the reigning emperor, Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, played the fiddle...
- From The Fabricator
Good news in sticker shock
- By Eric Lundin
- Sep 10, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
If you spend a lot of time looking at economic data, you’re already aware that 2013 hasn’t provided much to get excited about. It has provided glimmers of hope, but nothing to set the world on fire. The unemployment rate has been moving downward, but slowly. Since January it slid from 7.9...
Know the chemistry, know the process, know the test
- By Eric Lundin
- Sep 6, 2013
- Tube and Pipe Production
- Article
For tube and pipe producers, testing the product on the mill is necessary, but not necessarily optimal. The line speed might be too slow, the mill might have some maintenance issues, and other factors can interfere with online testing. For these reasons, many supplement the online test with an offline test.
Corrosion-resistant fabrication project enhances nuclear power station’s cooling system
- By Eric Lundin
- Sep 6, 2013
- Consumables
- Article
Nuclear power plants use a lot of water to cool the reactors, and when the water intake unit occasionally pulls in a sea lion or a shark, environmentalists go nuts. Dimic Steel Tech bid on a contract to build two huge grates for Southern California Edison to keep marine life out of the water intakes, and had to learn a bit about welding corrosion-resistant steel along the way.
- From The Fabricator
Could this be it? Part 2
- By Eric Lundin
- Aug 22, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
If you try to keep up with all of the experts, seers, and mad scribblers who try to predict which way the economy is heading at any particular time, you’re well aware that consensus in this field is about as rare as dinosaur eggs. The reasons are many, but to simplify: some...
- From The Fabricator
Who’s behind the steering wheel?
- By Eric Lundin
- Aug 13, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
The prime minister of Norway, Jens Stoltenberg, made headlines this week with a bold campaign strategy: he took a shift as a taxi driver. No, not a gun-toting, bent-on-vengeance sort of Travis Bickle, Robert De Niro’s role as the vigilante cabbie in Taxi Driver, but a mild-mannered taxi driver...
- From The Fabricator
Fabricator breathes new life into internal combustion engines
- By Eric Lundin
- Aug 9, 2013
- Arc Welding
- Article
An automobile enthusiast since he has a youngster, Ariel Banco started developing custom-made air intakes after he graduated from college. Eventually he had such a backlog that he quit his professional career to become a full-time fabricator, making air intakes for automobiles, motorcycles, and occasionally airplanes and personal watercraft.
- From The Fabricator
Happy birthday, Curiosity!
- By Eric Lundin
- Aug 7, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
If you heard champagne corks popping on August 6, it was for a good reason. That was the staff at NASA celebrating the first birthday of the Curiosity mission. The rover landed on Mars on August 6, 2012, and has been sending data back to Earth ever since. The mission is an enormous (and ongoing)...
- From The Fabricator
More horsepower, better fuel efficiency
- By Eric Lundin
- Jul 18, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
If you follow Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules, restrictions, and proposals, you’re already aware that it has mandated a corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. Carmakers have been moving in this direction for many years, reducing weight where possible,...
- From The Fabricator
Another technology milestone
- By Eric Lundin
- Jul 10, 2013
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
Most people have never heard of Eugene Ely, although aviation buffs probably recognize the name. An American test pilot in the early days of aviation, he was the first pilot to take off from a ship (November 14, 1910) and the first to land on one (January 18, 1911). On May 9, 1912, Air Commodore...
- Podcasting
- Podcast:
- The Fabricator Podcast
- Published:
- 04/16/2024
- Running Time:
- 63:29
In this episode of The Fabricator Podcast, Caleb Chamberlain, co-founder and CEO of OSH Cut, discusses his company’s...
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