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Author
Articles written by Tim Heston
 | Tim Heston
Senior Editor, FMA Communications, Inc.
Tim Heston has covered metal fabrication and welding since 1998. Over the years he's enjoyed meeting and covering managers and shop owners who have found a better way to fabricate. |
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The squid head and the stamping pressA stamper streamlines part handling, replacing the grunt work with a part manipulator, and designing a flexible manufacturing cell. In the end, the company's efforts improved worker ergonomics and part quality.
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Going 3-D: A matter of controlAbrasive waterjet has moved beyond flat plate cutting. Today, the jet can move in Z and tilt to cut complex designs out of thick plate, and even tube and barstock.
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La GTAW o La GMAW robótica: ya no es una opción bien definida |
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Two processes sometimes are better than oneAlabama Laser ramps up its development efforts in hot-wire laser cladding, a new process that may have big potential, particularly in the oil and gas sector.
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Pensando más allá de la prensa de cortina |
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Bending perforated weathering steel: Not a pedestrian challengeSure Iron works takes on a fabricating challenge: bump-bending perforated weathering steel plate sections with edges that aren't designed to be perfectly square.
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Holding back the hydrogenHydrogen cracking can send a project off schedule in a hurry. Here are ways to prevent it.
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Design for ManufacturabilityBachman Machine collaborates with customers,and often, tweaking the part design--just a little--enters the picture.
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On the cusp of recoveryIn 2009, show attendees cut through the fluff and focused on what matters: preparing for the recovery.
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Metal fabrication in 2010: A wildcard yearMetal fabricators looking for increased business in metal fabricating industry segments after a rough 2009.
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Roll forming gets flexibleRoll forming technology has adapted to amanufacturing market that demands short runsand quick response.
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How to relieve stress in weldingRelieving residual stress through welding technique as well as temperature control can greatly reduce weld distortion.
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Raising the bar, one sink at a timeGlastender, a food service products manufacturer, takes bold movesand expands during this historic economic downturn.
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Robotic GTAW or GMAW: No longer a clear-cut choiceGas tungsten arc welding is easier than everto automate. At the same time, robotic GMAWtechnology now can produce welds that areclose to GTAW quality
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Fabricating with a digital foundationAn architectural metal fabricator takes a building-information modeling (BIM) approach, using enhanced computer modeling to streamline operations.
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Unique brake setup streamlines thick plate bendingA heavy-equipment OEM's forming department develops a unique tooling setup for bending extremely thick, high-strength plate-- designed for one application and one application only.
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Doblado de metal de alta resistencia a la tensión |
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Saying 'yes' when others can'tIMEC, a small job shop in southwest Missouri, invests in automationnot necessarily to increase capacity, but to increase flexibility.
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To think 'in tube'A tube laser spurs a shop to think about design and metal fabricationin a new way.
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KO'ing keystrokesA transformer manufacturer completely automates folding machineprogramming.
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Rolling it just soContract manufacturer BEPeterson takes tight roll-bend tolerancing to the extreme: some cans are rolled to +/-1/32 inch on the circumference.
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Counting on the comboRevolving door manufacturer brings fabrication in-house, including a combination waterjet-plasma machine.
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El chorro de agua la hace en grandeAdvancements in the control and equipment components, eachworking in concert, have pushed the technology from a relativenovelty to the mainstream.
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Measurement, assembly, and welding: Ultra Tool's quest for in-die perfectionUltra Tool & Manufacturing launches a program to tackle sensor technology in an effort to errorproof the pressroom.
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Curbing waste at Power CurbersEquipment manufacturer streamlines part flow and drastically reduces WIP and raw stock inventory. Once a part hits the floor, it never goes onto a rack.
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Tooling up to bend hardDifferent high-tensile-strength metals bend—and spring back—in starkly different ways, so developing a bending strategy takes some serious planning.
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Keeping the (fire) door openA manufacturer of fire doors, in the South Bronx grows a business through market diversification and automation, just a few miles north of some of the most expensive real estate on earth.
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Heavy hauling, heavy fabricatingOhio-based Diamond heavy-haul found efficiency in its cutting operations through nesting software by managing remnants and reducing scrap.
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Putting out fires, the lean wayCrimson Fire, a lean fire truck OEM, enjoys record orders, but prepares for challenges ahead.
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Bending with kid glovesPolyurethane film, inserts, pads, and bottom dies can help prevent marring and, in some cases, allow the die to take on a variety of materials and gauges, including perforated metal and diamond tread plate.
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Welding for all seasonsTom Young has lived an unconventional life full of opportunities that happened because he could do what others could not: He could weld.
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Lost in translationMetrology managers are pushing industry to standardize, so that all digital inspection devices can, in essence, speak the same language.
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Getting it there yesterdayGreenheck has made a science out of quick lead-times. For most products, customers can place an order and receive a custom fabrication within three to five days, and sometimes in less than 24 hours.
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Forming metal that 'remembers'Memry has built a business around shape-memory alloys, mainly for customers in the medical arena. It's a difficult, highly specialized field that managers at Memry are betting will grow.
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Getting close, bending safePress brake operators work under some unique conditions that call for unique considerations in safeguarding.
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Rocket Science, Entrepreneur-StyleManagers, designers, and manufacturing engineers at Space Exploration Technologies have come up with a new way to design and manufacture a rocket.
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Growing season: Fabricating for agricultureFSI Fabrication makes products that help farmers quickly and accurately transport feed, grain, and other material.
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Reasons for a press brake upgradeModern press brakes add intelligence to the machine control and bring programming offline.
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Japanese metal fabrication: Manufacturing on a bedrock of dataOverseas, metal fabricators have many of the same issues as those stateside, including lack of skilled labor and outsourcing to low-labor-cost countries. In Japan, fabricators tackle those issues by taking automation to new levels.
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Cycling through a business transitionLori and Traci Tapani, co-presidents of Wyoming Machine, aren't your typical metal fabrication managers. Together, they've managed to diversify their family business into a thriving, stable enterprise.
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Ultrafabrication, ultraexpansionUltra Machine & Fabrication, through significant capital outlays, has built an infrastructure ready to complete in the heavy plate market.
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Getting lean, job shop styleAce Metal Crafts has promoted its own brand of lean that, more than anything, gives employees ownership over the process.
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(Un) memorable fabricationOceaneering's structural fab operation has built "dark ride" vehicles for theme parks around the world. It has custom-fabricated and erected aluminum components for a mammoth advertisement overlooking Times Square. It has welded a structural mount that holds up the recovered World Trade Center antenna, now on display at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. And it has fabricated and erected duplex stainless steel bridges over killer whale pools at the San Diego and Orlando SeaWorld® parks. That's quite a portfolio of jobs, and all of them quietly have gotten their start at a structural fabrication facility on the outskirts of Baltimore.
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Cool (pipe) runningsA pipe fabricator finds a new way to fabricate and assemble a bobsled run for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
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Gold medal fabrication for Olympic ski jumpDynamic Structures has fabricated huge structures across North America. But this project--two ski jumps for the Vancouver 2010 games--was different.
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Forming AHSS: Playing by new rulesAdvanced high strength steels spur stampers to think about metal forming in new ways.
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Lasers catch limelight at ALAWHow can laser technology make metal fabrication more efficient? The efficiency comes not only from advances within the laser itself, but also in new ways to integrate those lasers for optimal part flow on the shop floor. Several presenters at ALAW 2008 hammered this point home.
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Accounting for growth in lean manufacturingLean manufacturing has a negative, often unexpected, impact on the balance sheet--but those negative effects are short-term.
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Building success with the staggered trussDeveloped during the 1960s by MIT graduate students, the staggered-truss system avoids the use of interior columns to transfer loads to the foundation; instead, trusses themselves carry the brunt of the load transfers. More than anything, the steel design method has potential to take various hotel, condo, and office-building projects away from other construction materials, like concrete, and that's certainly good news for structural steel fabricators everywhere.
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Streamlined scheduling suits fabricatorIndianapolis-based Estes Design and Manufacturing has made significant strides in adopting manufacturing-friendly information technology, marrying enterprise resource planning (ERP) and scheduling software to ensure work flows efficiently through the shop.
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Diversity a blessing for BlessingDiverse customer base—from heavy equipment to medical—key to Blessing Industries' success
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Educating beyond the arcA new grant program promotes education for the welding technician. The program focuses more on welding theory behind the various processes--and less on hands-on training.
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Automotive and industrial: A tale of two businessesEmbracing technology has given Microflex a firm foothold in the turbulent automotive marketplace.The Tier 2 supplier has garnered a reputation for advanced sheet metal forming, developing parts for exhaust, steering, and fuel system components. It has ISO 9001 and other quality certifications and has invested in software that will add traceability and cohesion throughout the automotive operation.
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Virtually weldingToday several companies offer technologies that help beginning welders get that hand motion just right. None claims that the technology will replace the real thing, of course, but they do say that training in the virtual world can give students a significant leg up by the time they weld for the first time. It helps teach students what really happens between the welding arc and workpiece, why certain hand motions produce good beads while other motions don't. And it also may help introduce welding to students who wouldn't have given the trade a second thought.
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Work flow goes virtualMid-West Metal Products, Muncie, Ind., has perfected work flow through ERP and the company's virtual manufacturing plan.
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Specials simplify the complex, speed productivityStandardized press brake tooling, absolutely necessary for a lean organization, keeps a shop flexible, but at the same time, ignoring specials would be a big mistake. If their slightly longer setup times also lead to a drastic increase in throughput, special tools make good business sense.
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Waterjet makes it into the mainstreamAdvancements in the control and equipment components, each working in concert, have pushed the technology from a relative novelty to the mainstream.
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Innovative workholding streamlines welding at VermeerLean manufacturing drove equipment manufacturer Vermeer Corp. to organize weld cells for maximum productivity. In each cell, fixtures are placed within the welder's reach, and equipment is placed for optimal ergonomics.
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The science behind the servo pressFlexibility sums up where the servo-driven mechanical press stands in its evolution. Early adopters are seeing that flexibility and asking, "What if?" What if I could control ram motion throughout the stroke and dwell for a certain period at bottom dead center (BDC)? According to sources, those "what ifs" have led to new ways of thinking about forming metal.
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Shop perfects laser cutting brass, titaniumMeeting a challenge sometimes requires out-of-the box thinking. One contract manufacturer employed a thorough knowledge of laser cutting, determination, ingenuity, and tenacity to successfully laser cut difficult-to-process materials.
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FABTECH & AWS Welding Show report: Ready for new ideasSenior Editor Tim Heston and other FABRICATOR editors provide a synopsis of the largest FABTECH® International & AWS Welding Show ever.
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Avoiding a snagA company specializing in perforated sheet overcomes deburring issues with an automated system using nonwoven fiber brushes.
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