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More from Tim Heston
- From The Fabricator
2024 metal fabrication forecast: A boring year ahead?
- By Tim Heston
- Dec 19, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
The 21st century has seen economic turmoil from the dot-com bust, the financial crisis, and a pandemic. We finally may be due for a conventional, sectoral downturn, and some metal fabricators might not even notice.
- From The Fabricator
Nesting fundamentals for laser cutting stability
- By Tim Heston
- Dec 18, 2023
- Laser Cutting
- Article
Laser cutting has become extraordinarily productive—if the head doesn’t halt or crash, of course. Considering how productive the latest laser cutting technology is, smart nesting has become more important than ever for metal fabrication shops.
- From The Fabricator
5 metal fabrication trends for 2024
- By Tim Heston
- Dec 17, 2023
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
It’s a complicated time for metal manufacturers. The industry faces wage pressures and a skills gap, but metal fabrication technology continues to march forth faster than ever.
- From The Fabricator
How VR can attract the next gen of structural fabricators
- By Tim Heston
- Dec 7, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
After Bill Issler sold his FabSuite MIS software in 2018, he knew all about the industry’s greatest problem, skilled labor, and aimed to use virtual reality technology to help solve it.
- From The Fabricator
Testing the world’s first 3D-printed metal bridge
- By Tim Heston
- Dec 5, 2023
- Additive Manufacturing
- Article
Applying additive manufacturing in the construction business won’t be an easy bridge to cross. But as of 2021, a bridge in Amsterdam has been printed out of metal, and today, a bedrock of much-needed engineering data is being built.
El ERP para el taller da un vuelco
- By Tim Heston
- Nov 24, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
ERP, MES, CRM, PLM, WMS: las iniciales del software de fabricación siguen y siguen. Cada sistema tiene algunos datos excelentes. El truco consiste en acceder a todo y convertirlo en información útil. El software más reciente, algunos con interfaces basadas en inteligencia artificial, apunta a hacer precisamente eso.
- From The Fabricator
How one fabricator obtains the perfect edge on a laser cut
- By Tim Heston
- Nov 22, 2023
- Laser Cutting
- Article
Jackson, Tenn.-based fabricator Cupples’ J&J Co. has a reputation for pushing the fiber laser cutting envelope. To obtain that perfect cut edge using high-powered fiber laser technology requires optimal gas flow, good material, attention to detail, and a lot of patience.
- From The Fabricator
Avoiding ERP headaches for the custom metal fabricator
- By Tim Heston
- Nov 20, 2023
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
How one software player tackles the traditional headaches of integration, interoperability, and production planning for metal fabrication job shops.
3 pasos para actualizar el departamento de prensas dobladoras
- By Tim Heston
- Nov 15, 2023
- Bending and Forming
- Article
¿Qué sucede cuando personas con experiencia se retiran de las actividades de conformado? Si el proceso no está bajo control puede reinar el caos.
- From The Fabricator
Metal fabrication technology versus the brain drain
- By Tim Heston
- Nov 11, 2023
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
AI and machine learning could create a metal fabrication future that’s hard to imagine. The present is messy, though, thanks largely to a long-foreseen problem: The industry’s most experienced people are retiring.
- From The Fabricator
Custom software for the custom metal fabrication shop
- By Tim Heston
- Nov 7, 2023
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
The cofounders of Cortex Data Services know what life is like at the custom fab shop. They both began their careers there. Today, they’re tailoring custom software platforms to meet a business’s unique needs.
- From The Fabricator
How metal fabricators can improve customer partnerships
- By Tim Heston
- Nov 6, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
A supplier-customer relationship in the metal fabrication industry thrives when three core components (cost, capability, and shop culture), like three legs of a stool, stay strong and steady.
- From The Fabricator
What FABTECH 2023 revealed about the future of metal fabrication
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 30, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
Fabricators walking the FABTECH show floor this year were on the hunt for autonomous software and machines that could help them make best use of the talented employees they have.
- From The Fabricator
Job shop automation strategies from a former CIA officer
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 19, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
There are a surprising number of parallels between metal fabrication and CIA technical intelligence says David Pietrocola. The former CIA officer now runs an automation business called Cohesive Robotics that serves job shops.
- From The Fabricator
ERP software for the job shop reaches a turning point
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 14, 2023
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
ERP, MES, CRM, PLM, WMS—the manufacturing software initialisms go on and on. The trick is accessing all the data and turning it into useful information. The latest software, some with AI-based interfaces, aims to do just that.
- 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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- Upcoming Webcasts
Nitrogen Generation for Laser Cutting: Navigating System Design for YOUR Operation
- April 24, 2024
- Sponsored
- Presented By: Purity Gas
Navigating Change: The Manufacturer’s Guide to Change Management with ERP Implementation
- May 16, 2024
- Sponsored
- Presented By: ECI Software Solutions, M1