- FMA
- The Fabricator
- FABTECH
- Canadian Metalworking
Our Publications
Categories
- Additive Manufacturing
- Aluminum Welding
- Arc Welding
- Assembly and Joining
- Automation and Robotics
- Bending and Forming
- Consumables
- Cutting and Weld Prep
- Electric Vehicles
- En Español
- Finishing
- Hydroforming
- Laser Cutting
- Laser Welding
- Machining
- Manufacturing Software
- Materials Handling
- Metals/Materials
- Oxyfuel Cutting
- Plasma Cutting
- Power Tools
- Punching and Other Holemaking
- Roll Forming
- Safety
- Sawing
- Shearing
- Shop Management
- Testing and Measuring
- Tube and Pipe Fabrication
- Tube and Pipe Production
- Waterjet Cutting
Industry Directory
Webcasts
Podcasts
FAB 40
Advertise
Subscribe
Account Login
Search
More from Tim Heston
- From The Fabricator
Having the right information at the right time
- By Tim Heston
- Sep 29, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
Advanced Metal Components has endured tragedy and evolved into a major employer in rural Swainsboro, Ga. Part of it comes from having the right technology, but most of the company’s evolution has involved a perception change about inventory management.
- From The Fabricator
How to reduce subjectivity in continuous improvement
- By Tim Heston
- Sep 16, 2014
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
Manufacturing critical-path time, or MCT, puts a new perspective on activity across the enterprise. A job is either being worked on, or it's not. Period.
- From The Fabricator
A shop floor that needs both the old and new
- By Tim Heston
- Sep 10, 2014
- Metals/Materials
- Blog Post
Faspro Technologies has both the old and new: automated lasers and press brakes alongside rows of small manual presses. In a sense, the Arlington Heights, Ill., shop paints an accurate picture of modern manufacturing in the United States.
- From The Fabricator
Why similar fabricators can have very different financial results
- By Tim Heston
- Aug 28, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
Contract metal fabricators may have similar assets and offer similar services, but have very different financial results. The differences may come from differing customer mixes, but it also comes from the fact that many shops have highly concentrated sources of revenue. Lose one big account, and financial results seriously suffer.
- From The Fabricator
Swindling, murder, and additive manufacturing
- By Tim Heston
- Aug 19, 2014
- Metals/Materials
- Blog Post
A generation or two from now, additive manufacturing may have changed everything, but the technology doesn't have storybook origins.
- From The Fabricator
Metal fabrication and the Internet of things
- By Tim Heston
- Aug 12, 2014
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
If the majority of activities in a supply chain added value, what kind kind of world would that create?
- From The Fabricator
Lean data flow: From CAD to ERP to the shop floor
- By Tim Heston
- Aug 7, 2014
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
Fabricators sell their ability to produce the right part in the right quantity and at the right time, and to do that requires good information. Communication troubles arise if front office systems don’t communicate with each other, and this can include CAD and ERP.
- From The Fabricator
The transformative power of the laser
- By Tim Heston
- Aug 6, 2014
- Laser Welding
- Article
The laser has helped define the modern precision metal fabrication industry, and this year’s Advanced Laser Applications Workshop shows just how far the laser has come. Blink once, and you miss another technological milestone.
- From The Fabricator
How to build a little of everything, every day
- By Tim Heston
- Aug 6, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
Legrand’s West Hartford facility has been on the lean journey for several decades, and the journey hasn’t stopped. The focus continues to be on clear communication and documentation, good metrics, ergonomics and safety, staff incentives—and producing a little of everything every day.
- From The Fabricator
Keeping pace with better ergonomics
- By Tim Heston
- Aug 4, 2014
- Materials Handling
- Article
Every employee at Pentair operates under PIMS, or the Pentair Integrated Management System. PIMS encompasses everything from continuous improvement and hiring practices to safety and ergonomics. Concerning the last, the company instituted new material handling technology within a tightly run tank fabrication line in Delavan, Wis. The line has no WIP and, hence, little margin for error.
- From The Fabricator
Stamping with a better idea
- By Tim Heston
- Jul 29, 2014
- Laser Welding
- Article
Cleveland-based Stripmatic Products strives to add more customer value by focusing on additional operations and asking what else customers may need. This led the company to a unique setup involving a servo press and a fiber laser welding cell.
- From The Fabricator
Tough optics for extreme laser welding
- By Tim Heston
- Jul 29, 2014
- Laser Welding
- Article
Engineers at EWI have developed laser welding optics tailored for high-power applications.
- From The Fabricator
A new kind of skilled workforce
- By Tim Heston
- Jul 28, 2014
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
The need for skilled worker continues unabated, but the issue has many wrinkles of complexity. For one, technology has changed the nature of the job.
- From The Fabricator
A matter of asking the right questions
- By Tim Heston
- Jul 28, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
Some purchasers may view a fabricated metal product as a commodity, and if it’s a simple enclosure or flat piece-part, it may well be. But they’re not buying products, really. They’re buying expertise, both in fabrication and in capacity management.
- From The Fabricator
The complex reality of business spending
- By Tim Heston
- Jul 22, 2014
- Shop Management
- Blog Post
Business spending is a complex animal, and it's difficult to sum it up in a few charts.
- 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...
- Trending Articles
Capturing, recording equipment inspection data for FMEA
Tips for creating sheet metal tubes with perforations
Are two heads better than one in fiber laser cutting?
Zekelman Industries to invest $120 million in Arkansas expansion
Supporting the metal fabricating industry through FMA
- Industry Events
16th Annual Safety Conference
- April 30 - May 1, 2024
- Elgin,
Pipe and Tube Conference
- May 21 - 22, 2024
- Omaha, NE
World-Class Roll Forming Workshop
- June 5 - 6, 2024
- Louisville, KY
Advanced Laser Application Workshop
- June 25 - 27, 2024
- Novi, MI
- Upcoming Webcasts
Navigating Change: The Manufacturer’s Guide to Change Management with ERP Implementation
- May 16, 2024
- Sponsored
- Presented By: ECI Software Solutions, M1