Porosity is a weld defect that is fairly common, but also fairly easy to fix. What issues contribute to weld porosity? This checklist gives a welder a good idea of what might be causing the problem.

A Wisconsin tube shop invests in an unusual, freeform bending technology that can bend tube sections with no straight sections between bends. Different radii requires no tool changeouts or complex tooling setups. Instead, an operator changes the code in the controller.

Bidirectional bending was a big step forward in the capabilities of folding machines. However, the technology continues to advance with the emergence of faster folding speeds, more tooling flexibility, wider working envelopes, and more specialized folding capabilities.

Automating metal fabrication requires more than just high-speed processing. The actual equipment—the brawn—is only half the equation. The other half is the software—the brains of shop automation.

Making cost-effective designs has become a basic requirement in manufacturing, and proper nesting can contribute to this overall goal.

Working on a 3-D design for the Shashlik Grill, columnist Gerald Davis has turned his attention to the sliding charcoal plan, but this particular component challenges the top-down modeling approach that has been used up until this point in the project.

A form that covers the total cost of ownership gives a fabricator a useful tool for comparing the real costs of operating an existing dust and fume collector with different filters.

A West Coast metal fabricator, Laser Cutting Northwest developed a product called the regenerator, which generates electricity from exhausted air. One application includes dust collectors for laser cutting systems. Installed into the shop’s own systems, the regenerator produces enough electricity to power a third of the shop lights.

One Columbus, Ohio, job shop recovered quickly from the recession. The organization has a history of financial conservatism and pragmatism—and today’s black ink is a testament to the shop’s success.