Content tagged with "cnc"
Results: 20
Article
September 1, 2009
Shaping profits with a mandrel extractor
Bending a tube and preventing it from collapsing is a mystery to most folks, especially those whose livelihood does not involve bending tubes. For those who bend tubing for a living, knowing how to decrease ovality in the bend region can be of interest. Before discussing strategies for... Read more...
Article
July 1, 2009
Counting on the combo
Figure 1 Boon Edam produces a variety of revolving doors that have some unique fabrication requirements. Next time you enter a downtown hotel or office building, push the revolving door—then look up. There you'll see what the door industry calls ceiling pies, wedge-shaped pieces... Read more...
Spanish
June 24, 2009
El chorro de agua la hace en grande
El corte con chorro de agua abrasivo podría estar en la cúspide de algo grande. Por años, los fabricantes de metal lo vieron como una máquina nicho, algo que comprar sólo cuando una parte no podía cortarse de ninguna otra forma. Pero en muchos casos actualmente está hombro con hombro... Read more...
Article
November 25, 2008
Getting it there yesterday
Figure 1
A combination laser-punch machine speeds products through Greenheck Fan’s shop floor.
In the building business, timing is everything. All may not go exactly as planned, and measurements for this duct hole or that wall may be slightly off the blueprint callouts. The... Read more...
Article
November 25, 2008
Serpentine bending in production
You might not see serpentine bends often, but they are used more commonly than you probably realize. Their main purpose is to transfer heat. A tube bent into a serpentine shape, successive 180-degree bends, allows an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to fabricate a product that extracts... Read more...
Article
July 15, 2008
From the CAD station to the production floor
A 2-D drawing, which is the conventional method for describing components such as bent tubes, contains all the necessary information for programming a CNC tube bending machine. However, conventions don't hold forever, and modern technological developments are changing the way this information... Read more...
Article
February 12, 2008
Waterjet makes it into the mainstream
An OMAX waterjet performs precision cutting. Today precision waterjet cutting often can eliminate secondary finishing operations.
Abrasive waterjet cutting could be on the cusp of something big. For years metal fabricators viewed it as a niche machine, something to buy only when a part... Read more...
Article
September 11, 2007
Improvements to CNC plasma technology
A plasma cutting table is a workhorse in most fab shops. The technology has seen great improvements over the years, and it's worthwhile to take a look at its evolution. Not coincidentally, plasma technology's growth has coincided with technology improvements starting with the CNC. Computer... Read more...
Article
June 12, 2007
Attention, all plasma table shoppers
The process of choosing a CNC plasma cutting system is much more difficult today than it was 10 years ago, when systems were fewer but more expensive. By 2000 several progressive manufacturers had developed low-cost CNC plasma cutting systems that could run off of a PC. Hardware and software... Read more...
Article
May 8, 2007
The many faces of plasma cutting
Figure 1 Manual plasma systems are most commonly used in the automobile repair, construction, and metal art industries. Plasma cutting is a thermal cutting process in which a beam of ionized gas heats an electrically conductive metal beyond its melting point and flushes molten metal... Read more...
Article
October 10, 2006
Older plasma and laser cutters having performance fits?
One of the most common and least expensive retrofits on a laser system is the cutting head. Upgrades expand plate cutting capabilities To stay competitive in today's marketplace, fabricators are constantly evaluating many variables in the areas of current and potential customer base,... Read more...
Article
July 11, 2006
Innovation rides the waves
U.S. Air Force security police use this response boat to conduct sea trials. Bellingham, Wash., has a long tradition of seafaring sailors and boat-builders. During the 1800s many full-rigged ships hauled lumber to places like California and Hawaii. During World War II wooden mine... Read more...
Article
December 7, 2004
Racing against the clock
Time is a nonrenewable resource, and to be competitive, manufacturers must use each second to their best advantage. No manufacturer knows this better than Prince Industries Inc., a contract manufacturer that supplies precision-machined and fabricated sheet metal components. The company... Read more...
Article
November 9, 2004
Know when to fold 'em
If you're looking for a way to bend sheet metal parts that is not tool- or labor-intensive, a folding machine might be right for your application. A folding machine isn't necessarily the fastest way to bend metal, but for low- to medium-volume production, it can be an efficient and... Read more...
Article
June 8, 2004
Pumping up productivity on older press brakes
Tall gooseneck punches can bend deep parts and parts with complicated bend sequences. In recent years faster, more efficient cutting and blanking methods have emerged. However, these cutting efficiencies and corresponding increases in productivity have not always been met with similar... Read more...
Article
August 28, 2003
Making plasma cutting easier
For many people, the world of plasma cutting is a complex and daunting place, with a cryptic set of rules that can be mastered only by highly trained technicians after weeks of training. For every change of material or thickness being cut, a long process ensues of resetting gas mixtures,... Read more...
Article
March 13, 2003
Designing tooling economically
Manufacturers constantly are challenged to cut costs and reduce expenses through lower tooling costs while still providing a quality product to their customers. Many toolmakers are exploring existing tool modifications to reduce costs instead of building new tools. Long-standing,... Read more...
Article
February 27, 2003
Article
February 27, 2003
CPR for your old CNC bender
Have you considered rebuilding and upgrading? Its primary advantage is cost, and cost effectiveness increases as bender size increases. Other advantages include the operator's familiarity with the bender and use of the same tooling. Let's take a look at two possible rebuilds of a typical... Read more...
Article
March 23, 2001
Selecting a new press brake
You have realized for a long time that your company should consider buying a new press brake. Now you have the responsibility of developing the specifications and recommending a new machine. This is an awesome responsibility, because if you select the wrong machine, your manufacturing costs... Read more...
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