Using a hand-held plasma cutter: Exploring techniques for cutting, gouging, & maintenanceNeed to learn some techniques for cutting, piercing, and gouging with a hand-held plasma cutter? Read on for six steps to follow when cutting; information about gouging; and tips on maintenance.
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Making plasma cutting easier: Using CNC automation technologyFor 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, tweaking pierce heights and pierce delays, and manually calibrating every last parameter to ensure a reliable result.
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Improvements to CNC plasma technology: The evolution continues with sensor and software advancesContinued improvements to CNC plasma cutting technology have made these units much more adaptable and user friendly. They have also helped improve consistency and cut quality.
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What is your facility cut out for? Circular and band saw purchases depend on application requirementsWhat cutting equipment you buy depends very heavily on what area of industry you are supplying, throughput requirements, and, not least, finances. Don't let preconceived notions prevent you from making the very best possible decision.
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Making hands-free straight, saddle, and miter cutsRovanco Piping Systems Inc. designs and fabricates piping systems for applications such as water (hot and cold), steam, and jet fuel. It sells fabricated pipe—typically with straight or miter end cuts—up to 36 inches in diameter. It provides preinsulated, high-temperature, low-temperature, and containment systems.
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Software for abrasive water jet machinesSoftware plays a key role in abrasive jet machining. Infact, it is only through software that precision abrasive jet machining truly is possible. Some of the most significant advancements in the industry have been in software.
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Selecting a table for abrasive jet machining |
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Advancements in waterjet technologyWhen Jack Budd, president of Precision Waterjet, Orange, Calif., purchased his first waterjet system seven years ago, he expected most of the company's work to come from the aerospace industry, which was robust at the time. When business from that industry tapered off, he searched for new customers in the architectural, signage, and automotive aftermarket industries.
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Fabricating technology advancements drive new plate finishing trendsThe same industry forces of nature—globalization, economic conditions, quality demands, and safety and environmental regulations—that are pressuring metal fabricators to do more, better, and faster with less are blowing no less forcefully on finishing fabricators.
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New tool helps fabricator accelerate part making for small runs: Turret presses with tool perform inline markingCustom metal fabricator Total Metal Products, Dallas, had a need for part marking that would be both accurate and cost-effective for small quantities. The company supplies punched parts in single and small-lot quantities of 200, 300, and 400 on a just-in-time (JIT) basis. Its customers include manufacturers in the telecommunications, aerospace, mass transit, and oil refining industries.
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Mill coolant system design: Lubrication is more than meets the eyeWhat kind of coolant system you construct for your tube mill or roll forming operation is just as important as what type of coolant you use.
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Safeguarding machines with an ergonomic spin: The importance of human factors in indstrial safety standardsHuman factors contain elements of psychology, engineering, statistics, and observation. Safety codes and standards often are written based on some aspect of human factors, and it may be critical to have a full understanding of the human factors behind the code or standard before applying the same concept to other equipment.
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Examining slit coil handling and packaging: Choosing a system for increased productivityWhile it is common knowledge that slit coil handling and packaging often limit the productivity of even the most modern, highspeed coil slitting line, coil processors generally spend too little time examining the effectiveness of these operations.
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Finding the best splice for your light-duty conveyor: The mechanical fastener optionOne way to increase your stamping operation's productivity is to get all the uptime you can from the belt conveyors that carry materials, parts, and finished and packaged products throughout your plant. As moving, wearing equipment, conveyors naturally demand a certain amount of downtime for maintenance and parts replacement. However, keeping those events as infrequent and brief as possible is what uptime is all about.
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Getting it Straight: Understanding coil straightening in stamping operationsBefore coiled material can pass through a die to produce an acceptable part, it must be straightened. Coil straightening is accomplished by bending a strip of material around sets of rollers that alternately stretch and compress the upper and lower surfaces so that the material's yield point is exceeded.
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Exploring upgrades in stamping presses: The top 10 improvements in the past 50 yearsThe years have brought a host of improvements to stamping presses as technology has made presses more efficient, safer, and easier to use.
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Hydraulic forming takes a front seat: How an automotive supplier improved quality characteristics on seat adjuster channelsFor about 50 years roll forming was the process of choice for making seat track channels at Dura Automotive Seat Systems, Stockton, Ill. While the process was high-speed, low-maintenance, and flexible, it also caused channel end flare, twist, and bow.
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Making the connection: Substituting tube end forms for machined connectorsHundreds of types of machined end connectors are used to transmit fluid in fabricated tube and hose assemblies. In recent years manufacturers and end users of these connectors have been developing new methods and processes that eliminate machined connectors and the associated joining operation. Eliminating connectors and joining operations can help save both money and time.
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Automotive motives - Tips for cutting per-piece prices for automotive customersToday's automotive industry is more competitive than ever. To compete with the European, Mexican, and Asian markets, the U.S. market must become more aggressive in finding ways to cut costs.
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Waste not, want not: ArrayArray
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Notching tube and pipe: Examining three common methodsTube and pipe can be notched with a variety of tools and machines, from saws to plasma cutters. For the hobbyist, the job shop, and the manufacturer, the most common machine tools used for making weld joints are the hole saw, the abrasive-belt notcher, and the end mill notcher.
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Solving the mysteries of the fin pass—Part 1: Uncovering where, why and howThe fin pass was not the first time your father gave you five bucks for your allowance. The fin passes are those forming passes that immediately follow the breakdown or initial forming stages on a tube mill. Their role is paramount in the successful final presentation of the formed tubular section to the welding process.
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Roll form tooling tryout and troubleshooting: Taking a five-step approachThe secret to developing successful roll tooling—whether for tube production or roll forming—and achieving maximum roll integrity is a simple but often overlooked notion: a comprehensive approach.
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Using inverter technology: FAQs about inverter-based plasma cuttersBusinesses feel a constant pressure to gain an advantage and control their processes better. However, the decision to embrace new technology often leaves them feeling vulnerable. In the realm of hand-held metal cutting operations, one such decision is choosing between traditional technology and an inverter-based plasma cutting system.
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Found art: Welding artist finds inspiration in industrial, natural formsWatching the sparks fly as his dad welded a temperamental posthole digger mesmerized Derek Arnold. "I found the immediacy of something so permanent absolutely fascinating," he said. "I knew I wanted to weld."A hands-on welding education on the family farm drove Arnold to take his skills and creativity to the next level. In 1993 he graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. "I've been welding regularly since my freshman sculpture class," he said.
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Spinning your wheels?: Separate grinding wheel facts from mythsGrinding wheels used in welding and fabrication are strong, tough tools, but many in the industry have called them "rocks" or "stones," implying that they're unbreakable.
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Getting your assets in order: Choosing a gas delivery mode to improve efficiency |
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Selecting a new press brakeProspective buyers of press brakes are advised to consider their purchase in terms of its end use, the amount of deflection likely to occur in a give machine, the inside radius of their parts, and several other factors before speding their money.
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Leaping the hurdles to press brake automationUnderstanding the obstacles to automating press brakes requires an analysis of the bending process.
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