Lean manufacturing, made-to-order editionCoordinating fabrication, welding, assembly, and painting within a high-mix, low-volume environment is neither new nor easy. The effort at one such fabricator demonstrates the commitment required, tools applied, lessons learned, and benefits realized when adopting cellularized flow manufacturing in a traditional, departmentalized organization. Read More... |
Surviving the stormHurricane Sandy wasn't kind to Architectural Grille, Brooklyn, N.Y., in late October 2012. Waters from a nearby canal flooded the shop and ultimately destroyed all fabricating equipment, which was paid for. The insurance companies and local officials didn't offer much help either. The Giumenta family didn't throw in the towel, however. They are determined to rebuild and do it with the latest... Read More... |
The comeback metal fabricatorEveryone knows that metal fabricators need to be good at quick turnarounds. Super Steel became just that, hitting the financial skids in 2009 and transforming itself into a quick-turn fabricator and key manufacturing supplier to the freight rail industry in just three years. Read More... |
An alchemy of intentionsMETAL LLC of Ann Arbor, Mich., is not your typical custom fab shop. Along with taking on architectural fabrication jobs, the company also handles restoration of antique and contemporary vehicles, performs product research and design, and fabricates custom sculptural projects. If that weren't enough, METAL has plans to release its own line of custom tables and routinely opens its doors to the... Read More... |
Tube bending, the next generationA tube bending shop with roots that go back to the Gemini and Apollo missions looks far different today than it did eight years ago. Read More... |
