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The Fabricator August 2014
The Fabricator is North America's leading magazine for the metal forming and fabricating industry. The magazine delivers the news, technical articles, and case histories that enable fabricators to do their jobs more efficiently. The Fabricator has served the industry since 1970.
Shop technology and 3-D CAD: Creating the documentation essential to fabrication
- By Gerald Davis
- Aug 14, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
Columnist Gerald Davis describes how a detailed 3-D CAD model can be a great help to those in procurement, fabrication, and assembly.
Reusing recycled abrasives in waterjet cutting?
- By Dan Davis
- Aug 7, 2014
- Waterjet Cutting
- Article
When it comes to waterjet cutting, most metal fabricators rely on virgin garnet as the abrasive that’s used in conjunction with the waterjet stream. After cutting is concluded, the abrasive can be collected and recycled as a filler for other construction-related products. An Auburn, Wash.-based company, however, thinks it has found a way to take the recycled material and return it to an almost-new state.
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.
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.
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.
Automobiles and artwork
- By Eric Lundin
- Aug 4, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
For Monty Kollath, a degree in commercial art and a career in automotive repair work provided a nice living and positioned him well for a little moonlighting as a metal artist. However, Kollath had one more factor in his favor—his job in the auto repair field provides an endless supply of cast-off items suitable for metal sculpture.
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.
Is a press brake or plate roll the right tool for the job?
- By Kyle Jorgenson and Matt Moore
- Aug 4, 2014
- Bending and Forming
- Article
Some metal fabricating shops rely on press brakes and bump forming to make cylindrical shapes, while others are more adept at using plate rolling machines. This feature explores the factors involved in determining whether a press brake or a plate roller is the right machine for the job.
A fabricator and community college partnership
- By Jeff Stapel and Matt Goss
- Jul 31, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
When metal fabricator Shickel Corp. sought to boost the overall skill level of its employee base in the face of a more competitive business environment, it went back to school. More specifically, it sought the local community college to help craft a curriculum and implement a class structure to deliver the improved math and shop skills it desired.
The people and processes behind poka-yoke
- By Gary Conner
- Jul 31, 2014
- Assembly and Joining
- Article
Like anything related to continuous improvement, mistakeproofing requires the right processes, but, perhaps even more important, it also requires the right people. With the right people and processes, real change is possible.
Scheduling high-mix, low-volume operations
- By Dick Kallage
- Jul 30, 2014
- Shop Management
- Article
Scheduling remains one of the most complicated, least predictable aspects of contract metal fabrication. But why is this exactly, and what can a shop do to change this? In this first article in a series, Dick Kallage uncovers the answers.
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.
Keeping sheets and parts moving with automation
- By Dan Davis
- Jul 29, 2014
- Laser Cutting
- Article
Modern laser cutting technology can achieve speeds of more than 400 inches per minute, and that puts pressure on the automation used to load sheets and unload cut parts and skeletons. If the automated material handling system can’t keep up, the fabricator won’t be able to maximize uptime on the laser cutting machine.
- 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...
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