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The Fabricator June 2016
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.
Coil-fed fabricating
- By Dan Davis
- Jul 11, 2016
- Laser Cutting
- Article
Most manufacturers associate coil processing with the metal forming industry. They also likely assume the punching and laser cutting combination machines consume sheet metal. Elleci S.p.A., a metal fabricator in northern Italy, has a new line in place that will require many manufacturers to alter their preconceived notions about coil consumption in a fabricating facility.
A ticket of entry to laser cutting
- By Tim Heston
- Jul 5, 2016
- Laser Cutting
- Article
Alkras has introduced a laser small enough to fit on the gantry of a cutting table. It’s being marketed as a ticket of entry for those fab shops—especially small ones—that have not yet entered the laser cutting arena.
Reshaping metal grinding
- By Dan Davis
- Jul 5, 2016
- Materials Handling
- Article
Metal fabricators don’t spend a lot of time thinking about the costs associated with grinding. It’s necessary in many shops, so company management just throws labor at it. They don’t realize, however, that new ceramic alumina developments have the potential to save them money when it comes to grinding operations. The Norton Quantum 3 abrasive wheel is one such example.
Tooling: The heart of choosing a press brake
- By Steve Benson
- Jul 5, 2016
- Bending and Forming
- Article
When considering a new press brake purchase, focus on the tooling and forming method first. How will your staff react to changes? How steep will the learning curve be? Also, think about where your company is headed and the markets it serves.
The 2016 FAB 40: Planning their next move
- By Tim Heston
- Jun 22, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
It’s been quite a run. Over the past four years many FAB 40 companies have reported big revenue gains. In 2015, not so much, at least on average. Sales at some big companies either held steady or declined somewhat, mainly thanks to weak markets that by now every fabricator knows about: oil and...
Shop technology and 3-D CAD: Modeling with surfaces, patterns, and configurations
- By Gerald Davis
- Jun 20, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
Columnist Gerald Davis reviews the use of equations, configurations, design tables, and specific modeling tools for creating 3-D models of paper and cake.
Metal fabrication and the buying experience
- By Tim Heston
- Jun 17, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
SixAxis, a fabricator of safety platforms, portable stairs, and other industrial products, developed its own software with quoting, customer relationship management, and product configuration features. According to sources, software changed the customer buying experience, which in turn helped the company quintuple in size over six years.
A metal fabricator you can’t pigeonhole
- By Tim Heston
- Jun 15, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
IMS Engineered Products’ revenue has increased by 45 percent during the past five years. How? The fabricator is part of a larger organization, IMS Companies, with diverse revenue streams coming from gear manufacturing, stamping, electrical harness assembly, and more. But IMS’s story of growth really boils down to a straightforward strategy: quick response.
Lean, large, and keeping pace
- By Tim Heston
- Jun 15, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
Ironform Corp. formed in 2013 after Wynnchurch Capital purchased two large metal fabricators. But Ironform’s story is more about scaling up metal fabrication through acquisition. It’s about adapting the principles of lean manufacturing to custom metal fabrication—on a large scale.
Scaling up metal fabrication: In support of the front line
- By Tim Heston
- Jun 15, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
General Sheet Metal Works has experienced double-digit growth in recent years. For a $70 million operation, that’s saying something. And yet, the company has few growing pains to speak of—thanks to a new business structure that has made scaling up much easier.
Engaging people on the shop floor: Turn underutilized employees loose
- By Jeff Sipes
- Jun 3, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
Keeping all employees engaged all the time isn’t easy, but the benefits are substantial. Ultimately, such engagement unleashes employee talent.
One metal manufacturer, one name, many services
- By Tim Heston
- Jun 3, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
Merrill Technologies Group, Saginaw, Mich., has implemented a strategy that managers hope will double the size of the company over the next five years.
How to maximize rebates on lighting upgrades
- By Josh Kurtz
- Jun 2, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
If you are considering a lighting retrofit, chances are you're already aware that tax incentives and rebates are available, and you're counting on them to shorten your ROI.
A big leap into big tube cutting
- By Tim Heston
- Jun 2, 2016
- Tube and Pipe Fabrication
- Article
If Richards Sheet Metal Works had taken the conventional path, it would have invested in a new flat-sheet cutting laser, especially considering its 5-kW workhorse was more than a decade old. But Richards isn’t a conventional metal fabricator. Today it has one of the largest tube cutting lasers in the country.
Fabricators and their power hammers
- By Jeffrey Dean
- Jun 2, 2016
- Shop Management
- Article
Power hammers are pieces of equipment that hark back to the earliest days of metal fabricating. Today’s power hammers allow fabricators to lean on the technology, not purely on brawn, to deliver the shaping blows. While power hammers are not found in many precision sheet metal shops, many operations do employ them. In fact, they are a key part of the operation.
- 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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