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The Fabricator October 2015
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.
A grand unifying theory of press brake bending: Part II
- By Steve Benson
- Oct 28, 2015
- Bending and Forming
- Article
Radius bends—defined here as any bend with an inside radius greater than 125 percent of the material thickness—require careful calculation, not only because of their significant springback, but also because of the tooling these bends require. This includes the use of relieved dies.
Shop technology and 3-D CAD: In-context modeling
- By Gerald Davis
- Oct 28, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
Columnist Gerald Davis continues his work on a go-cart body. This time the focus is on modeling weldments with an eye on accommodating future edits.
How managing by valuation is changing Farris Fab
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 26, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
Farris Fab has grown to become a $24.5 million enterprise. Within the past year company leaders have started to manage by valuation. They have no intention to sell, but maximizing the value of the company also happens to improve the overall operation.
What comes after the fiber laser purchase?
- By Frank Arteaga
- Oct 19, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
Fabricating metal parts today using the same approaches and technology from 10 years ago is a time-intensive exercise. New technology introduces efficiencies to the fabricating process shops need to embrace if they are to maximize profitability and stay ahead of the competition.
A new spin on welding
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 19, 2015
- Arc Welding
- Article
SpinArc, a kind of gas metal arc welding, rotates the wire at a controlled speed, diameter, and direction. This feature reportedly improves weld quality and productivity, and it makes more types of weld joints possible.
Reassurance in purchasing raw materials
- By Dan Davis
- Oct 19, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
Supply Dynamics, Loveland, Ohio, has just announced a secure, anonymous, and reliable way to accurately benchmark the prices you pay or have been quoted for many common ferrous and nonferrous metals.
Why fabricators need to think about career paths
- By Dan Davis
- Oct 19, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
A focus on a career path in fabricating typically might be centered around an individual’s perspective. Fabricating companies, however, are finding that by being up-front about skills development and career progression, they are building more engaged and productive organizations.
Freeing space for metal fabrication
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 19, 2015
- Bending and Forming
- Article
In a few years Performance Stamping may well be a very different company. It recently cleared away inventory to free space not for more stamping, but for metal fabrication.
Adjusting to a just-in-time manufacturing environment
- By Bob Farrell and Monty Brown
- Oct 19, 2015
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
Design for manufacturability, just-in-time nesting, paperless order processing, and systems integration put a metal fabricator in a position to eliminate waste and reap the rewards of just-in-time manufacturing.
ISO 9001 and ERP: A united approach
- By Mike Sweet and Steve Pettyjohn
- Oct 15, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
Attaining ISO 9001 certification and selecting ERP software are not easy tasks. But companies can accomplish their desired objectives and even thrive as a result of ERP and ISO 9001 initiatives, when done thoughtfully and properly.
Small batches, big-time automation
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 15, 2015
- Automation and Robotics
- Article
Rapid-Line Inc., a contract manufacturer in Grand Rapids, Mich., has a long history of early technology adoption. Two years ago it became an early adopter again, this time with an entirely different kind of robot. Regardless of the technology, everyone keeps their eye on what truly matters when it comes to manufacturing efficiency: how long it takes for an order to make it to the shipping dock.
Diversification: The true competitive advantage in metal fabrication
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 15, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
According to recent benchmarking surveys from the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association International, debt ratios remain manageable, EBITDA steady, yet revenue concentration remains high for some. The numbers show areas for opportunity as well as challenges.
How to build loyalty in manufacturing workers? Go off-script
- By Tim Heston
- Oct 15, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
Why do employees leave for a few cents more an hour? It goes back to culture—but what is culture, really? Rutland Walker of Atlanta-based The Academy of Marketing gives a relatively concrete explanation. It’s about connecting with employees with a shared purpose or belief.
Analyzing the near miss
- By Rob Sweeney
- Oct 15, 2015
- Safety
- Article
If a company doesn’t record its near misses, it’s missing a wealth of predictive information that could help prevent serious safety problems. For this reason, employees should be trained to identify near misses, and reporting these instances should be as quick and simple as possible.
Learning to say “no”
- By Jeffrey Dean
- Oct 15, 2015
- Shop Management
- Article
The customer is not always right if it means a shop has no chance of earning money--even with a long-term perspective--while trying to meet the customer's expectations. In these cases, it's easier to have a difficult conversation with the customer before venturing down the path of future unprofitability.
- 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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