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The Politics of Manufacturing
Unemployment is not going to improve in our country unless we have political leaders who actually address our overall decline in manufacturing. With a presidential election right around the corner, Mike Riley shares some thoughts to consider from Washington insiders about the relationship between our government and American manufacturing, and a tax proposal that could potentially boost U.S. manufacturing.
The Myth of Low-Price Grinding Wheels
To improve your overall cost position, David Long of Saint-Gobain Abrasives examines how premium grinding wheels, cut-off wheels, flap and fiber discs are competitive opportunities for lowering your tooling cost, improving your quality and eliminating the time and cost involved in a key labor area of the operation.
Focus on Proper Weld Size When Developing WPS Parameter Ranges
The fabricator and the erector must determine the most appropriate range of travel speeds for a particular application, rather than relying blindly on published product certs. However, following the methodology presented here by Regis Geisler of Lincoln Electric provides another possible blueprint on how this may be achieved.
Drive Diagnostics and Your Maintenance Tasks
Hang onto your stopwatches, Randy Pearson of Siemens Industry explores how troubleshooting your machine tool just got a lot faster and easier!
Engagement: The Key to Changing Your Safety Culture
Engagement is different from motivation. Phil La Duke of Rockford Greene examines why a motivated employee will work hard for a week to win a prize, but an engaged employee will work hard every week because it is good for the organization, and what’s good for the organization is good for them.
A Call to Action: The Need to Reform Secondary Education
Parents, schools and private industry can play a key role in better equipping our students for life after school and the full pursuit of the American dream. Nick Peterson of Miller Electric discusses the need to reform the way we think of secondary education and the path it leads to for our children and students.
Finishing Touch: Integrated Plasma Cutting
As the next natural progression in the evolution of mechanized plasma cutting, Jim Colt of Hypertherm explains how many shops are changing the roles of their programmers and the operators by switching to integrated CNC plasma cutting systems that draw more expertise from the CAM database to achieve cut consistency, increased productivity and lower cutting costs.
Welding with Robot Vision
Weld fixtures not repeatable? Inconsistent weld joints? Robots can now automatically adapt to solve these issues and more. Heath Suraba of Lincoln Electric shares some tips on how to see the best return from your vision investment.
Minimize Downtime with the Right Filler Metal Package
Delivering the right size and style of filler metal packaging on a timely basis contributes meaningfully to overall efficiency. Tim Hensley of Hobart Brothers explains how to assess your current filler metal usage to determine if you have the most appropriate size to support your production goals.
Seven Qualities that Produce Star Performers
Is productivity destined to be the domain of a few or is possible that star performance can be achieved by looking beyond the right skill sets? It may take a combination of job competencies and certain personal qualities to drive top performance. Here’s why.
The 14 Points of Workplace Safety
By merging the engineering discipline, process control and business acumen of W. Edwards Deming to the practical world of employee protection, Phil La Duke of Rockford Greene International introduces some profound principles of worker safety that are an absolute must for manufacturers.
Tips for Successful Laser Marking in Job Shops
As more job shops invest in this technology to meet customer demands, many discover that the learning curve leaves them wondering where to begin. Brian Litherland of TRUMPF shares some simple insights that will save them time, money and increase their productivity on the laser.
