The storytellers

For many job shops it is understanding that automation is a journey, not a destination. You don’t have to immediately jump into expensive full automation. Do take stock of what is out there. Decide where your entry point is and go from there.

raditional manufacturing built the world we live in. When engineers introduced subtractive numerical control (NC) manufacturing in the 1940s, it empowered industries to mass produce more complex parts with even greater precision. It also drove a true paradigm shift in the way we innovate and create prototypes, allowing manufacturing processes to evolve into what they are today.

In recent years, additive manufacturing (AM) has advanced exponentially and become increasingly cost effective and sustainable. As a result, many manufacturers have combined additive and subtractive techniques in their mass-production operations.

he versatile fiber laser has been adopted by a diverse market base for myriad applications. Power, speed and machine features top most fabricators’ wish lists, but the number of different models on the market can pose a challenge for companies looking to invest in the technology. To help narrow the field, manufacturers should ask questions that will help identify the fiber laser with the capability to take shop floor production to the next level in a digitized environment.

hen it comes to rolling plate for heavy duty environments, there are a lot of variables to consider, from a material’s chemical composition and thickness to the strains associated with plastic deformation. In June 2021, DAVI Inc. introduced the iRoll eXtreme, a new digitized control that marries automation with smart, intuitive technology.

ike most companies that have weathered the events of the last 18 months, Delta Industrial has had to grapple with supply chain disruptions and worksite constraints, while continuing to meet customer demands. The Chesterfield, Michigan, company engineers and builds press pits and machine foundations, taking customers from design and construction to steel design and fabrication, concrete flatwork and contracting.

ver the years, Southern Designs has refined its processes both on the fabrication floor and on the business side. In April 2021, the fabricator launched a Shopify store for its on-demand laser-cut metal wall art. Shopify allows Southern Designs to make its products available to other merchants. But before that could happen, CEO Tance Hughes had to make sure the company could meet demand and keep track of every step along the way.

igher grade, higher tensile material is the norm and bending heavy tonnage material can take a lot of time to manually set up, readjust and process. A press brake sophisticated enough to eliminate the need for excessive handling saves time and opens up new realms of possibility. “It takes so much tonnage to try and bend AR450 plate in particular, we were spending too much time working on each piece,” says Ryan Taylor, CEO, The Godwin Group, Dunn, North Carolina.

arnets, January’s birthstone, can be traced back to the Bronze Age, when they were used in burial jewelry and carved signet rings to indicate royalty. Egyptians coveted the gemstone, referring to it as the symbol of life or “heart’s blood.” In 1878, mineralogist Henry Hudson Barton found garnet on Gore Mountain in the Adirondack Mountains. He established Barton Mines Corp. and became the first to successfully process garnet ore into an industrial abrasive for sandpaper manufacturers.

unctionality, clean lines and a mirror finish. Specialty Welding and Fabricating of N.Y. Inc. can produce the desired aesthetic whether a spiral staircase for Microsoft’s corporate office in Atlanta or heavy-duty racks for conveyors used on loading freighters and barges transporting grains along the Mississippi. “We’re a job shop. We’ll build anything anyone asks us to build,” says Robert Hayes, purchasing agent.