Industry News for 02/2018

This year should be an exciting one for manufacturers. First, we must recognize the long-term trend where large corporations’ productivity gains have been outstripping mid and small-size manufacturing companies (500 employees and less). This year we expect those large manufacturers to continue celebrating those productivity gains.

Jonathan Saada, aerospace veteran and president and founder of Hi-Speed Corp., a top manufacturer’s representative to the aerospace market, announced his decision to represent high-performance tool manufacturer YG-1. According to Saada, the decision was clear after analyzing the performance, breadth and value of the YG-1 product portfolio.

By 2025, nearly 25 percent of the U.S. population is expected to be 60 years of age or older. With this demographic preparing to exit the workforce and enter retirement, what can be done to retain people's knowledge and pass it down to the next generation of employees? After all, a good portion of the knowledge that our "employee elders" possess is not written down or stored on computers—it's in their heads. This is especially true in the manufacturing sector.

If the third time is the charm for a grant request in Pardeeville, Wis., all its schools will win. But luck won’t get it done. Pardeeville High School applied last month for the Fab Lab grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Council, which awards $25,000 in matching funds for technology education at school districts.

"Shaping Success Together" is Vollmer's motto at the international trade fair GrindTec 2018 in Augsburg, Germany. The specialist in grinding and eroding machines has further developed both technologies and services for its sharpening and machine tools in close communication with customers and partners.

Students in Birmingham, U.K., are being challenged to showcase the potential uses of magnesium within the aerospace sector as part of a competition being set by Birmingham City University and Meridian, a producer of magnesium components.

The technical closing report about EMO Hannover 2017 shows that exhibitors presented many innovations. For instance, to enable large components to be flexibly and cost-efficiently machined irrespective of the component’s dimensions, the start-up Picum MT, created by the Institute of Production Engineering and Machine Tools at Leibniz University in Hanover, Germany, is adopting fresh approaches. Instead of bringing the component to the machine tool, the Picum One, an intelligent tool robot weighing about a mere 100 kg with its own single-software solution and innovative metrology, is brought to the component.

Northern Maine Community College officials know the value of strong relationships among employers, educators and students, as evidenced by three campus visits from General Electric Co., Pratt & Whitney and the Associated General Contractors of Maine Inc. One of the visits was for students in the precision machining technology program.

Hardinge Inc., Elmira, N.Y., an international provider of metalcutting solutions and accessories, entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Hardinge will be acquired by an affiliate of Privet Fund Management LLC, Atlanta. Under the terms of the agreement, Privet Fund Management will acquire all shares of Hardinge common stock not currently owned by Privet Fund Management for $18.50 in cash, for a total transaction value of approximately $245 million.

The MEP National Network is a unique public-private partnership that aims to deliver comprehensive, proven solutions to U.S. manufacturers, fueling growth and advancing U.S. manufacturing. Focused on helping small and medium-size manufacturers generate business results and thrive in today’s technology-driven economy, the network comprises the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the 51 MEP Centers located in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, and over 1,300 advisers and experts at more than 400 MEP service locations, providing any U.S. manufacturer with access to resources for success.

When seeking straightness, as well as parallelism, perpendicular end cuts and other important geometric dimensioning and tolerancing features, the goals at Metal Cutting Corp. are cost-effectiveness and high-quality, tight-tolerance parts. To that end, the company finds that using qualitative test methods for straightness and other features consistently helps keep production costs under control while delivering the results that customers need.

Myriad ways to boost productivity, enhance shop-floor flexibility and preserve data security are all on the market today for machine shops of many sizes. With the machine tool industry in flux currently, as it seeks to find its way into the digital world, the entire process chain necessitates the integration of suppliers who can respond to the needs of the industry. The situation has very little “history” and so large end-customers and machine shops of all sizes are seeking assistance from their suppliers, while the machine tool builders are likewise seeking to partner with hardware, software, communications and controls suppliers to bring the most needed machine types to market.

Adopting a modern fluid reclamation system can provide quick ROI while improving profits, equipment lifespan and employee safety.

With the August 1985 issue, Cutting Tool Engineering launched a decade-long series of articles titled, "History of Tools." The first installment, which you can download and read by clicking here, began as the ultimate Throwback Thursday endeavor: urging readers with their eyes on the future to recall the machine tool industry's humble beginnings. So, yeah, The Stone Age.

Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in January, and the overall economy grew for the 105th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business. The January Purchasing Managers' Index registered 59.1 percent, a decrease of 0.2 percentage point from the seasonally adjusted December reading of 59.3 percent. This indicates growth in manufacturing at strong levels for the 17th consecutive month, led by continued expansion in new orders and production activity, with employment growing at a slower rate and supplier deliveries continuing to struggle.

The Eriez Metalworking Demo Truck, a 32-ft. Peterbilt diesel rig with a 24-ft. equipment showroom belonging to Eriez Manufacturing Co., Erie, Pa., is once again traveling across North America to deliver hands-on training and education to customers and distributors. The 2018 tour has started with West Coast stops.

Without a fully optimized manufacturing process, individual machines and entire manufacturing operations fall short of their full productivity and cost-effectiveness potentials. To avoid this fate, shops should take advantage of engineering and process optimization support services typically offered by those well-equipped and truly capable manufacturing equipment suppliers. Such services can encompass just a few lines of code for a cutting program or a comprehensive, turnkey solution for the development and maintenance of an entire production line.