If moldmaking and mold repair are indeed two separate entities the question becomes “What are the specific skill sets required for a mold repair technician?” Unfortunately the answer may be largely influenced by the specific repair environment. That is to say, if the in-house toolroom is fully equipped, the level of repairs may be quite [...]
In this series we will be discussing executive decision-making and how to improve the process, including things like decision speed, reliability, prioritization and risk reduction. The process and principles we will cover work extremely well for high level/executive decision makers, product development teams and sales/marketing managers. These same principles of truly understanding the needs of [...]
In the early days of the CAD/CAM industry, customers were supplied a completely-integrated system for design and manufacture from a single developer. More recently, stand-alone design systems have become popular. […]
Machining hardened stock isn’t for the faint of heart, but many alert shops have figured out how. In fact, some are running steels up to Rc 60 four or five times faster—even in cavity work. Others have even found a way to mill the hard stuff on light-duty machines using conventional end milling, [...]
According to Steven, President of First-rate mold Solution company, key elements of a business continuity plan should include: […]
Mistakes have always been around: the world is flat and the sun revolves around the earth— to name a few. The world of manufacturing is no different with its own false beliefs. Today we have the mistakes that aluminum tooling is “junk tooling or for prototypes only”. […]
The idea of improving mold performance and maintenance efficiency is an easy buy in for anyone in the molding business. Actually doing it is another matter. The distance between rhetoric and practice continues to grow as companies talk incessantly about the need to improve maintenance and mold reliability, and then bicker over the burden of [...]
How many times have you received a 2-D drawing that was created from a 3-D model, only to then spend days recreating it in your CAD or CAM system? To me, all of the back and forth seems a little ridiculous. Engineers are designing parts or assemblies in 3-D CAD and then spending hours creating [...]
Most business leaders in manufacturing will agree that the economic recovery has been in progress for many months. Proposal activity is surging and orders are beginning to roll in again for the strong companies that have survived. […]
Hot runners have long made processing more efficient and cost effective while improving part quality. However, in cleanroom applications, those benefits have been offset by the need to use pneumatic hot runners with slower response times and weaker closing forces. […]