Taking the powder metallurgical process even further are new developments in antigalling tool steels. These steels have taken the concept of a lubricious coating and brought it to the powder stage of manufacture. Nitrogen is diffused throughout the tool steel cross-section in the form of nitrides. […]
There have been many topics posted in the Random Musings forum about asking tips & advices when buying a desktop or laptop. So I thought it would be nice to summarize all the useful info here, with fantastic support on this article from Cyberdemon who has already given some great advice on hardware and software [...]
Change isn’t always the most comfortable part about running a business. Sometimes it seems that just as we begin to figure it all out we’re faced with an entirely new set of challenges that force us to look at how we do things and completely reevaluate our priorities. But as uncomfortable as that change can [...]
With rapid tooling (RT) technologies emerging and the increasing demands put on toolmakers, the issues of if and when to use RT are becoming critical topics in the manufacturing community. The world of conventional toolmaking is faced with an increasing list of problems, the first being increased competition – local and foreign. Customers also are [...]
Recently I was in a meeting with a customer who had been hit hard by the past recession, and they were struggling to find their bearings. Business was sluggish, the banks were not supportive, and employee morale was at an all-time low. Their last major project had been a bust, and so they called a [...]
There are mold shops in china. that are growing and thriving. When faced with the problems every shop has, it is hard to imagine how anyone can overcome the many realities of our market today, let alone thrive and succeed. […]
These all meet the dictionary definition of “optimization”. However, one of the fastest ways for a moldmaker to achieve a dramatic improvement in efficiency and reduce NC program cycle time is to automatically optimize their NC program feedrates. […]
NC verification and simulation software has been available to manufacturers for more than 20 years, yet most NC programmers do not take full advantage of the benefits it can offer. However, some resourceful companies have discovered that simulation software can be used to benefit their shop in ways that others overlook—and in ways that may [...]
Some CAM vendors refer to optimized software as the software best suited for the types of machines, processes or parts being programmed. […]
At its inception, rapid tooling was the ability to generate core and cavity inserts as a product of a rapid prototyping technology. Rapid tooling was the result of an additive process driven by 3-D CAD – a process that requires little or no machining or EDMing. For some, rapid tooling continues to be described in [...]