AMT Reports Increased Consumption of Manufacturing Technology in June...

(Image courtesy of Kruse Kronicle)

A recent study by the Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT) and the American Machine Tool Distributors' Association (AMTDA) has reported that the consumption of manufacturing technology processes is up nearly 36% from may and 71% from June of 2009. The gear manufacturing industry has been on a steady rise since our last article on the state of the manufacturing technology trends in America, meaning that those involved in gear manufacturing will have a lot more on their plate as we approach 2011. The data for the research was based on data reported by companies involved with the USMTC program. An article from geartechnology.com discusses the development:

"Typically, manufacturing technology order rates slow down in the months leading up to the International Manufacturing Technology Show-IMTS (Sept. 13-18, McCormick Place, Chicaco, IL), the largest production technology show in the Americas," said Douglas K. Woods, AMT president. "However, increased foreign direct investment and a doubling of orders in aerospace and construction equipment through the first half of 2010 resulted in an acceleration of USMTC order rather than the typical slow down."

As the demand for manufacturing technology continues to rise in the United States, it is likely that all of those involved in the gear manufacturing industry will have a steady stream of new clients and greater challenges on the horizon. For this reason, we at the Blog of a Gear Manufacturer, recommend paying attention to statistical changes in the manufacturing arena as soon as new information is available. By staying ahead of the curve, you are more likely to meet your customers expectation and surpass your business' capabilities.

To learn more about gear manufacturing, check out Gear Motions:

www.gearmotions.com

To read the article from geartechnology.com, click this link:

http://www.geartechnology.com/issues/0910x/industry.pdf

One of the Greatest Gear Making Tools - And it isn't What You Think!

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)

I found a really interesting article from around 2004 while puttering around Gear Solutions magazine's archives. It's about a "miracle tool" for producing parts from bar stock, such as gear blanks. You'd probably be really surprised (or, unsurprised, if you paid attention to the graphic at the beginning of this post) to hear that this miracle tool is the buzz saw. The author, Fritz Greulich, discusses the pros and cons of using a multiple cutting edge tool to manufacture gear parts, making note of how the stability, consistence and reliability of circular cutting tools have increased rapidly over the last few years. Here's an excerpt from the article:

"Not only is RSC a viable reality, it is also far superior to single point tooling in its capabilities. The multiple cutting edges of a circular saw eliminate the problems of high heat buildup, undesirable chip formation, and high chip load. The result is a myriad of technical advantages that increase production levels, improve quality, and lower production costs: more parts per hour, more parts per bar, better finishes, increased tool life, easier and less costly scrap handling, and increased machining capabilities. A rotating circular saw cutting through a rotating bar of stock builds up very little heat for a number of reasons. First, saws are ground with side clearance. Clearance reduces the friction between the workpiece and the cutter. Second, cutting with a rotating circular saw is an "interrupted" cut, since each tooth cuts for only a brief moment. Third, as a single saw tooth makes a cut, the chip (and heat) is immediately removed from the cutter by the strong coolant flow and the centrifugal force of the rotating saw. Finally, each cutting edge is removing only a small amount of material, keeping the chip load low."

So, what benefit does this article hold for those of us in the gear manufacturing industry? Most notably that with all of the recent advances in our engineering technology and the big expo coming up, it may be easy to only look toward the future for ways to improve our efficiency - but we also shouldn't forget the past. Articles like this one that promote ingenuity and thinking outside the box should be heralded for their ability to take a process that many think has been "perfected" and apply a new twist to it that increases quality, decreases waste and eventually will augment profit.

To learn more about the latest in gear manufacturing, visit Gear Motions:

www.gearmotions.com

To read the article from Gear Solutions Online, follow this link:

http://www.gearsolutions.com/article/detail/5622/a-super-tool-for-superior-gear-blanks

Excellence in Gear Manufacturing and the Future of the Industry

With IMTS 2010 getting closer and closer with every passing second, the gear manufacturing industry is abuzz with what will be "the next big thing". But, an article on enterprise excellence from geartechnology.com suggests that "the next big thing" might just be a different way of looking at how we in our industry do business. Things like breakdowns in communication, late delivery schedules and component available all contribute to efficiency losses in the gear manufacturing market. So what is enterprise efficiency? The article from geartechnology.com explains it this way:

"In a sense, the idea of enterprise excellence should involve a different mindset; it should transition beyond defect reduction to one of performance improvement. Its approach should be to capitalize on past successes and collectively focus on organization on its strengths. Then a company is equipped and flexible to address problems, capture opportunities, adapt to changing requirements and technologies, and evaluate associated risks."

It's likely that instead of a new technology emerging or a new type of gear being developed, that the next big evolution in the gear technology field will be our ability to anticipate and compensate for errors in different parts of the process. In the future, when new materials are discovered and processes change, it would be a good idea to have a system in place to assist in these transitions. This is likely that "next big thing" that everyone's waiting for.

To learn more about gear manufacturing, check out Gear Motions:

www.gearmotions.com

And to read the article from geartechnology.com, go here:

http://www.geartechnology.com/issues/0910x/voices.pdf

Significant Advances in Single-Pass Finishing for Gear Manufacturers

(Image Courtesy of The Energy Collective)

New techniques are opening up to those in our industry thanks to a new approach to the single-pass finishing process as it relates to the manufacturing of gears. An article in Gear Solutions magazine discusses some of the changes that have been implemented, and the potential advantages of this recently discovered technology. Diamond tooling can be expensive - the cost of materials and the upkeep of your equipment can seem taxing. The key to the single-pass process, as reported by Gear Solutions, involves following the existing centerline of the bore to be finished with as little pressure as possible. This ‘path of least resistance’ may seem like an obvious avenue of approach for many gear manufacturers- but there are many in our industry who have lost time and money on something so simple. The article relates the information in this way:

“The key to the single-pass process is to allow the diamond tooling to follow the existing centerline of the bore to be finished with as little pressure as possible. This is normally done by allowing the tool, part, or both to float. Depending on many other variables, bore geometry to better than 0.2µm (.000008”) is possible. Sine all of the diamond tools are set to specifice sizes and do not require expansion during each cyle, the single-pass process is able to achieve unsurpassed size control in production (1 µm with near perfect repeatability). These results are very predictable and repeatable, thus lend perfectly to Statistical Process Control.”

It seems like a no-brainer that this process would be successful, but by constantly trying to augment tools, assembly fixtures and machine augmentations, gear manufacturers have been able to steadily increase their production rates while improving the precision with which they bore. According to the article- fuel pumps, power-steering pumps, hydraulic timing components, connecting rods, cylindrical bores, diesel rollers and most importantly, gears can all benefit from these newly developed approaches to the single bore process.

To learn more about advances in gear manufacturing technology, check out Gear Motions:

www.gearmotions.com

To read the article from Gear Solutions Magazine, follow this link:

http://www.gearsolutions.com/article/detail/5459/advances-in-single-pass-bore-finishing

Pete and Repeat Build a Gear: Whose Client Calls Them Back?

Geartechnology.com has an interesting article this month regarding the recent economic downturn as it relates to gear manufacturers, and how those in our industry can meet and exceed our buyer's expectations with greater efficiency. The article, by associate editor Matthew Jaster, discusses the future of the gear manufacturing industry and what aspects of the business will come to the forefront as America begins to climb its way back from the recent recession. Among the areas of focus listed were quality of gears produced, the timeliness in which they are delivered to consumers, and the value of the actual product as it relates to customer satisfaction. According to the article, with more potential buyers shopping around for better deals and with less repeat business due to the recession, gear manufacturers should take heed to make sure that the people that come to them keep coming back:

"Customer service plays a large role in delivery as well. The medical manufacturing rep has received countless phone calls from customer service agents in the gear industry. "They just state the same thing over and over again. 'We'll have it in another three weeks,' 'Give us three more weeks,' 'It's going to be about three more weeks.' Sure, they were polite enough to keep us informed on where the order stood, but this wasn't exactly the kind of customer service we were looking for."

Warren Buffet, investment guru and philanthropist, summed it up when saying, "Price is what you pay; value is what you get." Whether your'e purchasing automobiles, heavy industrial equipment or a bulk order of gears, the same rules apply. The gear industry remains an area of manufacturing where complex components need to perform consistently and without failure. In the gear industry, companies tend to pay for what they get."

The article makes several solid points regarding the future of the gear manufacturing industry, particularly as it relates to producer/consumer relationships. Customer service is mentioned often as the main reason that customers may not come back to a manufacturer. For those of us in the gear manufacturing industry, the lesson we should take from this article is that customer support can sometimes have more of an effect on our business than the quality of the gears we produce. For next quarter, manufacturers should focus more on their bedside manner if they want to keep their clients coming back.

To learn more about the gear manufacturing process, check out Gear Motions:

http://www.gearmotions.com/

To read the article from geartechnology.com, follow this link:

http://www.geartechnology.com/issues/0810x/gearbuyers.pdf

Are you Ready for IMTS 2010?

At this years Industry and Technology Conference in Chicago, there will be over fifty gear manufacturers putting on exhibitions regarding the latest technology in the industry. They’ll also be there to rub elbows with fellow gear producers and discuss upcoming changes in the market (some of which have been detailed in previous posts on this blog). So, if you’re one of the many who were not able to get a spot in the Gear Technology pavilion and haven’t planned ahead on attending, what can the 2010 Industry and Technology Conference do for you? Gear Technology Magazine, who ran an article about the conference in this month’s issue, had this to say for non-attendees:

“It may take months of preparation to get the most out of the IMTS experience, and both exhibitors and the show management have abundant Internet resources available in advance. One such resource is through social networks online. IMTS insider news can be found on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, as well as the IMTS technology e-newsletter. The IMTS group on YouTube features 60-second ehibitor submissions about why visitors should come to their booths. Visitors can vote to rate the video, and the highest rated one will have theirs posted prominently on imts.com.”

So, even if you can’t make the show itself, you can still get the gist of what each exhibitor will be discussing at their individual booths. Beyond that, each of the videos links to the exhibitors homepage, where you generally find a more developed discussion of the points made in their youtube videos. You also have the opportunity to decide which ones are the most relevant to gear manufacturing as an industry. The more manufacturers that vote for certain videos, the more likely it is that it will show as an indicator of how the industry is trending once the selected videos are permanently posted. So, even if you can’t make the show, you can at least swing over to their youtube channel and voice your opinion regarding what’s important in the gear manufacturing industry.

To learn more about Gear Manufacturing, check out Gear Motions:

www.gearmotions.com

To submit a video for the youtube competition, click on the IMTS website:

www.imts.com/60seconds

To read the article from Gear Technology magazine, click here:

http://www.geartechnology.com/issues/0810x/imts2010.pdf

Manufacturing Technology Consumption on the Rise...

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)

A recent article from GearTechnology Magazine discusses the increase in consumption of manufactured technology in the United States, referred to as the USMTC or US Manufacturing Technology Consumption. The article states that according to the American Machine Tool Distributors' Association and the Association for Manufacturing Technology, May saw a consumption total of $178.34 million. The number was reached based on data supplied by companies that participate in the USMTC program, which, while showing a decrease from April of this year, is up almost sixty percent from May of 2009. The article quotes the president of the Association for Manufacturing Technology:

"While we would like to see the first quarter growth rates continue, we are not surprised by the typical second quarter ebb and flow in capital spending," says Peter Borden, AMTDA president. "We have seen an additional month of substantial orders, which helps to confirm that a sustainable recovery is taking place despite the buzz of those forecasting a W-shaped rebound. Industry forecasts for the year have been revised slightly upward by many sources, and if Congress passes the bonus depreciation allowance, this could accelerate growth even further."

The full report, which is available at www.amtonline.org, also contains a geographical breakdown of the Northeast, South, Midwest, Central and Western regions as they relate to this uptrend in manufacturing technology consumption. Essentially, this report is important to gear manufacturers because it could signal a boom in our industry that has already begun and may become more apparent by the end of the year. It would probably be a good idea, if you belong to this industry to read the full article.

To learn more about Gear Manufacturing technologies visit GearMotions:

http://www.gearmotions.com/

To read the full report from amtonline, visit this link:

www.amtonline.org

To read the article from GearTechnology magazine:

http://www.geartechnology.com/news.php?in=2530