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 Feature Articles

NC SOFTWARE MARKET GROWS BY 7.2 PERCENT

What Recession? Steady market growth continues and is targeted to reach $1.5 billion this year.
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STRESS RELIEF PROCESS HELPS INDUSTRY GO GREEN

If someone says they know how to eliminate 98 percent energy consumption without sacrificing quality in the area of stress relieving, people are naturally skeptical. But when the U.S. Department of Energy reports that the American metalworking industry can save up to 98 percent of its energy consumption by using a certain stress relief process, the only question is "how?"
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NEW TOOLING: TICKET TO STARDOM

80 Percent Growth Last Year Alone: This fabricator is reinventing its business with full service metal fabrication and branded products - and new punch press tooling is helping to fuel its growth.
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WIRED FOR SUCCESS

Call to Order: This welding wire manufacturer searched for - and found - an ERP system well suited to help them increase control, visibility, and profitability.
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FULL SPEED AHEAD

Take the Driver's Seat: This North Carolina shop added a direct-drive rotary system for speed and accuracy to reduce cycle time by 30 percent and capture opportunities to expand into the pharmaceutical market.
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FLAME CUTTING MOTHER LODE

Mine Your Own Business: Advances in cutting technology help leading manufacturer meet demand for large-scale mining equipment.
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READER SURVEY:

Section 179 of the 2008 Economic Stimulus Plan offers a one-year 50 percent bonus depreciation allowance for new machine tools and other equipment ordered and placed in service during 2008. This means you can write off new and used equipment purchases up to $250,000, and the 50 percent bonus depreciation can then be taken on the remaining basis of the machine, if it is new. The cap on how much equipment can be purchased to enjoy this write-off is $800,000, but you can finance purchases over $800,000 with an operating lease and may still be able to claim this deduction.
Are you planning to take advantage of this bill and purchase capital equipment this year?

Click Here to take the survey online.

LEGISLATIVE CONFERENCE

The National Tooling and Machining Association (NTMA) has scheduled a Legislative Conference in Washington D.C. for June 10-11. During the conference, attendees will go over a variety of issues including unfair trade practices, Chinese currency manipulation, expansion of the Family Medical Leave Act, Employee Free Choice Act and many others. Attendees will also be given a briefing on immigration compliance during a visit to the Old Executive Office building at the White House.

Robert Novak, a founding commentator for CNN and a leading political columnist, will deliver the keynote address covering the issues facing America during the upcoming Presidential election. The second day will be devoted to face-to-face meetings with elected officials and their staff. Conference attendees will be briefed on all issues and be given literature to leave with their elected officials that stress how important the U.S. precision metalworking industry is to the U.S. economy.

The NTMA continues to stress how important it is for the industry to meet with their elected officials to educate them and keep them informed about how what happens in Washington has a direct impact on how well they are able to compete in a global market. Foreign competition has the support of their governments and the U.S. industry needs the support of those in Washington that pass legislation.

This conference is open to members and non-members interested in helping the industry continue to survive. For more information go to www.ntma.org, call (800) 248-6862, or e-mail info@ntma.org

Fabricated Metals Manufacture

Leveraging Integrated IT for Operational Excellence and Growth in a competitive global market.
Please join us on June 26 to learn how PPC, a family owned mid-size manufacturing company, leveraged integrated information technology into their organization to improve operational efficiencies and financial results.  From basic operations to customer service management, better information enables PPC to drive continuous improvement, respond quickly to customer demands - and stay ahead of the competition.
June 26, 2008  1:00 Central Time
  Essential Reading

Metal Forming & Fabricating
ULTRA-HIGH STRENGTH STEEL FOR STRONGER STRUCTURES
Incredible Hulk: This new hot-rolled structural steel from strip opens the door to stronger cranes, containers and heavy vehicle applications.

Maintenance
CHIP AND PARTS CONVEYORS ARE VIRTUALLY MAINTENANCE FREE
Machine Tool Dream: Ideal for moving and elevating ferrous materials such as chips, turnings, small parts and stampings.

Tooling & Workholding
MINI CLAMP VISES ARE PERFECT FOR MULTI-FACE MACHINING
Mold Making Delight: Ideal for machining complicated workpieces in a single clamping operation.

USA Today

  A Look Ahead to June

F&M Current Issue

 

Look for these articles and more in your next issue of Fabricating & Metalworking.

 

The Tribological Challenges of High Speed Machining
There is still no universally agreed-upon definition for this popular technique, but everyone definitely agrees that it can increase production speed, reduce costs and improve surface finish.


Tangential Milling of Molds and Dies

Being Competitive: In most die and mold shops a big chunk of machining time goes to slab milling. Speeding that operation means a lot to profitability, so Riviera Tool switched over to tangential milling for the rough and finish slabbing work - and raised throughput more than 40 percent.


Welding High Strength Steels

Keith Packard of Hobart Brothers shares insights on the move toward different high-strength steels and the basic considerations that tomorrow's welder will have to take when encountering them.


The Good, The Bad, and The Really Good
Greg Payne of Cinetic Landis explains how hard - and hard-to-grind - materials like tungsten carbide, titanium, stainless steel, and even more unusual metals like hafnium are providing new opportunities for centerless grinding.


The Return of e-Manufacturing

Dr. Hans J. Langer of EOS walks through some interesting new survey data that confirms how industrial production is facing a paradigm shift: laser-sintering is a key technology that will strongly compete with conventional technologies - such as casting - in the near future.


CAM Nesting Tricks for Waterjet Cutting

Derek Weston of MTC Software shares some tricks of the trade that will improve your efficiency and cut quality when using various nesting software features for waterjet cutting.


Easy Pickings

Back to Basics: This case study shows how steel shaper Power Curbers uses lift tables to reduce labor and improve safety in an innovative transfer line that feeds bars, angles, and tubing to its three metal saws.


Is Your Company An Attractive Investment?

Mergers and acquisitions aren't just for companies that generate hundreds of millions in annual revenue. Erin Hollis of IPA explains how owners of smaller sized businesses can position their companies as attractive investments by utilizing pragmatism, strategic planning and business valuations.



For more, visit the current issue of Fabricating & Metalworking

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  Upcoming Events

WORLD CONGRESS ON POWDER METALLURGY & PARTICULATE MATERIALS
June 8-12
National Harbor, MD
www.scanmet.info

SCANMET III
June 8
www.mpif.org

6th EUROPEAN STAINLESS STEEL CONFERENCE
June 10
www.stainless08.com

QUALITY EXPO
June 11-12
Novi, MI
www.qualityexpo.com

MTA VIETNAM 2008
July 9-12
Hanoi, Vietnam
www.allworldexhibitions.com/metal

SPRAY FINISHING TRAINING
August 5
khanson@mwcc.mass.edu

SME EXPO LOGISTICS & MATERIAL HANDLING 2008
August 28
www.sme-expo.com

IMTS
September 8-13
Chicago, IL
www.imts.com

AMB
September 9-13
Stuttgart, Germany
www.messe-stuttgart.de/amb

NSC CONGRESS & EXPO
September 19-26
Anaheim, CA
congress.nsc.org

ASIA FASTENER
September 24-26
Guangzhou, China 
www.asiafastener-china.com

For more, visit our Calendar of Upcoming Events at F&M Online

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