Anyone who’s worked with wind turbine blades or just seen one up close can attest to the massive size of these clean-energy workhorses. Ever thought about what happens to that costly, high-tech material once the blade reaches the end of its lifespan in 20 years or so?
Lightning eMotors, a provider of commercial electric vehicles for fleets, today announced the debut of a new model of its Class 3 Lightning Electric Transit Van.
Machine tool orders rose in October on a monthly basis, helped by industries including automotive and rail, AMT – The Association for Manufacturing Technology said today.
Burrs, sharp edges, and rough surfaces plague even the most precise metal-cutting or forming process. Deburring and finishing can often be treated as the step-child of a manufacturing process, but its importance is growing as tolerances get tighter and precision devices become the norm.
I traveled to Toyota headquarters in Japan with Jeff Liker for a research project. We wanted to learn more about the engineering and collaboration that created the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA), the strategy and innovation behind hydrogen vehicles, and how they had adapted and improved their development system to meet the increasing demands of the ultra-competitive global auto industry.
Until the middle of 2010, first-tier subcontract machinist, JJ Churchill, could produce turbine blades only if they had their fir-tree root-forms preground elsewhere, or if they were subsequently added by another subcontractor. No longer is this the case.
Manufacturing returned to economic expansion in January, helped by gains in new orders and production, the Institute for Supply Management said today.
Engineering information is both pervasive and essential within manufacturing plants. And, it changes constantly as a result of maintenance-related adjustments, alterations in plant processes, or the swap-out of components.
Boeing Co., which had wanted to return the 737 Max to service this month, threw up the surrender flag on Dec. 16. The company said it will suspend 737 Max production in January.
It’s a sad fact of practically all metal removal operations that, no matter how sharp the tool or free-machining the material, there are going to be burrs, hanging chads, ragged corners, and other edge quality issues that must be dealt with before calling the workpiece complete.
