SME Home Media Manufacturing Engineering Magazine April 2019

Manufacturing Engineering: April 2019

The April 2019 edition of Manufacturing Engineering is available as a digital magazine. Links to individual articles are below.

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Aerospace Machining Solves Challenges Big and Small

April 3, 2019

Aerospace machining encompasses machines small and large. These range from the Tornos SwissNano to the Makino MAG3, as Rich Sullivan put it. He is the OEM manager for Iscar Metals Inc., Arlington, Texas.

By Ed Sinkora Contributing Editor, SME Media

Beyond Niche: Alternative Manufacturing for Aerospace Parts

April 3, 2019

A typical commercial jetliner contains millions of discrete components, yet provided the plane arrives at its destination safely, on schedule, and hopefully without a screaming baby behind them, most of the flying public could care less how any of those parts were made.

By Kip Hanson Contributing Editor, SME Media

Structured Vision in Manufacturing

April 4, 2019

Structured light systems measure surfaces by projecting a pattern of fringes, then using cameras and sophisticated software to convert them into point clouds of metrology data. Accuracy can reach the single-digit microns over millions of points.

By Bruce Morey Senior Technical Editor, SME Media

Unlocking the Industrial Internet of Things with PLM Software

April 4, 2019

Digital manufacturing solutions with product lifecycle management (PLM) tools hold great potential for manufacturers to eventually fully unlock the promise of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).

By Patrick Waurzyniak Contributing Editor, SME Media

Controls

Aerospace Industry Turns to PVD Coatings to Replace Hard Chrome

April 5, 2019

The search for a suitable replacement for hard chrome in aerospace components has been a key supply chain priority for aircraft manufacturers. This is because of the documented health risks to workers and the impact on the environment from exposure to hexavalent chromium.

By ME Staff Report

Aerospace & Defense

Shop Solutions

Northwood Industries: CAD/CAM Delivers A Precision Machined Grip

April 5, 2019

When a long-time customer came to Northwood Industries, Perrysburg, Ohio, with a challenge to redesign and make a part for one of its commercial paint spray guns, the company was pretty sure they had it covered.

By ME Staff Report
A to Z Machine: Shop’s Manufacturing Technology Spans the Alphabet

April 8, 2019

The name A to Z Machine says it all, according to Jerry Van Handel, one of the shop’s four co-owners. The Appleton, Wis.-based job shop can handle jobs “from A to Z” successfully and profitably due to its solid, all-encompassing business strategy, said Van Handel.

By ME Staff Report

Up Front

Additive Manufacturing & 3D Printing
Facing Up to New Challenges in Aerospace

April 8, 2019

Aerospace is an incredibly exacting industry. Everything from design to manufacturing to maintenance must go exactly as planned to keep planes flying safely, and even when they do, mistakes can happen, leading to tragedy.

By Alan Rooks - Editor in Chief, Manufacturing Engineering

Advanced Manufacturing Now

Expert Opinion
Comfort is Key in Today’s Manufacturing Plants

April 9, 2019

Providing for your employees is paramount in the current marketplace. If you aren’t offering a comfortable environment for your workers, they’ll seek other options. Thermal comfort is an individual’s subjective assessment of personal satisfaction in an environment and is defined by international comfort standards.

By Christian Taber - Principal Engineer of Codes and Standards, Big Ass Fans
- Expert Opinion
Automation
What To Consider When Choosing Grippers

April 9, 2019

Automated manufacturing operations are finely tuned ecosystems in which all components must function in complete harmony. Grippers used to pick and place, orient and hold components or end products at various points along the production chain are key to this process.

By Dan Campbell - Director of Product Management, DESTACO
- Automation
- Expert Opinion
Expert Opinion
Augmented Reality: In this Case, the Writing’s on the Work Station

April 10, 2019

A Michigan company that displays instructions for manual manufacturing processes on work stations via augmented reality (AR) is adding wearables to provide similar guidance.

By Ilene Wolff - Contributing Editor, SME Media
- Expert Opinion
Additive Manufacturing & 3D Printing
SME Will Introduce iRAMP at RAPID + TCT to Accelerate Adoption of Additive Manufacturing

April 10, 2019

After decades of hype and predictions surrounding additive manufacturing (AM), AM is poised to be on the brink of becoming the disruptive technology that many have long expected. Disruptive technologies are often deemed too costly, less capable or too niche to replace incumbent technology. But over time, many of these technologies reach a tipping point and rapidly replace these incumbents.

By Michael Grieves - Executive Director, The Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Innovative Design, Florida Institute of Technology (FIT)
- Additive Manufacturing & 3D Printing
- Expert Opinion

SME Speaks

SME Speaks
The Value of SME’s AeroDef Event

April 10, 2019

My involvement in SME and its AeroDef event began in 2014, when I first presented an Adaptive Machining Overview at AeroDef 2014 in Long Beach, Calif. At the time, the conference was relatively small in terms of attendees and exhibitors in comparison to the explosion of other engineering conferences that began around that time.

By Dan Braley - Additive Manufacturing Technical Focal – St. Louis USN / USMC Air Vehicle Technical Integrator – F/A-18 SEIT, Boeing Global Services, St. Louis, SME Member Since 2015

Workforce Pipeline

Workforce Development
Advancing STEM Pathways in Manufacturing

April 11, 2019

As a U.S.-based company that designs, engineers and manufactures advanced industrial cutting systems and software, Hypertherm understands that a highly trained workforce is vital.

By Jenny Levy - Vice President People, Community and Environment, Hypertherm Inc.
- Workforce Development

Viewpoints

How Long Do You Need Your Machine Tools to Last?

April 10, 2019

In the aerospace industry it’s common for OEM contracts and programs with their component suppliers to extend from 10 years to as many as 40 years. Many, if not most, aerospace parts demand efficient and productive metal removal rates—in tough materials, with tight tolerances, and with a reliable, robust, automated process.

By Bill Malanche - Chief Operations Officer, Mitsui Seiki USA Inc.
- Aerospace & Defense

Laser Special Section

Lasers
In Laser Welding, Power Needs Precision

April 8, 2019

With great power comes great responsibility, the saying goes. And with greater laser power being used to weld sheet metal, tubes, copper and aluminum, operators have a greater responsibility to deliver that power with a precision that avoids defects.

By Geoff Giordano - Contributing Editor, SME Media
- Lasers
Lasers
Laser Cutting Powers Up

April 10, 2019

Implementing a comprehensive laser cutting system is not a task for the faint of heart. In addition to the financial outlay, requirements include planning for a complete system, not just the laser, according to Dustin Diehl, laser division product manager, Amada America Inc., Buena Park, Calif.

By Frank Burke - Contributing Editor, SME Media
Lasers
Laser Marking: Going Places

April 12, 2019

The well-established field of laser marking continues to break new ground with expanding business opportunities in automotive, oil and gas, medical and other industries.

By Geoff Giordano - Contributing Editor, SME Media
Lasers
Lasers Enhance Traditional Machining

April 12, 2019

Metalworking machines are fast, powerful, and accurate, but they weren’t always as capable as they are today. Modern equipment is more nimble, flexible and adaptable. The machines collectively exceed the sum of their parts.

By Larry Adams - Contributing Writer, SME Media
- Additive Manufacturing & 3D Printing
- Lasers

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