3 Mindset Changes for Lights-Out CNC Machining
June 25, 2019
For many machine shops today, the most promising avenue of potential expansion is not a new market or an addition to their facilities, but instead the untapped, unstaffed nighttime hours that could be captured for automated, “lights-out” production.
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By: Peter Zelinski, Editor-in-Chief, Modern Machine Shop, May 23, 2019
Lead-Free Brass
January 26, 2016
As the needs in the machining industry migrate, so must the processes we use to produce quality parts. With the recent concerns about lead products in food, water, and sanitation, we find many of the precautions we previously put in place to set Mantel Machine up to handle the transition to Lead-free Brass. First, our operators understand that we are able to keep competitive prices because of the high premiums we can obtain with our scrap resale thru segregated bins and dedicated chip spinners. Second, we utilize multiple cutting oils to ensure the finest cuts dependent on the material. And third, our company has been machining brass to stainless steel and nylon to unleaded steels for 65 years.
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Planning Ahead
December 30, 2015
It is important to look to the future in today’s market to best align your company with where you calculate it’s headed. The same calculated steps need to be taken in everyday set-ups. By visualizing how cuts will change the structure of a part, set-ups can plan for difficult features. Taking a little extra time ensuring the best tool path and holding method, will ultimately cost you less. We profit from the knowledge gained with better set-ups and less scrap.
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Bar Feeder Basics
November 23, 2015
Mantel Machine is capable of running a variety of jobs from large to small runs, brass to nylon, or steel to stainless steel. It is important to have the right equipment to maximize this process. Having multiple styles of bar feeders have helped us achieve quality parts with minimal run times. We took into consideration the needs of the parts we run to the machines capacities and created various machine set-ups to accommodate our customer’s needs. This article discusses some of the specifications to consider when looking into bar feeders to maximize shop efficiency.
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Beyond the Educated Guess
October 19, 2015
Athletes use muscle memory to perfect their craft the same way machinists use information gained during past jobs. A football being tossed precisely is a combination of all the information gained through past throws under various conditions. It is the quarterback’s body’s best guess to complete the pass. Each time our machinist’s set-up/ run apart, information about past parts orientation, how they were held, speeds and feeds, etc. affect how they will prepare for the current job. Solutions to past problems better future set-ups. What questions are your employees thinking about when they set-up jobs?
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Basic Turning Skills
September 15, 2015
In our 65 years of business, many employees have started, advanced, and ended their careers with us. All those people gathered useful information about repeat parts, difficult materials, and various machines that is invaluable to a company interested in growth. We have created a Competency Program to extract this information from current employees and harness it to teach new employees. From simply turned brass parts to complex Swiss style turned parts, even a seemingly simple concept can prove to be a breakthrough to another. The synergy created allows Mantel Machine to continue into its 4th generation of family ownership.
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Buyer’s Guide to purchasing precision machined products
The PMPA offers a quick guide that suggests more economical design methods and tips on specifying your precision machined parts or products that can be implemented…
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Trade Associations
American Machinist
www.americanmachinist.com
American Metal Market
Delivers breaking news, information and critical pricing data to the metals industry.
www.amm.com
Cutting Tool Engineering
www.ctemag.com
MMS
Modern Machine Shop
www.mmsonline.com
NTMA
National Tooling & Machining Association
www.ntma.org
PMPA
Precision Machined Products Association
Serves the screw machine and high-speed machining industries with national & regional conferences, publications, and programs.
www.pmpa.org
Production Machining
www.productionmachining.com