Alan Richter

News • April 1, 2016 • Alan Richter

Toolmaker rises from the ashes

Virtually every established manufacturer has experienced at least one major setback during its history. For Taurus Tool & Engineering, it was losing its main tool grinding area and CNC machines to a fire in June 2014, after a 37-year run at its previous facility in Schaumburg, Ill. No injuries were reported, thankfully, and the cause of the fire is unknown.

News • April 1, 2016 • Alan Richter

Program prepares students for manufacturing careers

To enable junior and senior high school students to follow a specific direction in the manufacturing industry, their education must be diverse. Ensuring such diversity is the goal of the Machine Technology Program at Cuyahoga Valley Career Center, Brecksville, Ohio, according to Rich Parrott, machine technology instructor.

Articles • March 1, 2016 • Alan Richter

Nothin’s going to touch you …

... in these golden years," crooned the late David Bowie in one of his smash hits. The term "golden years" is also used in Albert B. Albrecht's book "The American Machine Tool Industry: Its History, Growth, Restructuring & Recovery," which he revised in 2015 for the third edition. AMT—The Association For Manufacturing Technology sponsored the book. Albrecht defines the golden years of the machine tool industry as being from 1948 to 1998. "It was during this period that the United States machine tool industry led the world in both machine tool production and consumption," Albrecht wrote.

Articles • March 1, 2016 • Alan Richter

Chips Away

The chip collection bin at a shop's turning center is full, so a worker grudgingly begins the mundane task of moving the bin via a forklift to the chip collection station at the opposite end of the plant. Unfortunately, the bin leaks and coolant drips on the shop floor, causing the shop's biggest customer to slip and fall while visiting to check on his latest order. There's got to be a better way.

News • March 1, 2016 • Alan Richter

Amount of U.S. reshoring debated

Has the reshoring train left the station or not? According to the second annual U.S. Reshoring Index from global management consultants A.T. Kearney, the answer is a resounding "no." In 2015, the index, at -115, indicates that reshoring of manufacturing activities to the U.S. has not kept up with offshoring. The index measured -30 in 2014. A positive number indicates net reshoring, while a negative value indicates net offshoring.

Articles • January 1, 2016 • Alan Richter

How Angle Heads Streamline Multi-Axis Machining Operations

The array of configurations is vast, but angle heads typically serve a common function: eliminate having to perform a separate operation to access a part feature when thenworkpiece can't be indexed.

Articles • October 1, 2015 • Alan Richter

Future of manufacturing

CTE Editor Alan Richter visited the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute at Chicago's Goose Island in September for a peek into the future of manufacturing at an event coordinated by Blaser Swisslube Inc.

Articles • October 1, 2015 • Alan Richter

Private equity funds, venture capitalists partner with precision parts manufacturers poised for growth

Running a successful machine shop takes more than having advanced machine tools, high-performance cutting tools and machinists that boost productivity. A manufacturer of precision metal parts might also need a strategic partner that has the network, expertise and — last but not least — capital to penetrate new markets, overcome capacity constraints and make investments to help the business grow.

Articles • September 1, 2015 • Alan Richter

Preset it and forget it

Minimize tool runout, extend tool life, reduce scrap and prevent fixture damage. An offline cutting tool presetter.

Articles • September 1, 2015 • Alan Richter

Books are fun-damental

Time for a literature review.

Articles • September 1, 2015 • Alan Richter

Planetary prototypes

Fallbrook Technologies' shop continues to produce prototypes for licensees of the company's continuously variable planetary technology while performing commercial jobs.

Articles • September 1, 2015 • Alan Richter

Trochoidal milling can tackle the hard stuff

Milling metals hardened to 52 HRC and harder with solid-carbide cutters doesn't require a heavy-duty, high-performance machine tool when a machinist employs trochoidal milling and applies cutting tools with an appropriate substrate, coating and geometries. (With Video.)