Shop Profiles

U.S. moldmaking has been hit hard by overseas competition. Makers of molds for glass products face added pressure because alternate materials—mostly plastics—are replacing many glass applications. Quality Mould Inc., one of a handful of independent glass mold shops remaining in the U.S., machines molds for pressed-glass products. The shop combines traditional craftsmanship with CNC machining and CAM technology that set its products apart from those of overseas competitors. Quality Mould is also leveraging its longtime skills to diversify its customer base.

A complement to our Part Time column, this brief video offers an overview of Tungsten Pride's ring production capabilities.

The Cavalier Tool Co. expanded its capabilities for producing small- and medium-sized molds by investing in new machinery such as Makino's a92 machining center.

Don Nelson, publisher of Cutting Tool Engineering magazine, interviews Allied Machine & Engineering Corp. Executive Vice President Steven R. Stokey.

Swiss Automation Inc. employs 172 people and runs 115 machines in two locations in Chicago's northwest suburbs. In the past year the company expanded by about 25 percent when it opened its second location, adding some 56 employees and 26 new machines.  

Perplexed by the lack of automation for vertical machining centers, Steve Simons, president of Simons Design Innovation, decided to do something about it.

With so much of the news focused on manufacturing lost to China, India and elsewhere, Illinois ProTurn is growing, doubling in size, says Dan Lamz, president of the McHenry, Ill., shop.

The majority of the shop's work is in the plastic injection mold industry, and Lamz says the company's forté is hard turning. View the video above to learn more about Illinois ProTurn's success and its ability to produce tight tolerance parts over and over again.

Len Graham, Business Unit Leader, Rexam Mold Manufacturing, discusses the motivation behind the Buffalo Grove, Ill., company's decision to build a Mega Cell automated mold manufacturing system. Graham offers a detailed walk-through of the company's Mega Cell, which began operation in March 2013.