An Arnold Publication- Serving the Western Metalworking Industry Since 1981
Industry News
Klas Forsström New President of Sandvik Coromant
On September 1, 2011 Klas Forsström took over the position as president of Sandvik Coromant, a leading supplier of cutting tools, tooling solutions, services and know-how to the metalworking industry.
Klas Forsström has been with the Sandvik Group for about 17 years, mostly at Sandvik Coromant. His work has included leading positions in R&D, product development, marketing, business development and sales. Most recently he held the position as president of Sandvik Hard Materials.
“It is really exciting and inspiring to be back with Sandvik Coromant. I am truly impressed by what the company has achieved in recent years. As the market leader we are perceptive and forward thinking,” says Klas Forsström.
His first task as president is to manage and further develop the ambitious strategy that Sandvik Coromant has set.
This includes an even stronger customer focus through local presence and global knowledge sharing.
“R&D is part of the very fabric that is Sandvik Coromant. We are always focused on product innovation, premium application knowledge and speed to market. Our ambition and motivation for the future is strong. I believe we will be successful in the further development of customer oriented solutions,” Klas Forsström explains.
Tornos US Has Partnered With J.M. Grisley Representing Utah, Idaho and Montana
Tornos US announced that it has teamed up with J.M. Grisley Machine Tools, Inc. for the sale of Tornos Swiss turning centers, barfeeders, Almac milling machines, and ESCO by Tornos coil-fed turning centers to Utah, Idaho and Montana customers.
Located in Salt Lake City, Utah, J.M. Grisley Machine Tools is a full service distributor of machine tools used in the metal working industry.
The company sells both new and used multi-axis CNC and manual machine tools in Utah, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming and has been providing high quality machines and expertise to the Intermountain West for over 80 years. Catering to the local job shop and to high production shops, the company specializes in aerospace, oil-field, medical and job shop applications.
Says Jim Grisley, third generation Grisley Machine Tools owner, “If you have a part, we have a machine to make it and improve your production!”
J.M. Grisley Machine Tools, Inc., was founded in 1927 by Jim Grisley’s grandfather, James Marion Grisley. The Grisley’s are continuing the family business legacy with Lars Grisley, Jim’s son, working in sales for JMG.
Agie/Charmilles Tektoberfest Well Attended.
The latest machining technologies and Oktoberfest charm came together at Tektoberfest at Agie/CharmillesYorba Linda, California office on October 25 and 26, 2011 which attracted 162 guests. Among the guests were key Agie Charmilles customers and prospective customers from aerospace, medical and ICT market segments. Guests enjoyed Bavarian food, refreshments, music, door prizes and personalized machine demonstrations and seminars of: CUT 20P, CUT 200, Progress VP2, FORM 30, DRILL 20, FO 350 SP, HSM 400U LP.
In addition to the festive culinary fare, the attendees enjoyed one-on-one time with the Agie Charmilles applications, service, sales and corporate staff who were available to discuss the wide array of EDM and Milling and technologies that were presented on the Agie Charmilles CUT 20P, CUT 200 and CUT 3000 wire EDM systems; the FORM 20 FD and FO 350 die-sink EDM systems; the DRILL 20 hole drilling EDM; and the Mikron HSM 500 3-axis High-Speed Milling machine.
Some of the technologies that were showcased included micro-hole EDM, EDM turning, High-speed machining of bevel gear dies, and multi-cavity progressive dies.
Mazak’s T3 Attendance Far Exceeds Expectations
Thousands of North American manufacturers attended T3 – Tomorrow’s Technology Today, a Discover Mazak 2011 event. As a uniquely formatted event, T3 took place over the course of two weeks, allowing manufacturers to experience the absolute latest in machine tool technology and innovation in an intimate, interactive environment. It was held at Mazak’s Florence, Kentucky campus.
For T3 attendees, advanced machine tool technology was one of the main attractions. Mazak debuted and demonstrated more than 30 new machines, including models from Japan and several designed and built at the Kentucky plant, including the Quick Turn Nexus 450 MY multi-tasking CNC turning center, Vertical Center Smart 530C vertical machining Center, the Orbitec 20 machining center and the new Vertical Center Nexus Nexus– compact vertical machining center, which is designed for medical industry work.
Machine models from Japan debuting in the United States at T3 included the new Variaxis i-Series of 5-axis multi-tasking machining centers and the FJV 60/80 high-precision vertical machining center. Mazak also debuted the new, linear motor-driven Y-axis Super Velocity Center 2000L/200-II for long and large parts such as those often found in the aerospace industry. The Horizontal Center Nexus 6800-II featuring a hard metal machining package and the Integrex i-630V for gear cutting capability were also demonstrated.
Many of the new machines at T3 are additions to Mazak’s Five Levels of Multi-Tasking, which represent the most comprehensive lineup of Multi-Tasking technology in the world and one that addresses all industry segments. At T3, Mazak displayed 15 machine models from its Five Levels of Multi-Tasking – four machine models from Level One, two models from Level Two, two models from Level Three, four models from Level Four and one machine model from Level Five.
SNK America Relocates Corporate Headquarters
SNK America, Inc. has announced the relocation of their US headquarters to 1150 Feehanville Drive, Mt. Prospect, IL, 60056. The 40,000-square-foot facility will house executive, sales & marketing, application engineering and service offices. An upcoming 8,000-square-foot machine technology center will enable customer demos and test cuts. The new facility also includes a large component repair facility. SNK also maintains US facilities in Anaheim, CA and Maitland, FL.
OMAX® Appoints New Vice President of North American Sales
OMAX Corporation has appointed Michael Ruppenthal to the position of vice president of North American Sales. Ruppenthal brings with him over 15 years of sales and sales management, marketing and product development experience within the abrasive waterjet industry.
During much of his professional career, Ruppenthal specialized in developing, initiating and leading sales and marketing strategies in the manufacturing industry, as well as other industries. He has also served as a consultant within the machine tool industry for client companies involved in welding, fabricating and machining.
“We are very excited to have Mike on board and are confident he will greatly contribute to the company’s continued sales growth,” said Dr. John Cheung, president of OMAX. “Mike brings with him established industry experience, strong leadership skills and a strategic sales approach. We look to Mike to incorporate many new ideas and concepts and apply them to the OMAX sales framework.”
Ruppenthal holds an MBA degree from the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, and a BA degree from The Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
“This is a great opportunity to work with the industry leader in abrasive waterjet technology,” said Ruppenthal. “And it’s an honor to be part of the entrepreneurial, close-knit and customer-focused team at OMAX.”
Ruppenthal replaces John Bergstrom, who has retired from OMAX but remains a consultant for the company.
Nikon Metrology, Inc. Opens New Technology Center In North America
More than 100 metrology and manufacturing professionals gathered to visit the new Nikon Metrology, Inc, Technology Center, located at their headquarters for the Americas in Brighton, Michigan. The purpose of the event was to introduce one of the most advanced technology centers in Livingston County, Michigan, a sentiment echoed by Brighton Mayor Ricci Bandkau, who was on-hand to cut the ribbon, opening the Technology Center.
Also present was Gary Vasilash, editor-in-chief of Automotive Design and Production, who keynoted with a state of the automotive industry. The theme of “Advances in Industrial Metrology” was evident in the number of new and updated products on display. These included the HN-6060, Nikon Metrology’s leading Multi-Sensor Metrology System; BW-H501 3D Surface Profiler; MMDx laser scanners featuring increased speed of operation; and the ShuttlePix portable, digital microscope, among many others.
Product demonstrations and technology overviews were held throughout the day, along with customer presentations from Arizona State University and Joe Gibbs Racing.
Bryan Crawford of Edge Technologies Marks 25 Years of Selling, Installing and Servicing Barfeeds.
Edge Technologies recently announced that Bryan Crawford has marked 25 years in the barfeed business this fall. Rick Bauer, general and sales manager of Edge Technologies says, “Bryan exemplifies the business model that we have established nationwide by having technical salespeople that “get their hands dirty” and work on the products that we sell. What better way is there to know the product and advise to the end users and machine tool salespeople on the best barfeed for the application?”
Edge Technologies offers advanced productivity solutions for bar feeding and bar loading needs. They bring to the marketplace superior product lines with very competitive prices. Specializing in CNC lathe automation, Edge Technologies showcases some of the finest bar feeders and short loaders in the world, such as FMB Machinery bar feeders, as well as their own line of economic excellence bar feeders that bear the Edge Technologies name.
Tornos US Names Interim President
Tornos US announced that it has accepted the resignation of Tornos US president Scott Kowalski, effective immediately. Jon Dobosenski, North America business manager, has been named interim president/managing director.
Mr. Jon Dobosenski, who has been the North America business manager for Tornos US since 2006, has 26 years experience in the OEM manufacturing industry and has been working directly with Swiss manufacturers for over 16 years. Mr. Dobosenski assumes this interim position with broad and highly capable operations expertise as over the course of his career he has directly managed service, applications, parts, IT and sales teams.
Partners in THINC Welcomes Busche as a New Partner
Okuma America Corporation recently announced that Busche, a leader in quality, custom-crafted workholding, has joined Partners in THINC.
Specializing in custom crafted, hydraulic vertical and horizontal, 4th and 5th-axis and manual workholding solutions, Busche provides engineering and design services as well as finished goods. Dedicated to maximizing the work envelope, Busche’s in-house designers and master machinists strive to optimize fixture design and improve productivity for their customers. Servicing a diverse group of industries, including aerospace and automotive, for more than ten years, the company has built a substantial library of fixture models.
Design-2-Part Shows Announce Three West Coast Shows for 2012
Design-2-Part (D2P) Shows, America’s largest design and contract manufacturing tradeshows, have released their 2012 show schedule. The 11 show slate includes two annual shows in California and a highly anticipated return to the Pacific Northwest.
The schedule is highlighted by Design-2-Part Shows’ third ever appearance, and first since 2009, in Portland, Oregon with the Northwest Design-2-Part Show, on October 23 and 24, 2012 at the Metropolitan Exposition Center.
As usual, the show schedule is anchored by six annual shows. In addition to the two yearly shows in Santa Clara on March 21 and 22, and Long Beach on October 2 and 3, D2P will also hold yearly shows in Grapevine, TX, Atlanta, GA, Schaumburg, IL, and Marlborough, MA. The Southern California Design-2-Part Show actually rotates between Long Beach and Pasadena giving Los Angeles area manufacturers two convenient, every-other-year options.
Design-2-Part Shows provide design engineers, manufacturing engineers and managers, and purchasers an excellent opportunity to meet local and national job shops and contract manufacturers to source custom parts, components, services, and design. Exhibiting companies will be showcasing their design-through-manufacturing services featuring more than 300 product categories for the metal, plastics, rubber and electronics industries. The shows are working shows and visitors are encouraged to bring sample parts and drawings.
D2P Shows exclusively feature exhibiting job shops and contract manufacturers with manufacturing operations in the United States. Companies that do not have facilities in the U.S. are not permitted to exhibit.
GKI Incorporated Celebrates 40th Anniversary
GKI Incorporated, a Crystal Lake IL manufacturing company, is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The company specializes in metal cutting products and services used in various industries throughout North America. It currently serves every Fortune 500 manufacturing company, including industry giants such as: Caterpillar, Boeing, Ford, Chrysler, Nissan, General Electric and others.
GKI was recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in America by Inc. Magazine in 2007 & 2008. The company currently employs 50 people in its facility in Crystal Lake, and has sales offices in Philadelphia, PA, and Nashville, TN.
The company was founded by Gerhard Klutke, who immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1964 and started GKI in the garage of his home in 1971. Today, GKI is run by his sons, Olaf Klutke, president, and Eric Klutke, vice president.
Cincinnati Incorporated Appoints New Marketing Manager
Matt Garbarino, a 20-year veteran of the metal fabrication industry, has been appointed marketing manager of Cincinnati Incorporated, a leading U.S.-owned builder of laser cutting systems, press brakes, and shears. Garbarino has seven years experience in sales with Cincinnati and 13 years in various e-marketing, b2b web businesses, and software companies serving the metal fabrication industry. Prior to re-joining Cincinnati in 2010, he founded TheFABZone.com and was president and COO of Machinetools.com.
“As the only U.S.-owned builder of lasers, press brakes, and shears, Cincinnati has earned a strong reputation among its customers for providing machines that are designed and built for the rigors of the North American fabrication industry,” said Garbarino. “We plan on bringing that message to all metal fabricating companies in North America. Cincinnati has pioneered a number of e-marketing initiatives and we will expand these programs in the years ahead.”
Trio Tool & Die Co., Inc. Recognized for Excellence by Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems
Raytheon Company recently presented supplier excellence awards to 39 companies for their exceptional performance in supporting the company’s Space and Airborne Systems (SAS) business during 2011 at its annual Supplier Excellence Awards Dinner held on September 26 in Los Angeles, Calif.
The winning suppliers represent less than one percent of SAS’ supply base. They were chosen for meeting demanding standards in the areas of quality and delivery performance, customer satisfaction, and total business and financial health.
Evaluations of their performance by the Raytheon buyers and material program managers who deal with them every day were also part of the selection process. Awards were presented at the 3- and 4-Star level, and Southern California based Trio Tool & Die Co., Inc. received a 3-Star award.
Delcam Holds Successful Seminars in Western Region
Leading CADCAM software developer Delcam wrapped up its Advanced Manufacturing Update Technical Seminars in the last quarter with two sessions in California, one at SeekTech in San Diego and a second at Selway Tool in Buena Park.
Commenting on the event, Delcam’s VP of Sales for Western United States Christian Briscoe said, “We have added a number of senior account managers over the past year to meet the growing demand for our manufacturing software.
We have also expanded our support staff to more than 20 application engineers and strengthened our administrative team. These changes have given us a stronger and more experienced team to serve the western US manufacturing sector.”
Attendees to the meetings saw the new release of Delcam’s PowerSHAPE CAD software for product design, tooling design and reverse engineering. The 2012 version incorporates the first direct modeling capabilities, alongside many improvements to the existing combination of solid, surface and triangle modeling capabilities.
Demonstrated in PowerMILL 2012 was flowline machining and how with flowline machining, the toolpath is divided between a pair of drive curves in a constant number of passes, rather than having a varying number of passes with a constant stepover. This produces a better surface finish on the part and minimizes wear on the cutter and the machine tool. Other enhancements include control of the angular point distribution during five-axis machin ing, new thread milling options and improved workplane editing. It has also been made easier to obtain measurements, including distances, angles and directions, from the part model and enter these values into PowerMILL forms automatically.
Shown in FeatureCAM 2012 was how the software has been made even easier to use. A range of keyboard shortcuts have been added and toolpath editing has been made much easier. Other improvements include further developments in the use of stock models to cover 2D features, including bosses, sides and slots, extra options within the tooling database, the ability to automatically counterbore holes before drilling, fully-automated de-burring and chamfering, the possibility to create a negative leave allowance (such as a fitting allowance) for turning or wire EDM to produce undersized features without remodeling, and much improved performance on the largest part files with hundreds of thousands of entities.
TECHNI Waterjet, ANCA Announce Partnership
TECHNI Waterjet’s reputation as technology leader in the Waterjet Cutting industry has received a major boost with the signing of ANCA Group as its new equity partner.
Darren Reukers, managing director of TECHNI Waterjet said that “ANCA will take a 25% share in TECHNI over the next two years with options to develop a closer partnership in the future.
“The strategic alliance builds on TECHNI’s ability to provide leading edge technology as well as the capital to significantly increase production in order to meet rapidly growing demand for our products,” Mr. Reukers said. “The choice of partner was an obvious one given the long standing relationship and synergies that already exist between the two companies.”
“The backing of the ANCA group as a global machine tool manufacturer will also help to grow the business, enhance the wider recognition of our products and strengthen and protect our unique Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio,” said Mr. Reukers.
The partnership enhances TECHNI’s presence and support services in the key markets of the USA and Europe, while providing opportunity and capacity to enter new and emerging markets in the Americas and Asia.
ANCA is a world leader in developing CNC technology, and is one of the largest and most respected CNC grinding machine manufacturers. Established in 1974, the ANCA group is a global company with sales, service and applications resources located around the world and manufacturing plants in three countries.
Mitutoyo America Corporation Announces New President
Shigeyuki Sasaki has been appointed the new President at Mitutoyo America Corporation, headquartered in Aurora, Illinois. Sasaki has served numerous roles within Mitutoyo Corporation for the last 35 years including; new product development and quality control departments in Utsunomiya, Japan; manager of purchasing and planning in Mitutoyo Germany; general manager in Mitutoyo south america; and recently vice president and executive vice president of Mitutoyo America Corporation. He will remain as an active member of Mitutoyo Corporation’s board of directors.
Sasaki succeeds Mikio Yamashita, who served as president of Mitutoyo America Corporation since 2006. Yamashita will return to Mitutoyo Corporation headquarters in Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa, Japan at the end of the year, but will always be fondly remembered at Mitutoyo America for his insightful wisdom, compassionate nature and enthusiastic personality. He will continue his career with the corporation where he previously served as president of Mitutoyo Canada, vice president of Mitutoyo Netherlands, logistics Manager of Mitutoyo Germany and sales manager of Mitutoyo Netherlands.
John Westhaus, formerly vice president of Capital Equipment Sales will assume Sasaki’s role of executive vice president. John has held many positions within Mitutoyo America Corporation throughout his 28 years of service with the company.
Discover Mazak – Tomorrow’s Technology Today is Largest Event of Its Kind
As part of the ongoing Discover Mazak series, Mazak will host the largest event of its kind at its Florence, Kentucky campus this Fall. During Discover Mazak – Tomorrow’s Technology Today, over 30 new innovative machines will be featured, as well as a demonstration of Mazak’s Production-On-Demand manufacturing plant, where over 100 models of machines are produced.
Discover Mazak – Tomorrow’s Technology Today is a unique two-week event scheduled for October 17th -27th, during which Mazak will welcome nearly 2,000 visitors from across North America.
The event will feature advanced turning, milling and Multi-Tasking metalcutting solutions, including many forms of 5-axis machining technologies. During the course of the event, visitors will have the opportunity to attend a variety of technology presentations, and experience real-world application machining demonstrations. Mazak experts, as well as the company’s VIP technology partners, will also be on hand to offer a variety technology seminars and personalized consultation on manufacturers’ unique challenges. Topics covered will include the Five Levels of Multi-Tasking, automation technology, industry-segment focused process development and manufacturing technology.
“Discover Mazak - Tomorrow’s Technology Today will be like no other manufacturing event the industry has seen,” said Brian Papke, president of Mazak Corporation. “What makes it and all Mazak events different is that visitors not only see the latest machine tool technology in action, they experience our Production-On-Demand process firsthand at our manufacturing plant. Our plant is driven by customer need, which results in new product development.” Mazak produces over 100 models of machines tools at its Florence plant, and the company has invested $13 million in expanding the facility’s capabilities through additional floor space and technology upgrades to increase output to 150 machine tools per month.
Haas Automation Hosts National “Multi-Tasking Turning Center” Demo Day
On September 14, 2011, Haas Automation, Inc., will host a “Multi-Tasking Turning Center” Demo Day at more than 40 Haas Factory Outlets (HFOs) throughout the United States and Canada. This 18th national event will feature the new Haas ST and DS series multi-tasking turning centers with Y-axis and dual-spindle capability.
The Haas ST series Y-axis turning centers provide 4" of Y-axis travel (±2" from the centerline) for off-center milling, drilling, and tapping, and include high-torque live tooling and a servo-driven C axis for versatile 4-axis capability. The machines are available in standard and super speed configurations.
The Haas DS series dual-spindle turning centers provide the ability to turn both ends of a part in a single setup to minimize part handling, increase throughput, and reduce work-in-process. The opposed spindles support fully synchronized turning, and allow on-the-fly part pass-off to reduce cycle times. Adding Y axis, C axis, and live tooling to the machines creates powerful “done-in-one” machining solutions for any shop. The DS machines are available in standard and super speed configurations.
In addition to live demonstrations running on the Haas machines, each local HFO will host educational seminars on the latest trends for boosting output and increasing profits. Haas applications engineers – as well as representatives from major tooling, workholding, and CAD/CAM manufacturers – will be on hand to help customers adapt the newest machine technology and manufacturing strategies to their shop floor.
Seco Joins Mazak VIP Technology Partnership Program
Seco Tools has joined Mazak’s Value Inspired Partners (VIP) program. Created to promote higher levels of solutions for manufacturers, the Mazak technology partners program brings together industry-leading technology providers to collaborate on R&D, process development and educational opportunities for North American manufacturers. Seco is just the second cutting tool provider to be certified into the program.
“Today’s manufacturer is faced with a broad spectrum of technologies, all evolving at a tremendous rate,” says Mike Parker, director of marketing and product development at Seco. “On an increasing basis, it is the responsibility of technology providers to work together to ensure that new innovations work together to provide the best possible performance. Mazak’s VIP program represents a bold and aggressive commitment to this goal. Seco is honored to have been certified for participation in the program and proud to join efforts with other industry leaders.”
To attain membership in the VIP program, a company must demonstrate that its commitment to manufacturers exceeds the traditional supplier relationship. Seco’s history of working closely with manufacturers to improve their processes for maximum productivity and cost savings played an important role in the company’s certification into the Mazak program.
Seco provides innovative cuttings tools and toolholders for milling, turning and holemaking across a wide range of industries.
Delcam Continues to Expand Support for North America
Delcam announced continuing expansion of its support team based out of Salt Lake City UT, with the addition of an another application engineer, Todd Steele.
“Todd is an excellent addition to the current support team,” says Glenn McMinn, president of Delcam North America. “His extensive CAD/CAM experience will be extremely helpful in supporting both our advanced manufacturing and healthcare customers in North America.”
Steele has 22 years of CADCAM experience working with top Aerospace companies in both Maryland and Oregon.
Although Steele’s main technical focus will be supporting Delcam products PowerMill and PowerShape for 5-axis machining, his knowledge of complex manufacturing has also helped immensely in the research and development of Delcam’s healthcare solutions for orthotics. This will aid in the support of Delcam customers in this growing market.
Mori Seiki’s New North American Plant to Employ 100-150 People
On June 22, 2011, Mori Seiki broke ground on a 200,000-squarefoot factory to be situated on 14.5 acres in Davis, California. The plant will be Mori Seiki’s first manufacturing facility in North America, and will employ between 100-150 personnel.
At capacity, the new facility will produce as many as 100 units per month, focusing on the popular new X-Class line of precision machines.
“Our initial targets are our horizontal machining centers—the X-Class NHX4000 and NHX5000 Series,” says Mark Mohr, president of DMG / Mori Seiki USA. “Our next product under consideration is the DMU 50 and potentially other X class machines.”
The plan of locating a new manufacturing facility in the United States is based on the possibility of the continuing decrease in the exchange rate between the US and Japan.
Dr. Masahiko Mori asserts, “If the value of the US dollar declines, it will become fiscally advantageous to manufacture machine tools in North America, eliminating the cost of importing from Japan.”
The addition of a new North American factory is expected to offset any disparity in the exchange rate between the two currencies and would ensure Mori Seiki customers the continued quality, precision and value they have come to expect in their machine purchase.
Manufacturing in the US enhances the company’s existing infrastructure in North America. Engineering operations are already established in the US at the Digital Technology Laboratories (DTL) in Davis, CA. Software and machinery has been designed at DTL since 2000, when the group was launched. Today, the group boasts over 80 employees; the creation of a North American manufacturing plant creates further opportunity for R&D collaboration in the US.
Okuma Promotes Lisa Rummel to CFO
Okuma America Corporation has promoted Lisa Rummel from vice president of finance to the position of chief financial officer. Mrs. Rummel will be responsible for the finance, contract administration, information technology and human resources departments.
In commenting on the promotion, new president and chief operating officer, Jim King stated, “Lisa has been a valuable member of our organization for over 20 years, and she brings an amazing level of insight and strategic planning experience to the role. She has already been performing many of the duties this position entails and we are happy to officially have her serve in this capacity.”
Rummel is a certified public accountant and earned an MBA from Appalachian State University. She began her career in public accounting and after four years, moved into the manufacturing industry with what his now Textron, where she gained her original machine tool experience. She began work at Okuma in 1989 as a cost accountant for what was then the manufacturing division of Okuma America Corporation.
Rummel’s 22 years of experience at Okuma has included cost accounting for manufacturing, accounting and finance for the sales division, corporate finance and tax accounting. She works closely with Okuma Corporation’s headquarters in Japan and manages and evaluates corporate risk by being responsible for cash flow and inventory investment.
Rummel became Okuma’s first female vice president when she was named vp of Finance in April 2007. With the promotion to CFO, she becomes the first female officer within the global corporation.
Ganesh Open House Will Unveil New 11-Axis Lathe
Ganesh Machinery will unveil two new machines fresh off the factory floor on September 14th at their headquarters building in Chatsworth, CA. It will also peform 20 other machine demonstrations cutting metals.
The new Cyclone 52 – T3Y2 features 3-tool turrets, each with 16-tool positions available for milling, for a total of 48-tools. The two upper turrets both feature Y-axis capability. Keeping 3-tools in the cut greatly reduces cycle time helping Ganesh customers stay competitive.
The new Cyclone 52-BY2 features double Y-axis tool turrets with 35-tools and 18-driven tools, and even has a Servo B-axis for angular drilling, milling, and tapping.
Ganesh will give away a brand new 3-axis CNC lathe to the lucky winner of the free machine contest. The machine will be seen on the showroom floor.
Delcam’s North American Subsidiary Updates Facility
Delcam’s North American subsidiary in Windsor, Ontario, has renovated its existing premises to meet the growing demand for sales and services for the traditional Advanced Manufacturing Solutions; ArtCAM, Delcam for SolidWorks, FeatureCAM, PowerMill, PowerShape, PowerInspect and PartMaker and to support the extended product line for Delcam healthcare solutions in dental and custom orthotic insoles.
The North America office in Windsor Canada opened its doors in 1997, to service the increasing number of customers situated in Ontario, Michigan and other industrial areas across North America. It is now one of five offices located in North America to support over 10,000 customers and more than 40 sales partners situated throughout the United States and Canada (others] Delcam offices in North America include Salt Lake City, UT/ Fort Washington, PA/ Pasadena, CA/Toronto, Ontario).
The main benefit of the office renovations will be the introduction of a newly designed demo center and training facilities.
“The demo center was created in the Delcam Windsor office because of the expertise that Delcam can offer with the experienced and senior application engineers there,” says Glenn McMinn, president Delcam North America. “Delcam has worked hard to earn its reputation for quality customer service. It has been an important factor in making us the world’s leading specialist supplier of machining software in the CIMdata rankings and in helping us to achieve record sales last year. This state-of-the-art facility is another element in the high quality support we provide.”
Sandvik Coromant and Stewart-HAAS Racing Renew Technical Partnership
Sandvik Coromant, a market-leading producer of cutting tools, and Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team co-owned by Tony Stewart and Haas Automation founder Gene Haas, have renewed their partnership for a second year.
The agreement maintains Sandvik Coromant as an official team sponsor of SHR, while SHR is supplied with superior metal cutting solutions for its Haas CNC machines. Beyond the tooling, Sandvik Coromant will provide in-house training for customers and employees, and full application and technical support. The agreement also strengthens its relationship with Haas Automation.
Win a High-Performance, Ganesh Cyclone 32-GT Bar Machine
Ganesh Machinery of Chatsworth, CA will give away a Ganesh Cyclone 32-GT 3-axis, 1-1/4” bar diameter CNC lathe to the winner who best answers the question, “How would adding a Cyclone-32GT better equip your shop or business to compete in the future?”
According to Ganesh, manufacturers looking for affordable cost reduction for bar machine work should look at the 1-1/4” Ganesh Cyclone gang-tooled CNC lathe. The 4000-pound Cyclone features heavily ribbed cast-iron construction to dampen cutting vibration for enhanced productivity, superior surface finish and improved tool life.
The Mitsubishi spindle motor drives the 6,000-rpm hydraulically actuated A2-4 spindle can mount various B&S, Traub and Hardinge collets, including the popular 5C size, as well a 5” hydraulic chuck. The powerful and easy to use PC based control is full functioned and features a graphic display of the programmed tool path and RS-232 and Ethernet connections as well as a Compact Flash card port.
Everything necessary to make parts is included with the machine. Toolholders to mount 8-tools, parts catcher, collet chuck, rigid tapping, coolant system, machine condition display lamp, worklight, and a MPG program prove-out handwheel are all included. A “C” axis is also standard with the machine for drilling and milling in the cross and axial plane with the optional servo driven live tools.
Mazak Certifies Royal Products for VIP Technology Partnership Program
Mazak has announced the certification of Royal Products, a leading manufacturer of metalworking performance accessories, as the newest member of its Value Inspired Partners (VIP) program.
Mazak’s VIP program represents a team of technology partners designed to provide customers with total manufacturing solutions. Collaborating on R&D and integration efforts, the VIP program fosters a high level of cooperation and technological integration that moves well beyond individual pieces of equipment. Stemming from Mazak’s commitment to meet the need for more comprehensive solutions, the VIP program brings together producers of complementary manufacturing technology to create more innovative products and processes. The program also fuels development of comprehensive training solutions for manufacturers across all market segments.
For more than 60 years, Royal Products has been designing and building precision metalworking accessories. Such products include the company’s Rota-Rack parts accumulator that provides an affordable automation solution for lights out operation. The company also specializes in providing application expertise concerning all its machine tool accessories from CNC bar pullers to its quick change tooling systems and live centers.
Benefitting Mazak machine users, Royal Products manufactures two basic styles of CNC collet chucks
GF AgieCharmilles Launches Smartphone Compatible Mobile Website
GF AgieCharmilles has launched a new mobile website that allows those seeking product information to do so via their Smartphones. The mobile site utilizes numerous engines, platforms and active browser versions that make it compatible and fully functional with all popular phones and older browser version.
At the mobile site, visitors can quickly access extensive information on GF AgieCharmilles products such as wire cut and diesinking EDM systems, high-speed milling machines and machining centers, and the company’s innovative Laser Ablation technology. Also accessible are the company’s entry-level diesinking EDM systems and high-speed drilling systems.
GF AgieCharmilles’ mobile site browser support covers numerous versions of the Android, Apple iOS, Blackberry OS, Nokia Symbian and Symbian S60, Palm webOS, and Windows Mobile platforms.
C. Marshall Named New California and Arizona Ermaksan Distributor
C. Marshall Fabrication Machinery, Inc. announced on March 1, 2011, CMF became the authorized Ermaksan dealer in the states of Arizona and California.
Ermaksan is a highly respected company that has been manufacturing metalworking machinery since 1965. With its 800 employees and 860,000 square foot production facilities in Bursa, Turkey—one of the largest of its kind in the world—Ermaksan manufactures 3000 fabrication machines per year. Its sales network covers more than 100 countries.
CMF’s Ermaksan product line consists of Co2 and fiber laser cutting machines, turret and single head punch machines, plasma cutting machines, servo, hybrid and hydraulic press brakes, hydraulic guillotine shears, steelworkers and notching machines. Ermaksan is introducing the Evolution Hybrid Press Brake that is environmentally friendly with its minimum 60% average energy savings compared to conventional press brakes.
Samsung Machine Tools Appoints New President
Samsung announces the appointment of Rory Gintert as the new president of Samsung Machine Tools; the appointment became effective May 2nd, 2011. Richard Layo, president of Dynamic International Samsung’s North American Importer, has chosen an exceptional leader who will channel Samsung Machine Tool’s efforts as it continues to seek new and better ways to improve the machine tool industry.
Gintert comes to Samsung with more than 25 years of experience, and he brings a wide range of machine tool knowledge with him. Mr. Gintert recently held the title of division president Gosiger Inc. a Haas Factory Outlet. Prior to Gosiger, he spent 16 years as senior sales manager for Mitsubishi EDM.
Haas Build-A-Quote Provides Online Machine and Option Pricing
Haas Automation, Inc. is known to offer honest, up-front pricing for its products. The company’s newly expanded online Build-A-Quote system takes open pricing a step further, by allowing customers to select and configure a machine, add options and accessories, and then generate a detailed custom quotation.
Part of the Haas Automation website, Build-A-Quote is easy to navigate, and accessible from practically anywhere via computer, tablet, or smartphone. With just a few mouse clicks, the easy, step-by-step process allows customers to generate an accurate price quote for a new turning center, vertical machining center, or horizontal machining center. The completed quote can then be printed, or sent electronically to the local Haas Factory Outlet for follow-up.
To help customers make informed selections, the Haas website offers easy access to machine specifications, descriptions, and images, as well as links to cutting videos and the Haas information blog. Potential buyers can compare specs side-by-side to help choose the right machine for practically any job, and then select the perfect combination of available options and accessories. Build-A-Quote keeps a running tally of the total, and produces an accurate quote – conveniently, and without hassle.
DMG/Mori Seiki USA Announces Innovation
Days 2011 at Chicago Headquarters & Technical Center On May 3-5
DMG / Mori Seiki USA has announced the annual Innovation Days event will take place at the company’s Headquarters and Chicago Technical Center on May 3 – 5, 2011 where progressive machine technology will collide with the latest tooling, automation, software, training and application strategies. Manufacturers will have the opportunity to experience everything needed to stay at the forefront of manufacturing, all in one place.
This once yearly event gives machine tool users access to over thirty live cutting demonstrations and dozens of engineers specializing in advanced machining solutions. Technical seminars at the three-day event will be presented by industry experts and span several productivity, boosting topics including: Expanding Production, Shop Floor Networking & Communication, Machine Tools for the Future, Practical Strategies for Reducing Set Up Times and Laser and Ultrasonic use In New Markets.
Other presentations will encompass a wide variety of topics, including technical and new product seminars, as well as peer learning sessions. Cutting demonstrations will concentrate on the newest DMG and Mori Seiki equipment with process integration, automation and complex machining, as well as partner companies exhibiting tooling, software and accessories.
“We continue in the tradition of past Innovation Days by presenting the biggest event of the year,” says Thomas R Dillon, president of DMG / Mori Seiki USA. “Visitors will have the chance to see how the outstanding results of our collaboration efforts continue to benefit them in every area, including technology, engineering solutions, training, service, and parts.”
Also highlighted at Innovation Days 2011 will be the innovative new products from DMG / Mori Seiki’s engineering group, Machining Technology Laboratory (MTL). MTL realized significant accomplishments in the past year and will exhibit several of them, including the use of Mori Seiki’s own patented water gauge technology, the Hydrogage, on the DMG Sprint 42 linear machine.
Showcased at the event will be the new X-Class Series of machines from Mori Seiki. The X Class, successfully debuted in the US at IMTS 2010.
Kennametal Names Gretchen Jezerc Vice President Global Product Management
Kennametal Inc. has announced the appointment of Gretchen W. Jezerc to the position of vice president, global product management, effective immediately.
With deep leadership experience in marketing for a number of global manufacturing companies, Jezerc has strategized, developed, and implemented successful marketing programs for such companies as Philips Respironics, PPG Industries, and Whirlpool Corporation.
“I am very excited about the steps Kennametal has taken and continues to develop to position the company as first in meeting customer needs as they exist across many vital and distinct manufacturing segments,” Jezerc says. “From a diverse leadership team with strong complementary backgrounds to dedicated global product managers deep in application knowledge, Kennametal is emerging from an economic recession as a breakthrough company. I’m proud to be part of the mission to continue better understanding customer needs and leveraging Kennametal’s leadership in product development, materials science, global manufacturing, and customer service in meeting them.”
COMEQ, Inc. introduces Eric Lenhart as the North American Product Manager
Comeq, Inc. announced the appointment of Eric Lenhart as the North American product manager for the Pargami angle & plate bending rolls and the Americor 3-roll and 4-roll plate bending rolls.
For the past 15 years Lenhart had been the national sales and product manager for Euromac, LLC and was instrumental in making its line of punching machines into a major U.S. brand.
Lenhart brings a broad knowledge of the metalworking industry and more than 18 years of experience working with manufacturers and distributors throughout the U.S. and the world.
Lenhart will be based in the White Marsh, MD facility and travel throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean to assist customers and distributors with their fabricating machinery needs.
Marchand to General Manager United Grinding Profile Division
Larry Marchand has been promoted to general manager of United Grinding’s Profile Technology Division. In his new capacity, Marchand will have overall sales, administrative, and financial management responsibility for this important division of the company.
“Larry also now becomes a key member of United Grinding’s executive management team and will report directly to me,” says Rodger Pinney, president and CEO.
Larry’s promotion is in recognition of the numerous contributions, dedicated efforts, and tireless commitment he has made to the company that have all ultimately resulted in many of the sales successes United Grinding’s Profile Technology Group has enjoyed during his employment with United Grinding.
“Additionally,” Pinney adds, “Larry’s extensive aerospace and power generation technical knowledge and manufacturing experience, coupled with the outstanding business relationships he has established with our key customers in these industries, uniquely qualifies him to lead the Profile Grinding Technology Team. “
Ganesh Expands Training Area
Ganesh Machinery has greatly expanded the classroom training area at their Chatsworth campus to accommodate the needs of their customers. The new California 500 square foot classroom is equipped with computers and projection equipment to facilitate an efficient transfer of the knowledge and necessary to make the Ganesh 8-axis machines as productive as possible. Harvinder Singh, president of Ganesh Machinery, stated, “our business model relies on the satisfaction of our customers and their ability to get the highest level of performance out of their Ganesh machines.”
Ganesh Machinery will be celebrating their 26th anniversary this year with an open house in August. Brand new machines will be making their debut there. The new 7-axis turn/mill center and the 5-axis machining center, along with 20 other machines will be under power.
Mazak Announces Increased Production for 2011
Mazak has announced increased production levels at its facility in Florence, Kentucky. Fueled by the economic recovery, the company has experienced a steady increase in demand over the past nine months particularly after the IMTS Show in Chicago. Mazak projects monthly output of its Florence plant to reach 130 machine tools per month by the close of Q2 2011 and growing throughout the remainder of 2011. In terms of dollar value, this will represent the largest output ever produced at the plant, due largely to market demand shifting the production mix to favor larger and more complex Multi-Tasking models of machines.
“Over the past two years, Mazak continued to invest heavily in the ongoing productivity of our U.S. production facility, despite the poor economic conditions of 2009,” says Brian Papke, president of Mazak. “We have further refined and improved our Production on Demand system to become extremely responsive to real time customer needs. Additionally, a high level of vertical integration allows us tremendous control in reacting to market conditions. With the present value of the dollar, we will be exporting more machines in future months from our Florence plant, in addition to building for domestic manufacturers.”
Mazak produces over 100 models of machines tools at its Florence plant. During the economic downturn, the company invested $13 million in expanding the facility’s capabilities through additional floor space and technology upgrades. Similar investment will continue into 2011, with the installation of another VERSATECH V-140N 5-axis double-column machining center for large part production. Mazak will also be adding a Mazak Optonics cell with three laser fabrication centers in 2011 to improve productivity of sheet metal parts.
U.S Bancorp Equipment Finance Announces Financing Program with Doosan Infracore America
U.S. Bancorp Equipment Finance – Manufacturing Vendor Services and Doosan Infracore America Corporation announced a new agreement that will support customers in the acquisition of new Doosan machine tool equipment.
The new equipment finance and leasing program provides Doosan customers with flexible options that include capital and true leases with up to 100% financing. In addition, U.S. Bancorp Equipment Finance will offer competitive rates, short term rentals and an “application only” program to qualified customers for equipment up to $350,000.
“We are pleased to be able to deepen our relationship with Doosan Infracore America, its dealers and customers,” said Ken Rector, executive vice president, U.S. Bancorp Equipment Finance –Manufacturing Vendor Services. “Our joint financing program will make it easier for businesses to acquire Doosan equipment to help maintain their competitive advantage in the market.”
“We are excited to have U.S. Bancorp Equipment Finance join the retail finance program for our Machine Tool Division,” says JY Lee, president and CEO, Doosan Infracore America Corporation. “The enhanced relationship gives us the ability to provide top tier products to our customers through an easy and efficient financing process.
OMAX® Secures $2-Million+ Order From The U.S. Government
OMAX Corporation has booked a $2-million-plus order from the U.S. Government for several of the company’s JetMachining® Centers. The order, which spanned the fourth quarter of 2010, involved several standard and two customized OMAX model machines for shipment to various branches of the U.S. Government.
All branches of the Department of Defense were represented, including NASA, The Military Academy at West Point, and The Naval Academy at Annapolis. Two customized OMAX abrasive waterjet cutting systems are slated for NASA and an Army arsenal.
For NASA, OMAX engineers modified a machine’s Z-axis height to meet a specific project’s requirements. The abrasive waterjet machine for the Army arsenal was custom designed to include a DualBRIDGE system, four waterjet heads, and quad pumps.
OMAX has been supplying equipment to the U.S. Government since 1997. And with over 40 machines located in various facilities worldwide, the U.S. Air Force is one of the company’s largest customers. Other Government branches using OMAX abrasive waterjet cutting systems include the U.S. Army, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Navy, USDA, FAA, and NIST. And most countrywide NASA facilities house at least one OMAX abrasive waterjet machine.
The strong relationship with the U.S. Government grew from the partnership OMAX has built with the Phillips Corporation—Federal Division. Since 1948, Phillips Corporation—Federal has sold metalworking and manufacturing solutions to the U.S. Government and its related agencies, exclusively. Operating as a niche government contractor, OMAX’s expertise and relationship with the Government enabled the company to secure and install over 50 waterjet machines inside the U.S. Military.
Most of the U.S. Government’s OMAX machines are used for upkeep of legacy equipment. The machines cut metal and aircraft aluminum for airframe maintenance, titanium for artillery, and plating for U.S. Army transport vehicles.
“What we’ve learned from attending numerous Department of Defense maintenance conferences and seminars is that the U.S. Government is stressing a need for legacy equipment upkeep. This message is especially emphasized to military branch metals technicians, who rely on OMAX abrasive waterjet systems to carry out that initiative,” said Steve Brown, OMAX’s major account manager for government, college, and university customers.
According to Brown, the U.S. Government gravitates toward OMAX abrasive waterjet machines mainly because of the company’s Intelli-MAX® control software, which is extremely quick and easy to learn and operate.
Nikon Metrology, Inc. Announces Opening of New Western Regional Sales Office in Irvine, CA
Nikon Metrology, Inc. announced the opening of its new western regional sales office in Irvine, California. The facility will serve as a sales and demonstration center for current and potential Nikon Metrology customers in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, and Texas.
“We are always looking for ways to support our customers’ needs, and this new regional sales office exemplifies these efforts,” says Robert Wasilesky, senior vice president of sales and marketing, for Nikon Metrology, Inc. “It’s exciting to open this facility for our West Coast customers and ensure we are providing them the top level of service possible.”
A celebration for the grand opening of the facility was held October 20-21, 2010 with a ribbon cutting ceremony and a catered lunch. Nikon Metrology technical experts demonstrated a wide range of different products from the company’s diverse product line, including coordinate measuring machines, laser scanners, and vision systems.
The office will be home to nearly a dozen Nikon Metrology employees who will provide customer support and sales demonstrations for customers.
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Harry Moser Named to Industry Week’s Manufacturing Hall of Fame
Harry Moser has been named as one of the 2010 inductees into Industry Week’s Manufacturing Hall of Fame. Individuals are selected for this honor based upon their overall contribution to American manufacturing.
With a career spanning four decades in American manufacturing, Harry spent twenty-two years as president of GF AgieCharmilles, which was known as Charmilles Technology Corporation during his tenure. In his first ten years, he led the company from number six to number one in terms of market share. During his presidency, the company also successfully broadened its product line to become a leader in 3-axis and 5-axis HSM (High-Speed Milling) machines.
Harry ascribes some of GF AgieCharmilles’ success to its consistent dedication to the broader needs of the industry. He has dedicated much of his career to working through American trade associations to promote workforce development. His efforts led GF AgieCharmilles to provide the grand prize for NTMA’s annual National Apprentice Contest for the last twenty years.
With significant amounts of manufacturing shifting overseas, Harry became concerned for the stability of the careers he had spent much of his career promoting. As a result, he began the Reshoring Initiative in 2009, designing the independent program to bring back manufacturing jobs by educating companies on how much offshoring really costs them. Harry currently serves on the boards of the ISTMA (International Special Tooling & Machining Association) and NIMS (National Institute for Metalworking Skills) and is president of the SMTS (Swiss Machine Tool Society).
“I am extremely honored by the recognition offered by Industry Week,” says Harry. “Reshoring and having the required skilled workforce are absolutely vital issues to American manufacturing and hold the power to transform our economy. Anything that brings more attention to this cause is good for our country. I encourage anyone in the manufacturing industry to reevaluate their offshoring decisions using the Reshoring Initiative’s free software and train their workforce so that it can competitively handle the rebound in work.”
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Popular Northern California Tooling Figure Passes
Respected agent-partner, Chuck Herold passed away Friday, October 22, 2010. Chuck had represented Greenfield Industries’ brands in Northern California from 1997 until his death. He always took great care in supporting his distributors, customers and manufacturers.
Chuck began his career with Marshal Tool in Southern California. He was a founding partner of the independent sales agency, Herold and Bartlet. After divesting Herold and Bartlet, Chuck started the Chuck
Herold agency in Northern California and maintained that business until his death.
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Methods Machine Tools Inc. Names Bernie Otto as Kiwa Product Manager
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has promoted Mr. Bernie Otto to the position of Kiwa product manager.
“We are pleased to have Bernie take on management of the Kiwa line of machine tools",
says Dave Lucius, vp sales for Methods. “With more than 28 years in Methods service, technical sales, and technical sales management, Bernie is uniquely qualified to organize and lead the Kiwa sales effort.” Otto will retain his current position of technical sales manager, and will assume his Kiwa product manager responsibilities immediately.
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Faro and Carl Zeiss Form Innovative Solutions Network
Faro Technologies, Inc. and Carl Zeiss Industrial Metrology announced launch of the Innovative Solutions Network, a marketing, sales and support collaboration in North America.
Through the network, these two leaders in metrology will provide a broader product solutions offering, including both traditional and portable CMMs. From the simplest to the most complex metrology measurements, the Innovative Solutions Network will offer customers access to more patented technologies, focused applications, and customer support programs and resources.
For years, customers have benefited from the support and training programs offered individually by both companies, along with the extensive knowledge and experience that comes with more than 120 combined years of metrology development. Through the Innovative Solutions Network, individuals interested in implementing a metrology solution will now have access to expert resources from both Faro and Carl Zeiss.
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Mazak Awarded Benefactor Of The Year
Mazak Corporation has earned the prestigious honor of Benefactor of the Year for 2010 for its strong community partnership with Gateway Community and Technical College. The award was presented at the 11th annual Kentucky Community and Technical College System President’s Gala and Benefactors’ Awards Dinner in Lexington, Kentucky.
Mazak has worked with Gateway to meet the workforce needs for the region’s manufacturers by founding two scholarships at Gateway. The scholarships support students in manufacturing technology and encourage minority students to attend college.
Additionally, Mazak has provided cutting-edge equipment to the college’s machine tool program and has created an apprenticeship program for recent high school graduates to connect on-the-job experience with college classes. As a member of Gateway’s Manufacturers’ Consortium, Mazak also assisted in the development of Gateway’s new Center for Advanced Manufacturing.
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Carl Zeiss Announces King Machine as New Distributor
Carl Zeiss Industrial Metrology recently announced King Machine as a new distributor of ZEISS metrology equipment for Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. King Machine, with a Precision Measurement Center in Boise (Meridian), Idaho, will represent the full line of ZEISS coordinate measuring machines (CMMs).
“King Machine is an established machine tool and automation distributor with offices in Boise, Idaho and Big Timber, Montana. Their local market focus and machining experience will provide our customers with excellent sales and application support,” said John Grzybowski, national sales manager-west, Carl Zeiss Industrial Metrology.
For over 30 years King Machine has been providing advanced machining and automation solutions. In addition, they’ve been recognized several years in a row for the success of their Haas factory outlet. “Our top-quality machine tool equipment goes hand in hand with the precision measurement capability of the ZEISS product line which will strengthen our customers’ ability to succeed in their markets,” adds Larry McConnell, president, King Machine Inc. Their Boise (Meridian), Idaho office is equipped with a demo showroom to promote Carl Zeiss metrology solutions.
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Aerodyne Alloys Announces New VP Sales
Aerodyne Alloys announced that Robert Jergel has joined the Aerodyne Alloys team as vice president of sales. Mr. Jergel will supervise and direct the company’s outside sales force and work closely with all customers. The move is designed to help the company to continue its growth in the high-temperature alloy market.
One specific goal is to increase the company’s growth in the aerospace, power generation, and oil and gas markets.
“In addition to outside sales responsibilities and developing sales strategies, Bob will spearhead our trade-show activity, work with marketing, and guide customer programs,” says company president Greg Chase.
Jergel has a B.S. degree in Business from State University of New York, Oswego, and has completed numerous management development programs at the University of Michigan and Penn State. Before joining Aerodyne Alloys, Jergel was with Carpenter Technology in Reading PA where most recently he was the regional sales manager for all Carpenter products in New England, the Mid Atlantic, and the Southeast.
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Koma Precision Names David W. Meo Midwest Regional Sales Manager
Koma Precision, Inc. has promoted David W. Meo to the position of
regional sales manager. In his new role, Meo will be responsible for
directing the company’s sales growth in the Midwest.
Meo has been with Koma Precision, Inc., for 3 years serving as an inside sales representative. Prior to joining Koma Precision, Meo worked as a financial analyt at Ipreo, New York, NY, a global provider of market intelligence, deal execution platforms, and investor communication tools to investment banks and corporations around the world.
Meo received his undergraduate degree in finance from Washington University and an MBA from University of Connecticut.
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Mazak Continues to Promote and Practice Production On Demand
Mazak has continued to integrate and refine its approach to Production On Demand at its production facility in Florence, Kentucky. This philosophy calls for a lean approach to manufacturing to allow products to be built with minimum lead times, in small lot quantities, with improved throughput and with minimum inventory levels.
In the last two years, Mazak has invested nearly $13 million in its Florence manufacturing plant. The company installed four of its own Versatech V-100Ns for use in production. The V-100N is a multiple surface 5-axis double column machining center that provides high productivity in the machining of very large workpieces. The machines are equipped with a unique and powerful spindle head that can position to the vertical and horizontal position and any angle in between. Mazak also made a considerable investment in expanding the size its production facility.
“Meeting the needs of today’s market requires high levels of flexibility, efficiency and productivity,” says Brian Papke, president of Mazak. “Our experience in past years has shown us that it is no longer feasible to plan production and build inventory according to forecasts. The needs of American manufacturers are constantly changing, and adequately meeting those needs requires the ability to adapt instantaneously.”
Mazak has made sizable investments in creating a production model that can easily accommodate these shifts in demand.
“We are convinced manufacturing in North America is practical and profitable with the right manufacturing concept and the implementation of technology that supports this philosophy.”
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W Machine Works, Inc. has Achieved SEA Stage One Certification
The Supplier Excellence Alliance (SEA) announced that W Machine Works, Inc, located in San Fernando, CA, has achieved SEA Stage One Certification.
W Machine Works is a SDB and AS9100 certified CNC contract manufacturer in Southern California. The company use first-rate multi-axis, multi-spindle high-speed CNC machinery. Cellular manufacturing, horizontal milling, multiple pallet changers and bar load/bar feed technology is utilized for unmanned machining and quick turnaround.
“SEA certification not only validates the maturity of our processes but has lead to a marked improvement in our work-force development.” says Marzel Neckien, president of W Machine. “We believe this certification is equal in importance to our AS9100 certification. Quality and process improvement are a must in order to survive the increasing cost pressures in the A&D industries.” says Neckien, the current Chair of SEA’s Supplier Advisory Council.
SEA is an aerospace and defense alliance led by sub-tier suppliers committed to accelerating supply chain performance. SEA provides a proven turnkey system for supplier development targeted to mid-tier aerospace and defense customers and provides an industry voice for suppliers on issues affecting supply chain performance. SEA also provides a platform for supplier visibility, performance improvement and collaboration.
Virtually all major prime and tier-one contractors who founded SEA, helped to develop the SEA Certification as the preferred approach to continuous improvement and process management.
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”Heimatec Inc. Opens U.S. Office
Heimatec Inc., has established a U.S. office to serve the needs of the metalworking industry in the U.S.A., Canada and Mexico. Recognized globally for its high precision and long-lasting tools, heimatec opened the doors of its suburban Chicago office on March 1, 2010.
Together with heimatec GmbH Germany, heimatec Inc. USA offers live and static tooling for CNC lathes, right angle heads for CNC machining centers, heimatec’s quick-change system (easy-quick HT), multi-spindle drilling heads and special tools.
“Strategically located in the central United States, heimatec is perfectly positioned to respond to the growing North American demand for heimatec quality products,” stated Preben Hansen, president, heimatec Inc. “We are fully committed and prepared to serve and support the North American market.”
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Jack M. Rider of Manufacturing Engineering Magazine Retires
Jack M. Rider the long time west coast sales rep for Manufacturing Engineering magazine recently retired. Mr. Rider was a true professional and was the model of what a salesman and competitor should be.
Jack started his career in the machine tool industry being a rep for the now out of business magazines Tooling & Production and Metalfax. At the time he also had his own very successful magazines for the oil industry.
Jack was working on a part time basis with CNC WEST when the opportunity to get the full time job at Manufacturing Engineering happened. Jack accepted the full time position and helped M E become a force in the industry for national magazines.
He will close down his office in Brea, California and still be in the publishing business by helping his church with their newsletter. The new amount of spare time will let Jack spend more time with his children and grandchildren.
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Welltech Machinery Names CNC Indexing Exclusive U.S. Importer
Welltech Machinery Company, producer of disk type oil skimmers, has named CNC Indexing & Feeding Technologies exclusive U.S. importer for their products.
Disk oil skimmers can reduce coolant costs and skimmed waste oil can be recycled for additional savings.
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Industry’s Largest OEMs Cooperate to Create imX, An Immersive, Interactive, Experiential Event
Some of the biggest names in the industry are working together to create a new type of event designed to revitalize U.S. manufacturing. Scheduled for Sept. 12-14, 2011 in Las Vegas, the event will combine the best features of a corporate open house, customer training seminars, client appreciation programs and new product launch events.
The seeds of imX were formed more than two years ago, when CEOs from some leading machine tool manufacturers began looking for new ways to engage and educate their customers. These CEOs asked the American Machine Tool Distributors’ Association to help create a new kind of event that would bring manufacturers together with decision-making buyers in meaningful and informative ways that would help customers find the best solutions for their manufacturing needs.
Since then, top executives from Mori Seiki, Doosan, Fanuc CNC America, MAG, Makino, Methods Machine Tools, Okuma America and Sandvik Coromant have been meeting with the two industry associations, conducting extensive research into alternative ideas and working together to create a new business model for industry events.
The result is imX. Competing supliers with similar product lines will be located near each other, so that attendees can easily compare all the options available to meet their needs. Product and technology demos, learning labs and other interactive activities will occur on the show floor within the Experience areas, facilitating productive, peer-to-peer knowledge exchange and networking.
“Traditional tradeshows, where booth locations are chosen by the exhibiting company, require the buyer to focus on one product or one manufacturer at a time, delivering information in a piecemeal format. The attendee has to wander from one end of the show to the other to determine which products would work into a solution for his needs,” says Larry Schwartz, president and COO, Okuma America. “We envision that imX, which will group OEMs and their partners, will allow decision makers to see their options in one area, make price and value comparisons and, ultimately, make better decisions.”
ImX will have a strong focus on education. Learning labs — located right on the show floor — have been designed to allow attendees to increase their knowledge through practical, hands-on demonstrations, see new and existing manufacturing technologies, and hear case studies presented by suppliers and customers who have already applied those manufacturing technology solutions.
“I expect imX to be an industry-changing event,” said Don Lane, CEO, Makino. “It is a fresh, new approach, attractive to the host companies as well as customers.”
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Blum Names Sales Manager for Western Region
Blum LMT, Inc. has announced Adam Goyer as the new west coast regional sales manager. Goyer will be the main contact for all West Coast customers and will work alongside Marty Caranchini, Blum’s service representative and experienced systems integrator for the area.
Adam’s experience in manufacturing and knowledge of various machine tools dates back to his youth, growing up with continuous exposure to his family’s integration and machine tool repair business.
“The family business has instilled in me an understanding for how critical a manufacturing base is here in this country,” Adam says. “Anything I can do to help your shop, factory, cell, or process run smoother, faster, with more accuracy, precision, or uptime is right up my alley.”
Before joining Blum, Mr. Goyer worked in sales at a fortune 500 company, promoting 3D scanning equipment for reverse engineering and rapid prototyping.
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Okuma & Gosiger Named Supplier of the Year by National Association for the Employment of People Who are Blind
The National Association for the Employment of People who are Blind (NAEPB) has named Okuma America Corporation and Gosiger, Inc. as their Supplier of the Year. Okuma and Gosiger were nominated by The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. in recognition of their outstanding efforts to provide accessible CNC machines as well as training for blind operators. The award is presented annually to a supplier that has provided quality products or services to agencies supporting and employing blind individuals, while meeting stringent customer demands.
Okuma, through distributor Gosiger, Inc. provides Seattle Lighthouse with CNC machining centers. These machining centers utilize The Intelligent Numeric Control (THINC), a Windows™-based, open architecture control, equipped with a specially designed API that allows the use of JAWS screen-reading software. This software provides voice commands from the machine tool, allowing blind operators to program, set-up, run and changeover the machines.
Seattle Lighthouse utilizes Okuma vertical machining centers and a horizontal machining center with a Fastems pallet system to provide parts for The Boeing Company and other customers. Operator Loren Schleppy states that the Okuma machines “have opened the door for the blind community,” as he refers to the increased accessibility to the machines.
In addition to machine tools, Seattle Lighthouse purchased a control simulator from Gosiger and Okuma. Machine Shop Supervisor, Tom McCrary wrote a tutorial to run on the simulator, allowing operators to train to run the machines without having to use production time to do so.
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Nikon Metrology and Verisurf Team up
Nikon Metrology and Verisurf Software have joined forces to make it possible for manufacturers to drive all Nikon Metrology portable metrology devices from Verisurf’s common software platform. Supported Nikon Metrology devices include the Laser Radar, K-Series optical CMMs configured with scanners and probes, MCA II articulated arm configured with scanners and probes, and the iGPS.
“Verisurf is proud to partner with Nikon Metrology and offer engineers a major breakthrough in measurement and inspection,” said Ernie Husted, president of Verisurf. “Having advanced inspection software that can be used with all of their metrology devices will dramatically increase efficiency. Manufacturers will save countless hours otherwise spent learning and using multiple software interfaces, while significantly reducing software maintenance and technical support costs.”
Verisurf’s new X platform is the latest release of its popular computer-aided inspection and reverse engineering software. The X platform gives engineers unprecedented value with new device interfaces, improved inspection guidance functionality and feature extraction for reverse engineering. An updated VDI has added many new non-contact measurement and automation controls for the Nikon Metrology Laser Radar, enabling this sophisticated metrology device to perform at its highest level.
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EDM Wire-Cut Northwest
A local manufacturing company at the forefront of Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) technology for over 30 years was recently purchased by Tolt Machine Works and will celebrate its re-opening at the new production facility 20 miles east of Seattle. Previously based in Kent, EDM Wire-Cut Northwest moves into Tolt Machine Works 30,000-square-foot industrial complex in Carnation, WA and represents the first of several new machining operations planned to open at the complex over the next two years.
Tolt Machine Works is a full service machine job shop specializing in large machining and micromachining that will be fully operational in late fall 2010. Upon completion, Tolt Machine Works capabilities will include; large 5-axis machining, large metrology, laser micromachining and ebeam welding, in addition to its new EDM division.
EDM Wire-Cut Northwest was founded in 1980 by Horst Binde, a well-regarded pioneer in the emerging field of wire EDM machining.
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Methods Machine Tools Appoints Paul Hurtig as Feeler Product Manager
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., a leading supplier of innovative precision machine tools, has appointed Mr. Paul Hurtig as Feeler product manager at Methods.
“We’re pleased to have Paul in this new position,” comments Mr. Bryon Deysher, president and CEO of Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “His impressive Methods’ track record and unique mix of experience in various positions including machine tool product development, sales support, service and international logistics make him the ideal candidate for the new Feeler role. He will be instrumental in launching the new Methods-Feeler line.”
Mr. Hurtig has been a Methods’ employee for 29 years and has held various managerial positions. His roles have been in service, product support, technical sales support, and most recently, vice president of operations.
Methods recently announced they are the exclusive importer of Fair Friend Group’s (FFG) Feeler line of machine tools throughout North America.
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BIG Kaiser Introduces New Facility and Resources at Grand Opening
BIG Kaiser Precision Tooling welcomed customers and partners to its new headquarters Grand Opening on April 29-30. The event was an opportunity for visitors to see the elevated level of expertise and dedicated resources available to support the extensive line of BIG Kaiser products.
The two-day event showcased the new 33,000 square-foot facility located in Hoffman Estates, IL. Highlights included a 5,000 square-foot product showroom, high-tech training and presentation room, and an in-house repair center.
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Ganesh Grows Again Adds More Showroom
Ganesh Machinery was founded in 1985 as a machine tool distributor selling manual lathes and milling machines from a 1200 sq. ft. facility in Chatsworth. The following year Ganesh started doing CNC retrofits of knee mills and added Teach-Lathes to their product line-up. By providing superior customer satisfaction and customized manufacturing solutions with their full line of manual and CNC lathes and milling machines, Ganesh has been able to grow their business into a countrywide provider of sophisticated machine tools.
Business growth has necessitated adding an additional 7000 sq. ft. showroom just to house their extensive manual machine tool line. Ganesh now markets a full line of machine tools from their expanded 22,000 sq. ft. facilities, with headquarters in Chatsworth.
Now celebrating their 25th Anniversary, Ganesh has introduced the new 8-axis Cyclone TTMY-52 CNC lathe for complex 2” diameter bar work that will be displayed at their open house on July 20th.
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Methods Machine Tools, Inc. Names Bob Russo as National Sales Manager for the New Tooling and Accessories Group.
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has selected Mr. Bob Russo for the position of national sales manager for its new Tooling and Accessories Group.
“We’re pleased to have Bob on board,” said Byron Deysher, president and CEO of Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “He brings over 35 years of experience in the tooling and accessories business and will be instrumental in selecting tooling and accessory product offerings with the quality and performance customers expect from Methods.”
The newly established Methods Tooling and Accessories Group was organized to provide a single source option for companies seeking to combine their machine tool purchase with the finest the world has to offer in precision tooling and accessories. The Methods Tooling and Accessories Group also offers current customers decades of experience in tooling and accessories selection support.
Prior to joining Methods, Mr. Russo spent 25 years as the northeast sales Manager for Command Tooling Systems.
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Advanced Measurement Labs. Inc. Acheives AS 9100 Rev. B Certification
Advanced Measurement Labs. inc, Sylmar, California. a provider of dimensional inspection services of 18 years has successfully completed a stringent quality audit conducted by ISA Registrars to become accredited with AS 9100 Rev. B certification. This is in addition to the ISO 9001:2008 certifications the company already had. AML is ITAR compliant.
Advanced Measurement Labs caters to: aerospace, military, commercial, electronics, medical and automotive industries from their new location at 15840 West Monte St., Ste. B 109,
Sylmar, CA 91342.
Advanced Measurement Labs also serves as an extension of your in-house inspection department; AML performs dimensional inspection with 3D CAD models and conventional drawings to customer specifications using state of the art, contact and non-contact measuring systems.
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Hardinge Announces Acquisition of Jones & Shipman
Hardinge Inc., announced recently that they acquired the assets of Jones & Shipman, a UK based manufacturer of grinding and super-abrasive machines and machining systems.
Jones & Shipman is located in Leicester, UK and distributes a range of high-quality grinding (surface, creep feed and cylindrical) machines used by a diverse range of industries The Jones & Shipman business has operated continuously in the UK, under various owners, since 1899.
“This transaction is a solid strategic fit for Hardinge, adding valuable product lines, as well as the strong Jones & Shipman brand name, to our grinding portfolio,” says Rick Simons, president and CEO. “Along with expanding our European-based grinding business, Jones & Shipman products will help us expand our US and Asian market presence” he continues.
Jones & Shipman has become part of the company’s Kellenberger grinding organization and will continue operations at the current Leicester location.
Sales of Jones & Shipman products in the US will be handled by the current Hardinge Inc. technical grinding sales team along with the existing Jones & Shipman technical grinding sales team.
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Partners In THINC Welcomes Mastercam as a New Partner
Okuma America Corporation announced that CNC Software/Mastercam, has joined Partners in THINC and is the first CAD/CAM supplier to become a member.
Mastercam offers solutions for designers and NC programmers in a spectrum of industries, including milling, turning, wire EDM, router programming, plasma cutting, lasers, and 3D design and drafting. CNC Software’s customers range from one-person job shops to Fortune 100 manufacturers. The same software that is utilized by corporations such as Boeing, IBM, and Sikorsky is still affordable enough for the small job shop. Mastercam also makes its software available to educational institutions at discounts to ensure a new generation of trained metal and woodworking personnel is available.
“Partners in THINC offers us the chance to work with some of the top people and companies in the industry,” says CNC Software marketing manager Ben Mund. “Partners in THINC exists to help further the cause of manufacturing, and we’re excited to see what new ideas and solutions we can create together.”
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Doosan Celebrates 30 Years In North America
Thirty years ago, Doosan Infracore (originally Daewoo) opened its doors in North America for the distribution, sales and service of a family of powerful, high-horsepower machine tools, known then and now as Puma turning centers.
In its first year, the company offered the DSN20, a two axis NC lathe with a top-of-the-line Fanuc 6T controller. Features included a powerful 20-hp, 2000-rpm spindle drive, quick-change aloris tool posts, and rapid traverse that topped out at 400 ipm.
Much has changed during the past three decades. The name changed in 2005 from Daewoo to Doosan Infracore. The line of machines grew from a single NC lathe to now more than 60 horizontal turning centers and mill-turns, 35 vertical and horizontal machining centers, plus boring mills and vertical turning centers. The sales-service network now numbers more than 50 distributors located throughout North, Central and South American and, Doosan, itself, has become one of the Western Hemisphere’s three largest machine tool suppliers.
Looking ahead, Doosan will exhibit a broad selection of advanced turning and machining centers at booth #8100 in the front row booth of IMTS 2010.
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Koma Precision Welcomes New Marketing Manager
Koma Precision, Inc. introduces Mary P. Buffum as the company’s marketing manager. Buffum will be responsible for marketing team leadership and internet management, as well as general marketing management responsibilities.
She joins the Koma Precision, Inc. team from Governors America Corporation located in Agawam, MA. Governors America Corp. (GAC) is a leading provider of engine governing and system controls to a worldwide list of equipment manufacturers and power providers. It was there that Buffum served as mar Glendale Community College’s Professional Development Center.
Joins Haas HTEC
The Professional Development Center of Glendale Community College has partnered with Haas Technical Automation and joined the tool builder’s Haas Technical Education Center. HTEC is a global network that provides advanced CNC education for learning institutions and Haas factory outlets.
The partnership with HTEC will expand CNC training programs at the Professional Development Center for California manufacturers. For twenty-five years, PDC has provided customized state-funded training programs for manufacturers at their Montrose, California, training facility and at company worksites. PDC specializes in hands-on CNC programming, setup, and operation training utilizing fully-tooled CNC machinery. Their inspection lab is equipped with a Haas Mini Mill, SL10 turning center, and a fully automated Brown & Sharpe CMM. The PDC also offers related CAD/CAM training using MasterCAM, SolidWorks, and CATIA V5 from entry level to advanced multi-axis application.
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Methods Named Exclusive North American Importer of Feeler Machine Tools
Methods Machine Tools, Inc. announced in April, that they are the exclusive importer of Fair Friend Group’s (FFG) Feeler line of machine tools throughout North America. FFG (Taipei, Taiwan) is one of the largest machine tool manufacturers in the world. Methods has simultaneously introduced a totally new range of Feeler machines that feature extensive engineering by Methods.. The full range of machines encompasses vertical machining centers, turning centers, bridge mills and boring mills.
The Methods-Feeler line of machine tools will be available at Methods Technology Centers and at Methods distributors located across the U.S., in addition to Methods dealers in Canada and Mexico.
“We are very pleased to have the Feeler product line. This new lineup of machine tools is the result of our Methods engineering group working very closely with FFG/Feeler to meet the needs of the U.S. customer” says Bryon Deysher, president and CEO of Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “Feeler will enable us to offer North American manufacturers a wider selection of precision machining solutions and will complement our existing line of high-performance milling, turning, drilling/tapping and EDM systems very well.”
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Carl Zeiss Holds Successful Tech Center Grand Opening Event
Carl Zeiss Industrial Metrology celebrated the official grand opening of the West Coast Tech Center (WCTC) in Irvine, California on April 6 and April 7. Set up as a production inspection facility with metrology systems running in a process support role, the two-day metrology event offered visitors a unique experience.
Part measurement on Zeiss systems was displayed in a real-time production environment, and they demonstrated high-throughput palletizing applications, and illustrated in-depth investigative metrology work. Product demos, tours and catered food and refreshments were continuous throughout the two-day grand opening.
“The goal in opening this 3800 square-foot facility in Irvine, California is to get closer to our customers in this region while providing local support in growing markets,” says Drew Shemenski, manager of the West coast tech center. “Not only does this facility allow us to offer traditional hardware support, but it can also help us focus on a higher level connecting machines together through software to manage inspection requirements and data.”
There is a wide range of metrology technology on hand at the Irvine center: optical, touch scanning, CT x-ray, and measuring software. The METROTOM 800 is an x-ray based computed tomography system specifically designed for 3D metrology of small, complex, low-density parts made of plastic, composite materials or ceramic. The O-INSPECT is a multi-sensor system that features both tactile and optical scanning and provides tremendous flexibility for measuring parts that approach the micro range of size.
They have a variety of surface form & geometry systems to really round out their measuring and demonstration capabilities. In addition they also offer in-house measuring services, software training and application support.
The location and contact information for the new Tech Center is:
18 Goodyear, Suite 105
Irvine, California 92618
Matthias Zipperer: Vice President of Finance & Treasurer, John Grzybowski: National Sales Manager, Greg Lee: President, Andrew Sisler: Vice President of Sales for North America, Drew Shemenski: Manager—West Coast Tech Center, Rich Knebel: Vice President of Technical Sales and Software Engineering (left to right).
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Smarter Manager and KXLY TV Join Forces
SME Software, Inc., producers of Smarter Manager manufacturing management software, is excited to announce a partnership with Spokane WA. ABC affiliate, KXLY ABC 4 HD, as sponsor of their “Manufacturing Monday” broadcast.
Every Monday morning during Good Morning, Northwest and Good Morning, America, Mark Peterson will be broadcasting from different manufacturing facilities in the eastern Washington and northern Idaho area. Besides broadcasting the local weather forecast, he will also be sharing with viewers about the basic processes that occur in each manufacturing shop.
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Harrison Lathes Names MSC Industrial Exclusive Distributor
MSC Industrial Supply has been granted the exclusive distribution rights for the Harrison precision conventional lathe line for the USA and Mexico from the Clausing Industrial 600 Group.
Harrison Lathes, founded in 1900, has manufactured more than 140,000 lathes sold throughout the world. Harrison is known for precision turning accuracy, strength, long-term reliability and universal serviceability. Lathes range from 13” to 21”swing and 25” to 120” centers in gear head and infinitely variable drive machines with constant surface feed.
MSC Industrial Supply brings nearly 70 years of industrial metalworking solutions and quality service to their customers.
MSC distributes approximately 600,000 industrial products that are featured in the Big Book through 4 strategically located fulfillment distribution centers. MSC employs more than 900 outside sales professionals in 97 branch offices with 4000 associates.
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Methods Machine Tools Appoints Phil Janiszewski As Marketing Manager
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has appointed Phil Janiszewski as marketing manager.
“We’re pleased to have Phil on board,” commented Jamie Hanson, director of corporate development at Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “He brings more than thirty years of experience in the manufacturing, machine tool and tool accessories business and will be a valuable addition to our team.”
Prior to joining Methods, Janiszewski spent seven years as marketing manager at Koma Precision, Inc., a supplier of rotary tables, angle heads, and live tooling. In his role there, Janiszewski managed all areas of marketing from database design, advertising, brochure / catalog design, to web site design and tradeshow layout / coordination. Before his marketing career, Janiszewski worked in outside sales for fabrication and machining services, metal stamping and injection molding equipment, EDM machinery, and high-speed vertical machining centers.
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Trio Tool & Die Company Receives Supplier Excellence Award from Raytheon Space And Airborne Systems
Raytheon Company presented supplier excellence awards to thirty companies for their exceptional performance in supporting the company’s Space and Airborne Systems (SAS) business during 2008.
The winning suppliers represent less than one percent of SAS’ supply base. They were chosen for meeting demanding standards in the areas of quality and delivery performance, customer satisfaction, and total business and financial health. Evaluations of their performance by the Raytheon buyers and material program managers who deal with them every day were also part of the selection process. Awards were presented at the 3-, 4- and 5-Star level, and Trio Tool & Die Company, Inc. received a 3-Star award.
Hawthorne, CA. based Trio Tool & Die Company is a leading provider of manufacturing services, specializing in prototype machining, short-run production parts, and mechanical assemblies.
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GF AgieCharmilles Continues Sponsorship of NTMA/NIMS National Apprentice Competition
GF AgieCharmilles has announced its continued sponsorship of the NTMA/NIMS National Apprentice Competition. The 38th annual contest will be hosted by the NTMA Indianapolis Chapter at Ivy Tech State College in Indianapolis, Indiana from June 10 – 12.
“Manufacturing is the key ingredient to America’s economic recovery,” says Glynn Fletcher, president of GF AgieCharmilles. “The participants in the 2010 NTMA/NIMS National Apprentice Competition will help build the foundations for the country’s future manufacturing success, and GF AgieCharmilles is proud to play an role in their development.”
This is the 19th consecutive year that GF AgieCharmilles has provided the event’s grand prize, which includes up to a $100,000 discount on GF AgieCharmilles EDMs, high speed and high performance milling machine.
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Methods Machine Tools Names Jochen Reichert As New Western Regional Technical Sales Manager
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has selected Jochen Reichert for the position of western regional technical sales manager. He will cover the United States west of the Mississippi River, Mexico and Costa Rica.
“Jochen brings a unique skill set to Methods,” commented Dave Lucius, vp sales at Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “Having been an applications manager specializing in five axis in CNC machining, in addition to owning his own machine shop, he has an in-depth understanding of the manufacturing process for many different applications and can help customers streamline their processes.”
Prior to joining Methods, Reichert spent eight years as applications manager at the North American headquarters for the German-based 5-axis CNC-operated machine tool builder Hermle Machine Company LLC. There he managed all applications projects including turnkeys, time studies, test cuts and training. Reichert specialized in improving manufacturing processes for a variety of turbo machinery products, including impellers, turbines and blisks. Before that, Reichert operated his own machine shop in Alberta, Canada.
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Combines Nikon Industrial Instruments with Former Metris to Create Nikon Metrology, Inc.
Nikon announced that it has formed Nikon Metrology, Inc., a new company that combines Nikon Instruments Inc.’s industrial instruments business with the former Metris business, acquired by Nikon Corp. in 2009. Nikon Metrology, Inc., headquartered in Brighton, Mich., will focus specifically on the industrial and manufacturing business markets for precision measuring and industrial microscopy.
“The formation of Nikon Metrology, Inc. strengthens Nikon’s commitment to the industrial marketplace and offers a renewed focus on the company’s industrial business,” says Myles Richard, managing director, Nikon Metrology, Inc. “This new company brings greater product offerings to the market while continuing Nikon’s tradition of top-quality customer service.”
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Partners In THINC Welcomes Kuka Robotics As a New Partner
Okuma America Corporation announce that Kuka Robotics, a leading supplier of industrial robots, has joined Partners in THINC
The company’s core competencies include the development, production and sales of industrial robots, controllers, software, linear units and omniMoves™.Kuka robots are utilized in a diverse range of industries including appliance, automotive, aerospace, consumer goods, logistics, food, pharmaceutical, medical, foundry and plastics industries.
As a member of Partners in THINC, Kuka Robotics’ mission is helping companies develop and implement ideas–optimizing their production to be quicker, more efficient and more accurate. In conjunction with the Kuka System Partner Network and Kuka’s wide range of industrial robots spanning payloads from 5 kg to 1300 kg, any integrated solution or application conceivable is possible. All Kuka Robots utilize a common PC-based control platform, enabling them to easily connect to and communicate with the Okuma THINC control.
Kuka Robotics products can be seen and demonstrated at the Partners in THINC facility in Charlotte, NC.
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New CompanyDMG And Mori Seiki Announce Combining Of US Operations
DMG and Mori Seiki, two leading machine tool manufacturers, will join forces in the United States. Mori Seiki Co., Ltd. has agreed with the German machine tool manufacturer, Gildemeister Aktiengesellschaft (DMG), to assume all sales and service-related activities in the United States starting April 1, 2010.
The new DMG/Mori Seiki USA will assume responsibility for all product support, regardless of whether the product is manufactured by DMG or Mori Seiki. Expanded service will be available to DMG users as existing product knowledge and expertise is transferred to Mori Seiki and its nationwide distributor network. DMG / Mori Seiki will also provide after-sales service, spare parts supply, training and engineering support.
Dr. Rüdiger Kapitza, chairman of the executive board of DMG, asserts that the timing for a strategic partnership between DMG and Mori Seiki is now.
“Our joint innovative customer focus allows us to approach the challenges posed by the international economic crisis in a more targeted manner and to overcome them,” he says.
Advantages of the partnership include consolidation of parts inventory (located in Dallas), and an overall increased level of customer service for users of both Mori Seiki and DMG machines. The companies’ complementary resources will create an even stronger organization with a vast product line.
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Doosan Sees New Opportunities in Recovering Economy
The tough economic conditions of the past few years are coming to an end, and it’s time for machine tool builders and their distributors to get back to work with new products, new offerings, and new directions.
That was the message communicated by Doosan at its 16th annual distributor meeting held March 4-7 in Orlando, FL. Representatives from more than 50 distributor organizations located throughout North, Central and South America participated as Doosan developed aggressive programs intended to help customers take advantage of emerging growth opportunities.
Guest speaker Peter Borden, president of the American MachineTool Distributors Association, echoed Doosan’s optimism. His presentation demonstrated America’s dominance in world economics, and reaffirmed the long awaited recovery that’s occurring in the manufacturing segment.
New machines with advanced features were previewed, many of which will be introduced during 2010. Already available is the new Lynx 300, suitable for 3” bar stock, to fill a vital niche in the Lynx family of economical turning centers. Other turning centers and machining centers are targeted for introduction during late Summer and early Autumn.
Although the meeting’s emphasis was the future, there was time also to celebrate the past. Hales Machinery (Minneapolis, MN) received Doosan Infracore Distributor of the Year award for Outstanding Sales Achievement in 2009, based on market share and machine tool unit sales. The award was presented by JY Lee (Doosan Infracore President, CEO, and DIA), Jim Shiner (General Manager), and Tom Klukow (Regional Sales Manager). Tim Hales accepted the award for Hales Machinery (Minneapolis, MN).
Other distributors were recognized for their achievements including Jim Selway of CNC Solutions (Milpitas, CA) Western Region.
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Solar Module Maker to Set up Headquarters at McClellan Park
N Solar Inc., a newly incorporated U.S. company and a subsidiary of a Seoul, Korea-based information technology company, has signed a lease for 128,000 square feet at McClellan Business Park, Sacramento, Ca.
N Solar is expected to ultimately bring 150 new jobs to the Sacramento region. N Solar is set to begin operations in September. It was not immediately clear how big the staff will be to start, and when N Solar would ramp up to 150 employees.
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Toyota's Passin to Lead Tesla Manufacturing
Electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc. said that former Toyota executive Gilbert Passin will lead its vehicle manufacturing operations.
California based Tesla said Passin has 23 years of international automotive experience and has led some of the most high-profile divisions at Toyota, Volvo, Mack and projects at Renault across North America and Europe.
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Opus West Suit Says Parent Company ‘Siphoned’ $150M
The debtors in possession of Opus West Corp.’s assets filed a suit against Minnetonka-based Opus Corp. and several related entities, including the Opus Foundation.
Phoenix-based Opus West, which was one of five regional operating Opus companies, claims Opus Corp. used “systematic manipulation and abuse” for the purpose of evading legitimate contracts and debts. It seeks an unspecified amount of money for damages.
During the three years leading up to the filing of Opus West’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the suit claims, Opus’ parent company “siphoned” almost $150 million of Opus West’s earnings.
That action left the subsidiary undercapitalized, inadequately financed and unable to meet its ordinary obligations as a separate business unit, according to the suit.
Since last year, when three of Opus’ regional units filed for bankruptcy, the parent company has tried to distance itself from what it described as independent operating companies.
Opus West disputes that, however, saying the parent “exercised dominant control” over the years and operated Opus West as “an insufficiently capitalized facade for Opus Parent’s individual dealings.”
For example, the suit claims, the parent company had centralized accounting functions and required regular financial reporting of all its dealings. It also supervised Opus West through its common board members.
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Tesla Files to go Public for $100M in financing
Electric car manufacturer Tesla Motors Inc. said it plans to sell stock to the public.
The company, based in Northern Calif., did not disclose in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission specifically how much it plans to raise though it listed $100 million as a placeholder figure. The actual amount it raises could be higher.
Tesla also did not give a date for when it plans to launch the IPO, nor did it say how many shares it would sell or at what price.
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Amonix Inc. Has Announced it Will Build Two Solar
Manufacturing Plants, One in Arizona and One in Nevada.
The Arizona facility will bring 167 jobs to the state.
Exact locations have not yet been chosen for the California-based company’s projects, but they were part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s tax credit program announced.
Amonix is slated to receive $9.5 million for the two projects through the federal tax credit, which pays up to 30 percent of a facility’s construction. The DOE release shows Amonix’s Phoenix facility listed to receive about $3.6 million.
Amonix’s technology is concentrated photovoltaic power systems that increase the efficiency of PV cells by concentrating sunlight on them.
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Suntech Plant Heads to GoodYear, AZ With 75 Jobs
Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. has leased a manufacturing facility in Goodyear, and will bring along about 75 jobs to start. Production of solar panels could begin by the fall.
The company made the announcement at the Arizona Solar Manufacturing Symposium, ending several months of speculation about where its first U.S. manufacturing facility would be based.
The Goodyear location, on Cotton Lane just north of Maricopa County Route 85, offers an existing building and good routes to California, Suntech’s largest sales market, said Steven Chan, the company’s chief strategy officer. Suntech’s relationship with Arizona State University was a factor in the decision, he said.
“This site really stood out because it was a good locale for logistics and it would allow us to expand very rapidly,” he said.
Suntech still could receive $2.1 million in federal tax credits from the U.S. Department of Education, however the application had listed the manufacturing site in Tempe. Chan and other economic development officials said they didn’t believe the choice of Goodyear would hinder the application. DOE officials could not be reached as of press time, but said previously a move could void the credits.
The company plans to invest between $10 million and $15 million in developing the 194,000-square-foot space as a plant for producing 30 megawatts of solar panels annually. That level of production does not qualify for the state’s tax credit, which requires an investment of $25 million and specific job numbers.
The company, however, could expand the facility to a capacity of more than 120 megawatts and earn the tax credits at a later date.
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African Airline Orders 10 More Renton Jets
Boeing and Ethiopian Airlines announced Friday an order for 10 next-generation 737-800s. At list prices, the order is worth more than $700 million. Ethiopian is one of Boeing’s better customers, having flown every modern Boeing jet except the 747. The 737 is assembled in Renton, Washington.
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Arizona Solar Industry Lands Parts Supplier
The Arizona solar industry got another boost with the planned opening of a Tower Automotive facility in the Valley to help supply one of the local solar providers with parts.
The project will bring about 200 jobs to the Valley. The Livonia, Mich.-based manufacturer is still looking at potential sites.
Tower would be doing work for Stirling Energy Systems. That Scottsdale-based company uses a concentrated solar dish technology called SunCatcher, which leans heavily on the auto industry for its technology — including within the engine that produces the electricity.
“Tower Automotive is excited to bring our technology and expertise to the Southwestern United States through the establishment of manufacturing operations in the metro Phoenix area,” Bill Pumphrey, Tower’s president of the Americas, said in a prepared statement. “Through the support of our customer, Stirling Energy Systems, and the state of Arizona, both of which made this possible, we are confident that this is the start of exciting growth opportunities for our company, our colleagues and the communities we support.”
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India Interested in Buying 10 Boeing C-17s
The Indian government has submitted a letter of request to the U.S. government expressing interest in ordering up to 10 Boeing C-17 military transport aircraft, The Boeing Co. said.
If India carries through with its interest in the planes, it would join a growing parade of foreign customers for the four-engine, high-wing transport.
The United Arab Emirates just this week ordered six of the California-built airlifters. Britain, Australia, Qatar and a consortium of European nations have C-17s in their inventories.
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Aerojet to Supply Warheads for Raytheon
Aerojet was selected as the supplier of the MK 125 warhead for Raytheon Missile Systems, with delivery of the system set to begin this year.
Aerojet is a subsidiary of Rancho Cordova, CA. -based GenCorp.
The missile system provides long-range safety for Navy ships from airborne enemies.
The manufacturing of this component will be at Aerojet’s assembly plant in Camden, Ark.
The MK 125 warhead is the attack component of the SM-2 and SM-6 missile systems.
“The competitive selection of Aerojet to provide this critical warhead is a clear indication that our efforts to cut costs have been effective, while continuing to provide high-quality and on-schedule deliveries. The MK 125 consolidates our position as Raytheon and the U. S. Navy’s major energetic systems provider for the SM-2 and SM-6 missiles, complementing our MK 104 and MK 72 propulsion programs,” said John Myers, vice president of tactical programs, in a prepared statement.
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Amkor Technology Raises Outlook
Amkor Technology Inc., seeing the effects of a rising semiconductor market, has announced higher-than-expected revenue in the fourth quarter.
Chandler-based Amkor expects its sales to go up about 6 percent in the quarter over 2008 levels, increasing in its guidance predicting flat revenue, said Ken Joyce, the company’s president and CEO.
Semiconductor companies experienced better news in the second half of 2009 after a dismal start to the year. Some consumer demand has returned, and manufacturers are seeing revenues starting to increase after tailing off at the end of 2008.
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All Nippon Airways to Order 10 Boeing jets
Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA) is ordering 10 jets from aircraft giant Boeing Co., the two companies announced.The order includes five 777-200ER and five 767-300ER jetliners. The order is valued at approximately $2 billion at list prices.
All Nippon uses aircraft from both Chicago-based Boeing and its European rival, Airbus.
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Boeing Sells Two More Next-Gen 737s
Panama's flagship Copa Airlines ordered two more Boeing next-generation 737-800s, the two companies said in a press release.The new orders bring to 15 the number of Boeing 737-800s the airline has ordered this year. The order is valued at $152 million at list prices.
Copa has 29 next-generation 737s remaining to be delivered (including the new order).
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ON Semiconductor Buying California Micro Devices
Milpitas, Calif. based Chip maker ON Semiconductor Corp. said it agreed to buy California Micro Devices Corp. for $4.70 per share.
ON Semiconductor said the deal has an equity value $108 million based on common shares outstanding and issued. Based on California Micro's 22.8 million outstanding shares as of Oct. 30, the deal is worth $107.3 million.
Both boards of directors have approved the deal. ON said the acquisition will strengthen its product offerings in markets such as wireless, computing and consumer electronics.
The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter.
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Kamsco West Selected by Boeing on Tanker Project.
Lamsco West, Inc. announced it has been selected by The Boeing Company to support its nationwide team to compete for the U.S. Air Force's new fleet of aerial refueling tankers. Based in Santa Clarita, Ca.
Lamsco West, Inc. has been supplying engineered details, standards, laminated sheet and aerospace parts categorized as shims, stampings and flat pattern parts to Boeing for over 40 years.
By joining with Boeing to become part of the United States Tanker team, Lamsco West, Inc. will become eligible to increase orders if Boeing is awarded the U.S. Air Force tanker contract in mid-2010.
Lamsco West, Inc. currently makes engineered details, standards, and laminated sheet for Boeing's 737, 747, 757, 767, 777 and 787 programs.
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Over 1,400 Manufacturers Attend Mazak’s R3 Event
Mazak recently announced that over 1,400 manufacturers from North and Central America attended its “Your Manufacturing Future: Refocus, Rediscover and Reinvent” event, which took place at its headquarters campus in Florence, Kentucky. Also known as ‘R3,’ the three-day event introduced new technology and provided innovative strategies to help American manufacturers achieve success.
“We really believed that the manufacturing community would respond strongly to an event focused on positioning themselves for future growth,” said Brian Papke, president, Mazak Corporation. “Our expectations for R3 were already high and we’re absolutely thrilled to have them exceeded. A lot of manufacturers are recognizing that the market has changed and evolution toward a new level of manufacturing productivity is required for continued success.”
Attendees to R3 sat in on a wide variety of seminars, covering topics including automation, MT Connect, multi-tasking, probing and advanced tooling technologies. Manufacturers of tooling, workholding and automation products partnered with Mazak to provide attendees with a comprehensive perspective on optimizing their operations.
In addition to informational seminars, attendees of the R3 event had the opportunity to witness productivity demonstrations on newly introduced machine technologies. Among the 24 featured machines were the Quick Turn Smart 200 and 350, the first machines in an affordable new series ideal for high production runs, and the VT-20. Designed in the U.S. at the Kentucky Headquarters the patent pending Mazak VT-20 represented one of the most unique machines introduced at the event.
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THINC Partners Welcome Edmunds Gages
Okuma America Corporation has announced that Edmunds Gages, a manufacturer of precision measurement tools, has joined Partners in THINC.
Edmunds Gages conceives, designs and builds a wide range of gages for dimensional measurement and more. A vertically-integrated manufacturer, providing complete gaging solutions— including tooling, fixtures, heads, readouts and masters—Edmunds Gages also offers calibration services. With a fully accredited sub-millionth gage laboratory, Edmunds Gages products are provided with traceable certifications of size to National Standards, assuring that manufactured products meet part print dimensions and design constraints.
“Partnering with Okuma and the other Partners provides us with an exciting opportunity to help manufacturers realize the full potential of modern day manufacturing,” stated Jack Gaughan, Sales Manager for Edmunds Gages. “Innovating ideas with experts from other companies, allows us to provide manufacturers with the solutions they need to remain competitive and profitable for future growth.”
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National Tooling & Machining Association Will Relocate to Ohio
The National Tooling & Machining Association (NTMA) has announced plans to relocate its national headquarters to Independence Ohio. The board of trustees approved the move in a recent conference call vote. In announcing their decision, the 2009 NTMA Executive Team said the relocation is being made to strengthen the association by reducing operating costs, allowing the association to be more accessible to members, and to increase the potential of their “One Voice” for American Manufacturing.
The NTMA has agreed to relocate to the building presently owned by the Precision Metal Forming Association (PMA) in Independence OH. The two associations will maintain their separate identities but share common staff duties. The plan is to create a new organization that will manage common staff duties such as meeting planning, customer service, accounting, clerical and others so both organizations will save on overhead.
The move was made possible when the two organizations joined forces earlier this year on their political advocacy work by creating the new “One Voice” political advocacy coalition. The NTMA executive team believes the success of the One Voice effort has shown us that the two organizations can work together on common issues. They feel that doing more work together will make each organization stronger.
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Emuge Named Exclusive North American Agent for Hohenstein Special Purpose Clamping Fixtures
Emuge Corp. announced they are the exclusive North American agent for The Hohenstein Company, one of Germany’s leading designers and producers of work-piece clamping fixtures. This arrangement will combine reliable high-quality, special purpose work piece clamping fixtures from Hohenstein with Emuge’s application expertise in demanding workholding and tooling solutions.
“By adding the specialized clamping fixtures from Hohenstein to our lines, we further demonstrate our commitment to our customers to fulfill their unique application requirements,” commented Peter Matysiak, president of Emuge Corp. “The fixtures are a natural addition, as our precision workholding department specializes in customized solutions where accuracy and repeatability play a major role.”
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Waterjet Manufacturer Jet Edge Acquires Calypso Waterjet Systems
Waterjet manufacturer Jet Edge, Inc. of St. Michael, Minn., recently announced that it has acquired Calypso Waterjet Systems of Dallas, Texas.
Founded in 1992, Calypso Waterjet Systems had been a major manufacturer of waterjet cutting systems prior to its departure from the water jet industry in early 2009. Calypso products include waterjet cutting machines, abrasive removal, closed loop water, and automatic height sensing systems; nesting software; plastic water jet cutting bricks; bulk abrasive feeder tanks; and replacement parts for waterjet intensifier pumps, cutting heads, and waterjet tables.
Jet Edge president Jude Lague said he plans to reintroduce many of Calypso’s products under Calypso’s brand names.
“Calypso waterjets provide an excellent entry-level waterjet solution for price-conscious buyers,” Lague noted. “Through our acquisition of Calypso, we will be able to make precision waterjet cutting capabilities available to a much broader range of customers in the growing entry-level market.”
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Verisurf Donates $528,000 Worth of Software to Cerritos Machine Tool Technology Program
Cerritos College Economic Development in partnership with California Manufacturing Technology Consulting (CMTC) attended the WESTEC trade show, in March 2009. Their attendance at this event resulted in a highly lucrative collaboration between Cerritos College Economic Development, their Machine Tool Technology Program, and Verisurf Software, Inc.
Verisurf Software, Inc. is a California based software development company that specializes in computer-aided inspection and manufacturing software for a variety of industries. Verisurf offered a donation of 24 seats of software (valuing a total $528,000) in exchange for Cerritos College paying to have one faculty member trained in the Verisurf software as well as produce a series of hands on training videos featuring the capabilities of the software that students can use as well as other Verisurf customers. Cerritos College instructor, Yannick Real, was selected to attend the training, create videos showing the basics of the program and some hands-on applications as well as assist with the installation process.
Cerritos College Economic Development and the Machine Tool Technology department is very excited that this collaboration will benefit their departments for years to come because their campus has been designated as the beta test site for future trainings through Verisurf. Their students will have the most up to date software and equipment because of the donations they received.
Okuma America Corporation & Hartwig, Inc. to Provide Machines to Davis Applied Technology College in Utah
Okuma America Corporation and Utah distributor Hartwig, Inc. will provide machine tool equipment to Davis Applied Technology College (DATC) for use in their Machine Tool Technology Program. The machine tool lab, soon to be known as the Okuma Institute for Technology at Davis Applied Technology College, will also serve as a showroom for Hartwig in the Rocky Mountain region, providing local manufacturers an opportunity to see, first-hand, the Okuma machines and THINC control technology.
Okuma and Hartwig are collaborating to provide DATC with a working showroom of CNC lathes, vertical machining centers, multi-tasking machines and a horizontal machining center with a Fastems flexible manufacturing system. The equipment will be used to provide students with hands-on training on state-of-the-art equipment for development of CNC machinists, programmers and quality control and inspection specialists. Additionally, local manufacturing companies will have opportunities to visit the facility and see the machines in operation.
Although machines have already been installed and training has begun, the Okuma Institute of Technology at Davis Applied Technology College will formally open on January 12. Grand Opening activities will take place January 12-14, 2010.
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Jonathan Saada & Associates Announces Expansion –Adds Complete WIDIA Product Line
Jonathan Saada & Associates, the manufacturer’s representative for WIDIA-Hanita cutting tools in Southern California, recently announcee the company is adding all WIDIA-related brands of cutting tools and related products to its product line, effective immediately. They: WIDIA-Hanita™, world-class end mills, WIDIA-Rübig™, solid-carbide drilling and reaming, WIDIA-Manchester™, grooving and cutoff expertise and value
Other products include WIDIA-Clapp/DiCo™, PCD/CBN custom metalcutting solutions, WIDIA-GTD™ (Greenfield Tap & Die), line of premium-quality taps, WIDIA-Circle™, the proven name for optimum small-bore boring, grooving, and profiling and, of course, WIDIA™, carbide tooling and a world leader in indexable milling, turning, and holemaking applications.
“We’ve been providing technical knowledge and expertise to metalworking end users and distributors for 20 years,” explains Jonathan Saada, president. “With these additions to our products and services, we now represent everything from the spindle to the job to improve a company’s bottom line.”
Along with partner David Buchberger, Saada says he plans to hire more people in the near future for additional service capacity to Southern California manufacturers.
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Delcam Establishes California Office
Delcam has established an office in California following its acquisition of the assets and goodwill of its reseller Vizion Technologies. All of the Vizion staff will become direct employees to ensure continuity of service to the many users of Delcam software in the state.
Vizion was founded in 1998 by Jerry Sanders to sell and support Delcam products in the western USA. He was joined by Sheila Cullers in May 2000 to develop further the sales in the region. The company has built up a customer base of hundreds of clients, including internationally-known names in the aerospace, mould and die, medical, dental, consumer products, athletic shoes and sports equipment industries.
Commenting on the decision to move to a direct office, Delcam Managing Director Clive Martell said, “Vizion’s staff have enjoyed considerable success in building up and supporting a large and diverse customer base for Delcam’s products. To expand the organization and achieve even more business in the state, we felt that considerable investment was needed.”
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Mazak Announces ISO 9001:2008 Certification
Mazak Corporation has announced receipt of ISO 9001:2008 certification for its manufacturing plant in Florence, Kentucky. The company’s facility previously held ISO 9001:2000 certification, which it had obtained in 2003.
The ISO 9001:2008 certification is very similar to ISO 9001:2000 certification. Several restrictions have been tightened and language has been added or changed to provide additional clarification. Mazak’s ISO 9001:2008 certification applies to its production operations, including the design and manufacture of CNC machines, spindle rebuilds and remanufacturing at its Florence, Kentucky facility.
The Mazak Florence plant produces the Nexus lines of vertical machining centers and turning centers with multi-tasking capabilities. Mazak will introduce 10 new models from this plant in the fall of 2009.
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Siemens And Fryer Machine Team Up
Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc., announced that Fryer Machine Systems, Inc. has selected the Sinumerik 840D numerical control, together with Siemens’ ShopMill and ShopTurn software packages, for its job shop milling and turning machines.
By using Siemens CNC solutions, machine tool end-users benefit from decreased machine setup time, a unified control for both milling and turning machines combined with superior performance. Flexibility and ease-of-use were key factors in the decision to select Siemens.
The Siemens solution allows end-users to achieve higher productivity through easy and intuitive features and step-by-step, on-screen programming that enable job shops to quickly respond to customer demands by reducing programming times.
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Makino Broadcasts 100th Online Seminar
Makino’s highly acclaimed online seminar series reached a new milestone on June 4, with the 100th seminar broadcast. All 100 seminars are available in Makino’s online seminar library (www.makino.com/library). These online events cover a wide variety of machining solutions, including production machining, micromachining, EDM, die mold, aerospace, and automation.
“It’s really exciting to have shared so much machining knowledge in the last three years,” said Mark Rentschler, Makino’s marketing manager. “When we first started, online video was in its infancy—no one else in manufacturing was doing anything like this, especially without charging people to view the information. We never thought we’d reach the point where we have over 10,000 views of videos that shops use to help their business.”
Makino’s online seminar series is a free service and available to all North American manufacturers. New seminars are broadcasted each month on Thursdays at 11am ET, 10am CT.
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Carl Zeiss IMT Announces Opening Of New West-Coast Tech Center
Carl Zeiss IMT has opened a new tech center in Irvine, California.
“We are dedicated to supporting the high-tech industry on the west coast, by providing customers easy access to our most modern and advanced technology,” says Andy Sisler, vp sales at Carl Zeiss IMT. “The new technical center will provide more local resources and support for this fast paced market. It’s an exciting time for us because this is a chance to be even closer to our customers, and show our commitment to customer support after the sale,” adds Sisler.
The new facility is located in a modern technology park. The new site focuses on application support, contract inspection services, software training, and demonstration of Zeiss equipment.
“Providing contract inspection services is an exciting part of what we are building here,” states Drew Shemenski, software and applications manager at Carl Zeiss IMT. “With a full suite of Metrology Systems at this facility, we have the capability to support the inspection needs of everyone from micro-molders, up through traditional CNC job shops, as well as specialists such as gear and turbine manufacturers.”
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Niigata Appoints HR Machinery In Northern California
HR Machinery has been appointed the exclusive representative of Niigata Products Group; a division of SNK America Inc. Covering the northern portion of California and Nevada, HR Machinery brings extensive experience to customers interested in Horizontal machining centers and FMS applications.
Jim Fahey, owner of HR Machinery states, “ HR is proud to be associated with a company that produces the quality and reliability that Niigata is recognized for not just in our own competitive Silicon Valley, but throughout the country. Niigata horizontal FMS’ are a mainstay of the Tier 1 vendors to the semiconductor market and like HR Machinery, focuses on customer satisfaction”.
Niigata is a Japanese based builder of both box-way and linear-rail horizontal machining centers, pallet pool and FMS cell systems. HR Machinery is a sales and service based organization offering machining, turning, and quality control solutions for the shop floor.
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BTB Transfer Acquires Ottobi Machine
BTB Transfer of Brescia, Italy has completed their acquisition of Ottobi Machine. Ottobi has been supplying the lock cylinder & key manufacturing industry with high speed production systems for more than 30 years. Their operation will be moved into the recently enlarged BTB facility.
Ottobi produces key machines for automotive, residential, padlock, and other security cylinders, including the new tamper-proof security keys with milled slots and conical hole patterns. The lock cylinder lines produce at high speeds up to 5,000 parts per hour. The new Ottobi will benefit greatly from the current BTB infrastructure of advanced technology in electrical controls and a worldwide service organization.
Gosiger Import, a division of Gosiger, Inc. is the importer and distributor for BTB and Ottobi and will introduce the Ottobi product line to the North American market. With more than 100 service techs nationally, Gosiger provides necessary support for the life of the equipment. Gosiger is actively contacting customers who can benefit through the application of Ottobi machine technologies.
In addition to the BTB product line, Gosiger also imports Euroturn multi-spindles, iFP vacuum parts washers and Nomura swiss style lathes. Gosiger has been in business since 1922 and has offices in southern and northern California and Washington.
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Dynamic International, Samsung Machine Tool Division Appoints New President
Steve Lesnewich was recently appointed as the new president of Samsung Machine Tool, a division of Dynamic International. The appointment became effective July 6, 2009. Steve is an exceptional leader who will be responsible for introducing the Samsung Machine Tool line to North America. He will use his experience to develop a cohesive, highly motivated distributor network that is an open conduit between customer, distributor, and Samsung Machine Tool.
Lesnewich comes to Samsung Machine Tool with over 30 years of experience in the machine tool industry and brings a vast spectrum of knowledge to Dynamic International. For the past 15 years, Mr. Lesnewich was at Daewoo/Doosan the Korean builder of CNC lathes and machining centers where he became president and COO. Before Daewoo, Lesnewich was the eastern regional manager for SMW Systems where he worked closely with the builders and importers of CNC machine tools on the east coast. Prior to SMW Systems, Steve started his machine tool experience holding various positions with Marubeni Citizen-Cincom the importer of CNC Swiss style lathes.
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Valenite Becomes a New Competence Brand For Walter in North America
Walter and Valenite recently announce the following organizational developments in an effort to expand their value proposition for their channel partners and their end user customers.
Starting now, until January 1st 2010, the Valenite brand will be integrated into theWalter brand structure, and shall form the Walter Valenite competence brand. MODCO® will become a technology brand under the Walter Valenite competence per below.
Muff Tanriverdi, President of Walter North America will be responsible for the combined operations.
This integration will bring the best of both organizations together to further expand their role as leaders of innovation and technology.
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Verisurf Selected by Spacex as Exclusive Provider of Metrology Software
Verisurf Software, Inc. announced it has entered into an exclusive agreement with Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX). Under the agreement, Verisurf will become SpaceX’s software standard for real time information regarding surface variance on composite tooling, to perform crucial final acceptance inspection, and to create surface deviation reports for the Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 launch vehicles, as well as the Dragon spacecraft programs.
Based in Hawthorne, California, SpaceX cited Verisurf’s ease of use, proven industry experience and leadership in expanding the use of 3D CAD data into complex aerospace assembly and inspection processes as the reasons for the exclusive agreement.
“Verisurf’s CAD connectivity, broad 3D device support and powerful measurement functionality are a great compliment to our current programs,” said Chris Thompson, SpaceX vice president of manufacturing. “ These benefits, coupled with its ease of use and reputation as a standard in the aerospace industry, make Verisurf a great choice for SpaceX.”
“Verisurf is proud to be the corporate standard for SpaceX, a company with the highest level of innovation and quality in commercial spaceflight. We will do whatever is necessary to support SpaceX as they strive to develop affordable access to space”, stated Ernie Husted, president and CEO of Verisurf Software, Inc.
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Ellison Technologies Expands its Engineering Support
Ellison Technologies, recently announced a new applications engineer, Mr. Nguyen Ho, to its Southern California operation. Nguyen brings 13 years of experience working with multiple CNC control platforms, programming and CAD/CAM software.
“Nguyen is a highly skilled applications engineer,” says Larry Duford, Ellison Technologies’ Advanced Manufacturing Group president. “His experience combined with his enthusiasm to develop new capabilities to support our customers, makes him a great addition to our engineering team.”
As part of Ellison’s engineering support team; Nguyen will provide set-up, programming, and training support to Ellison’s expanding customer base. Nguyen began his career as a 2D & 3D programmer and has since enhanced his skills with a focus in set up and operation of CNC milling machines.
Koma Precision, Inc. has promoted David W. Meo to the position of
regional sales manager. In his new role, Meo will be responsible for
directing the company’s sales growth in the Midwest.Meo has been with Koma Precision, Inc., for 3 years serving as an inside sales representative. Prior to joining Koma Precision, Meo worked as a financial analyt at Ipreo, New York, NY, a global provider of market intelligence, deal execution platforms, and investor communication tools to investment banks and corporations around the world.
Meo received his undergraduate degree in finance from Washington University and an MBA from University of Connecticut.
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Mazak Continues to Promote and Practice Production On Demand
Mazak has continued to integrate and refine its approach to Production On Demand at its production facility in Florence, Kentucky. This philosophy calls for a lean approach to manufacturing to allow products to be built with minimum lead times, in small lot quantities, with improved throughput and with minimum inventory levels.
In the last two years, Mazak has invested nearly $13 million in its Florence manufacturing plant. The company installed four of its own Versatech V-100Ns for use in production. The V-100N is a multiple surface 5-axis double column machining center that provides high productivity in the machining of very large workpieces. The machines are equipped with a unique and powerful spindle head that can position to the vertical and horizontal position and any angle in between. Mazak also made a considerable investment in expanding the size its production facility.
“Meeting the needs of today’s market requires high levels of flexibility, efficiency and productivity,” says Brian Papke, president of Mazak. “Our experience in past years has shown us that it is no longer feasible to plan production and build inventory according to forecasts. The needs of American manufacturers are constantly changing, and adequately meeting those needs requires the ability to adapt instantaneously.”
Mazak has made sizable investments in creating a production model that can easily accommodate these shifts in demand.
“We are convinced manufacturing in North America is practical and profitable with the right manufacturing concept and the implementation of technology that supports this philosophy.”
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W Machine Works, Inc. has Achieved SEA Stage One Certification
The Supplier Excellence Alliance (SEA) announced that W Machine Works, Inc, located in San Fernando, CA, has achieved SEA Stage One Certification.
W Machine Works is a SDB and AS9100 certified CNC contract manufacturer in Southern California. The company use first-rate multi-axis, multi-spindle high-speed CNC machinery. Cellular manufacturing, horizontal milling, multiple pallet changers and bar load/bar feed technology is utilized for unmanned machining and quick turnaround.
“SEA certification not only validates the maturity of our processes but has lead to a marked improvement in our work-force development.” says Marzel Neckien, president of W Machine. “We believe this certification is equal in importance to our AS9100 certification. Quality and process improvement are a must in order to survive the increasing cost pressures in the A&D industries.” says Neckien, the current Chair of SEA’s Supplier Advisory Council.
SEA is an aerospace and defense alliance led by sub-tier suppliers committed to accelerating supply chain performance. SEA provides a proven turnkey system for supplier development targeted to mid-tier aerospace and defense customers and provides an industry voice for suppliers on issues affecting supply chain performance. SEA also provides a platform for supplier visibility, performance improvement and collaboration.
Virtually all major prime and tier-one contractors who founded SEA, helped to develop the SEA Certification as the preferred approach to continuous improvement and process management.
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”Heimatec Inc. Opens U.S. Office
Heimatec Inc., has established a U.S. office to serve the needs of the metalworking industry in the U.S.A., Canada and Mexico. Recognized globally for its high precision and long-lasting tools, heimatec opened the doors of its suburban Chicago office on March 1, 2010.
Together with heimatec GmbH Germany, heimatec Inc. USA offers live and static tooling for CNC lathes, right angle heads for CNC machining centers, heimatec’s quick-change system (easy-quick HT), multi-spindle drilling heads and special tools.
“Strategically located in the central United States, heimatec is perfectly positioned to respond to the growing North American demand for heimatec quality products,” stated Preben Hansen, president, heimatec Inc. “We are fully committed and prepared to serve and support the North American market.”
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Jack M. Rider of Manufacturing Engineering Magazine Retires
Jack M. Rider the long time west coast sales rep for Manufacturing Engineering magazine recently retired. Mr. Rider was a true professional and was the model of what a salesman and competitor should be.
Jack started his career in the machine tool industry being a rep for the now out of business magazines Tooling & Production and Metalfax. At the time he also had his own very successful magazines for the oil industry.
Jack was working on a part time basis with CNC WEST when the opportunity to get the full time job at Manufacturing Engineering happened. Jack accepted the full time position and helped M E become a force in the industry for national magazines.
He will close down his office in Brea, California and still be in the publishing business by helping his church with their newsletter. The new amount of spare time will let Jack spend more time with his children and grandchildren.
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Welltech Machinery Names CNC Indexing Exclusive U.S. Importer
Welltech Machinery Company, producer of disk type oil skimmers, has named CNC Indexing & Feeding Technologies exclusive U.S. importer for their products.
Disk oil skimmers can reduce coolant costs and skimmed waste oil can be recycled for additional savings.
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Industry’s Largest OEMs Cooperate to Create imX, An Immersive, Interactive, Experiential Event
Some of the biggest names in the industry are working together to create a new type of event designed to revitalize U.S. manufacturing. Scheduled for Sept. 12-14, 2011 in Las Vegas, the event will combine the best features of a corporate open house, customer training seminars, client appreciation programs and new product launch events.
The seeds of imX were formed more than two years ago, when CEOs from some leading machine tool manufacturers began looking for new ways to engage and educate their customers. These CEOs asked the American Machine Tool Distributors’ Association to help create a new kind of event that would bring manufacturers together with decision-making buyers in meaningful and informative ways that would help customers find the best solutions for their manufacturing needs.
Since then, top executives from Mori Seiki, Doosan, Fanuc CNC America, MAG, Makino, Methods Machine Tools, Okuma America and Sandvik Coromant have been meeting with the two industry associations, conducting extensive research into alternative ideas and working together to create a new business model for industry events.
The result is imX. Competing supliers with similar product lines will be located near each other, so that attendees can easily compare all the options available to meet their needs. Product and technology demos, learning labs and other interactive activities will occur on the show floor within the Experience areas, facilitating productive, peer-to-peer knowledge exchange and networking.
“Traditional tradeshows, where booth locations are chosen by the exhibiting company, require the buyer to focus on one product or one manufacturer at a time, delivering information in a piecemeal format. The attendee has to wander from one end of the show to the other to determine which products would work into a solution for his needs,” says Larry Schwartz, president and COO, Okuma America. “We envision that imX, which will group OEMs and their partners, will allow decision makers to see their options in one area, make price and value comparisons and, ultimately, make better decisions.”
ImX will have a strong focus on education. Learning labs — located right on the show floor — have been designed to allow attendees to increase their knowledge through practical, hands-on demonstrations, see new and existing manufacturing technologies, and hear case studies presented by suppliers and customers who have already applied those manufacturing technology solutions.
“I expect imX to be an industry-changing event,” said Don Lane, CEO, Makino. “It is a fresh, new approach, attractive to the host companies as well as customers.”
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Blum Names Sales Manager for Western Region
Blum LMT, Inc. has announced Adam Goyer as the new west coast regional sales manager. Goyer will be the main contact for all West Coast customers and will work alongside Marty Caranchini, Blum’s service representative and experienced systems integrator for the area.
Adam’s experience in manufacturing and knowledge of various machine tools dates back to his youth, growing up with continuous exposure to his family’s integration and machine tool repair business.
“The family business has instilled in me an understanding for how critical a manufacturing base is here in this country,” Adam says. “Anything I can do to help your shop, factory, cell, or process run smoother, faster, with more accuracy, precision, or uptime is right up my alley.”
Before joining Blum, Mr. Goyer worked in sales at a fortune 500 company, promoting 3D scanning equipment for reverse engineering and rapid prototyping.
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Okuma & Gosiger Named Supplier of the Year by National Association for the Employment of People Who are Blind
The National Association for the Employment of People who are Blind (NAEPB) has named Okuma America Corporation and Gosiger, Inc. as their Supplier of the Year. Okuma and Gosiger were nominated by The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. in recognition of their outstanding efforts to provide accessible CNC machines as well as training for blind operators. The award is presented annually to a supplier that has provided quality products or services to agencies supporting and employing blind individuals, while meeting stringent customer demands.
Okuma, through distributor Gosiger, Inc. provides Seattle Lighthouse with CNC machining centers. These machining centers utilize The Intelligent Numeric Control (THINC), a Windows™-based, open architecture control, equipped with a specially designed API that allows the use of JAWS screen-reading software. This software provides voice commands from the machine tool, allowing blind operators to program, set-up, run and changeover the machines.
Seattle Lighthouse utilizes Okuma vertical machining centers and a horizontal machining center with a Fastems pallet system to provide parts for The Boeing Company and other customers. Operator Loren Schleppy states that the Okuma machines “have opened the door for the blind community,” as he refers to the increased accessibility to the machines.
In addition to machine tools, Seattle Lighthouse purchased a control simulator from Gosiger and Okuma. Machine Shop Supervisor, Tom McCrary wrote a tutorial to run on the simulator, allowing operators to train to run the machines without having to use production time to do so.
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Nikon Metrology and Verisurf Team up
Nikon Metrology and Verisurf Software have joined forces to make it possible for manufacturers to drive all Nikon Metrology portable metrology devices from Verisurf’s common software platform. Supported Nikon Metrology devices include the Laser Radar, K-Series optical CMMs configured with scanners and probes, MCA II articulated arm configured with scanners and probes, and the iGPS.
“Verisurf is proud to partner with Nikon Metrology and offer engineers a major breakthrough in measurement and inspection,” said Ernie Husted, president of Verisurf. “Having advanced inspection software that can be used with all of their metrology devices will dramatically increase efficiency. Manufacturers will save countless hours otherwise spent learning and using multiple software interfaces, while significantly reducing software maintenance and technical support costs.”
Verisurf’s new X platform is the latest release of its popular computer-aided inspection and reverse engineering software. The X platform gives engineers unprecedented value with new device interfaces, improved inspection guidance functionality and feature extraction for reverse engineering. An updated VDI has added many new non-contact measurement and automation controls for the Nikon Metrology Laser Radar, enabling this sophisticated metrology device to perform at its highest level.
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EDM Wire-Cut Northwest
A local manufacturing company at the forefront of Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) technology for over 30 years was recently purchased by Tolt Machine Works and will celebrate its re-opening at the new production facility 20 miles east of Seattle. Previously based in Kent, EDM Wire-Cut Northwest moves into Tolt Machine Works 30,000-square-foot industrial complex in Carnation, WA and represents the first of several new machining operations planned to open at the complex over the next two years.
Tolt Machine Works is a full service machine job shop specializing in large machining and micromachining that will be fully operational in late fall 2010. Upon completion, Tolt Machine Works capabilities will include; large 5-axis machining, large metrology, laser micromachining and ebeam welding, in addition to its new EDM division.
EDM Wire-Cut Northwest was founded in 1980 by Horst Binde, a well-regarded pioneer in the emerging field of wire EDM machining.
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Methods Machine Tools Appoints Paul Hurtig as Feeler Product Manager
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., a leading supplier of innovative precision machine tools, has appointed Mr. Paul Hurtig as Feeler product manager at Methods.
“We’re pleased to have Paul in this new position,” comments Mr. Bryon Deysher, president and CEO of Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “His impressive Methods’ track record and unique mix of experience in various positions including machine tool product development, sales support, service and international logistics make him the ideal candidate for the new Feeler role. He will be instrumental in launching the new Methods-Feeler line.”
Mr. Hurtig has been a Methods’ employee for 29 years and has held various managerial positions. His roles have been in service, product support, technical sales support, and most recently, vice president of operations.
Methods recently announced they are the exclusive importer of Fair Friend Group’s (FFG) Feeler line of machine tools throughout North America.
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BIG Kaiser Introduces New Facility and Resources at Grand Opening
BIG Kaiser Precision Tooling welcomed customers and partners to its new headquarters Grand Opening on April 29-30. The event was an opportunity for visitors to see the elevated level of expertise and dedicated resources available to support the extensive line of BIG Kaiser products.
The two-day event showcased the new 33,000 square-foot facility located in Hoffman Estates, IL. Highlights included a 5,000 square-foot product showroom, high-tech training and presentation room, and an in-house repair center.
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Ganesh Grows Again Adds More Showroom
Ganesh Machinery was founded in 1985 as a machine tool distributor selling manual lathes and milling machines from a 1200 sq. ft. facility in Chatsworth. The following year Ganesh started doing CNC retrofits of knee mills and added Teach-Lathes to their product line-up. By providing superior customer satisfaction and customized manufacturing solutions with their full line of manual and CNC lathes and milling machines, Ganesh has been able to grow their business into a countrywide provider of sophisticated machine tools.
Business growth has necessitated adding an additional 7000 sq. ft. showroom just to house their extensive manual machine tool line. Ganesh now markets a full line of machine tools from their expanded 22,000 sq. ft. facilities, with headquarters in Chatsworth.
Now celebrating their 25th Anniversary, Ganesh has introduced the new 8-axis Cyclone TTMY-52 CNC lathe for complex 2” diameter bar work that will be displayed at their open house on July 20th.
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Methods Machine Tools, Inc. Names Bob Russo as National Sales Manager for the New Tooling and Accessories Group.
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has selected Mr. Bob Russo for the position of national sales manager for its new Tooling and Accessories Group.
“We’re pleased to have Bob on board,” said Byron Deysher, president and CEO of Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “He brings over 35 years of experience in the tooling and accessories business and will be instrumental in selecting tooling and accessory product offerings with the quality and performance customers expect from Methods.”
The newly established Methods Tooling and Accessories Group was organized to provide a single source option for companies seeking to combine their machine tool purchase with the finest the world has to offer in precision tooling and accessories. The Methods Tooling and Accessories Group also offers current customers decades of experience in tooling and accessories selection support.
Prior to joining Methods, Mr. Russo spent 25 years as the northeast sales Manager for Command Tooling Systems.
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Advanced Measurement Labs. Inc. Acheives AS 9100 Rev. B Certification
Advanced Measurement Labs. inc, Sylmar, California. a provider of dimensional inspection services of 18 years has successfully completed a stringent quality audit conducted by ISA Registrars to become accredited with AS 9100 Rev. B certification. This is in addition to the ISO 9001:2008 certifications the company already had. AML is ITAR compliant.
Advanced Measurement Labs caters to: aerospace, military, commercial, electronics, medical and automotive industries from their new location at 15840 West Monte St., Ste. B 109,
Sylmar, CA 91342.
Advanced Measurement Labs also serves as an extension of your in-house inspection department; AML performs dimensional inspection with 3D CAD models and conventional drawings to customer specifications using state of the art, contact and non-contact measuring systems.
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Hardinge Announces Acquisition of Jones & Shipman
Hardinge Inc., announced recently that they acquired the assets of Jones & Shipman, a UK based manufacturer of grinding and super-abrasive machines and machining systems.
Jones & Shipman is located in Leicester, UK and distributes a range of high-quality grinding (surface, creep feed and cylindrical) machines used by a diverse range of industries The Jones & Shipman business has operated continuously in the UK, under various owners, since 1899.
“This transaction is a solid strategic fit for Hardinge, adding valuable product lines, as well as the strong Jones & Shipman brand name, to our grinding portfolio,” says Rick Simons, president and CEO. “Along with expanding our European-based grinding business, Jones & Shipman products will help us expand our US and Asian market presence” he continues.
Jones & Shipman has become part of the company’s Kellenberger grinding organization and will continue operations at the current Leicester location.
Sales of Jones & Shipman products in the US will be handled by the current Hardinge Inc. technical grinding sales team along with the existing Jones & Shipman technical grinding sales team.
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Partners In THINC Welcomes Mastercam as a New Partner
Okuma America Corporation announced that CNC Software/Mastercam, has joined Partners in THINC and is the first CAD/CAM supplier to become a member.
Mastercam offers solutions for designers and NC programmers in a spectrum of industries, including milling, turning, wire EDM, router programming, plasma cutting, lasers, and 3D design and drafting. CNC Software’s customers range from one-person job shops to Fortune 100 manufacturers. The same software that is utilized by corporations such as Boeing, IBM, and Sikorsky is still affordable enough for the small job shop. Mastercam also makes its software available to educational institutions at discounts to ensure a new generation of trained metal and woodworking personnel is available.
“Partners in THINC offers us the chance to work with some of the top people and companies in the industry,” says CNC Software marketing manager Ben Mund. “Partners in THINC exists to help further the cause of manufacturing, and we’re excited to see what new ideas and solutions we can create together.”
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Doosan Celebrates 30 Years In North America
Thirty years ago, Doosan Infracore (originally Daewoo) opened its doors in North America for the distribution, sales and service of a family of powerful, high-horsepower machine tools, known then and now as Puma turning centers.
In its first year, the company offered the DSN20, a two axis NC lathe with a top-of-the-line Fanuc 6T controller. Features included a powerful 20-hp, 2000-rpm spindle drive, quick-change aloris tool posts, and rapid traverse that topped out at 400 ipm.
Much has changed during the past three decades. The name changed in 2005 from Daewoo to Doosan Infracore. The line of machines grew from a single NC lathe to now more than 60 horizontal turning centers and mill-turns, 35 vertical and horizontal machining centers, plus boring mills and vertical turning centers. The sales-service network now numbers more than 50 distributors located throughout North, Central and South American and, Doosan, itself, has become one of the Western Hemisphere’s three largest machine tool suppliers.
Looking ahead, Doosan will exhibit a broad selection of advanced turning and machining centers at booth #8100 in the front row booth of IMTS 2010.
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Koma Precision Welcomes New Marketing Manager
Koma Precision, Inc. introduces Mary P. Buffum as the company’s marketing manager. Buffum will be responsible for marketing team leadership and internet management, as well as general marketing management responsibilities.
She joins the Koma Precision, Inc. team from Governors America Corporation located in Agawam, MA. Governors America Corp. (GAC) is a leading provider of engine governing and system controls to a worldwide list of equipment manufacturers and power providers. It was there that Buffum served as mar Glendale Community College’s Professional Development Center.
Joins Haas HTEC
The Professional Development Center of Glendale Community College has partnered with Haas Technical Automation and joined the tool builder’s Haas Technical Education Center. HTEC is a global network that provides advanced CNC education for learning institutions and Haas factory outlets.
The partnership with HTEC will expand CNC training programs at the Professional Development Center for California manufacturers. For twenty-five years, PDC has provided customized state-funded training programs for manufacturers at their Montrose, California, training facility and at company worksites. PDC specializes in hands-on CNC programming, setup, and operation training utilizing fully-tooled CNC machinery. Their inspection lab is equipped with a Haas Mini Mill, SL10 turning center, and a fully automated Brown & Sharpe CMM. The PDC also offers related CAD/CAM training using MasterCAM, SolidWorks, and CATIA V5 from entry level to advanced multi-axis application.
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Methods Named Exclusive North American Importer of Feeler Machine Tools
Methods Machine Tools, Inc. announced in April, that they are the exclusive importer of Fair Friend Group’s (FFG) Feeler line of machine tools throughout North America. FFG (Taipei, Taiwan) is one of the largest machine tool manufacturers in the world. Methods has simultaneously introduced a totally new range of Feeler machines that feature extensive engineering by Methods.. The full range of machines encompasses vertical machining centers, turning centers, bridge mills and boring mills.
The Methods-Feeler line of machine tools will be available at Methods Technology Centers and at Methods distributors located across the U.S., in addition to Methods dealers in Canada and Mexico.
“We are very pleased to have the Feeler product line. This new lineup of machine tools is the result of our Methods engineering group working very closely with FFG/Feeler to meet the needs of the U.S. customer” says Bryon Deysher, president and CEO of Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “Feeler will enable us to offer North American manufacturers a wider selection of precision machining solutions and will complement our existing line of high-performance milling, turning, drilling/tapping and EDM systems very well.”
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Carl Zeiss Holds Successful Tech Center Grand Opening Event
Carl Zeiss Industrial Metrology celebrated the official grand opening of the West Coast Tech Center (WCTC) in Irvine, California on April 6 and April 7. Set up as a production inspection facility with metrology systems running in a process support role, the two-day metrology event offered visitors a unique experience.
Part measurement on Zeiss systems was displayed in a real-time production environment, and they demonstrated high-throughput palletizing applications, and illustrated in-depth investigative metrology work. Product demos, tours and catered food and refreshments were continuous throughout the two-day grand opening.
“The goal in opening this 3800 square-foot facility in Irvine, California is to get closer to our customers in this region while providing local support in growing markets,” says Drew Shemenski, manager of the West coast tech center. “Not only does this facility allow us to offer traditional hardware support, but it can also help us focus on a higher level connecting machines together through software to manage inspection requirements and data.”
There is a wide range of metrology technology on hand at the Irvine center: optical, touch scanning, CT x-ray, and measuring software. The METROTOM 800 is an x-ray based computed tomography system specifically designed for 3D metrology of small, complex, low-density parts made of plastic, composite materials or ceramic. The O-INSPECT is a multi-sensor system that features both tactile and optical scanning and provides tremendous flexibility for measuring parts that approach the micro range of size.
They have a variety of surface form & geometry systems to really round out their measuring and demonstration capabilities. In addition they also offer in-house measuring services, software training and application support.
The location and contact information for the new Tech Center is:
18 Goodyear, Suite 105
Irvine, California 92618
Matthias Zipperer: Vice President of Finance & Treasurer, John Grzybowski: National Sales Manager, Greg Lee: President, Andrew Sisler: Vice President of Sales for North America, Drew Shemenski: Manager—West Coast Tech Center, Rich Knebel: Vice President of Technical Sales and Software Engineering (left to right).
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Smarter Manager and KXLY TV Join Forces
SME Software, Inc., producers of Smarter Manager manufacturing management software, is excited to announce a partnership with Spokane WA. ABC affiliate, KXLY ABC 4 HD, as sponsor of their “Manufacturing Monday” broadcast.
Every Monday morning during Good Morning, Northwest and Good Morning, America, Mark Peterson will be broadcasting from different manufacturing facilities in the eastern Washington and northern Idaho area. Besides broadcasting the local weather forecast, he will also be sharing with viewers about the basic processes that occur in each manufacturing shop.
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Harrison Lathes Names MSC Industrial Exclusive Distributor
MSC Industrial Supply has been granted the exclusive distribution rights for the Harrison precision conventional lathe line for the USA and Mexico from the Clausing Industrial 600 Group.
Harrison Lathes, founded in 1900, has manufactured more than 140,000 lathes sold throughout the world. Harrison is known for precision turning accuracy, strength, long-term reliability and universal serviceability. Lathes range from 13” to 21”swing and 25” to 120” centers in gear head and infinitely variable drive machines with constant surface feed.
MSC Industrial Supply brings nearly 70 years of industrial metalworking solutions and quality service to their customers.
MSC distributes approximately 600,000 industrial products that are featured in the Big Book through 4 strategically located fulfillment distribution centers. MSC employs more than 900 outside sales professionals in 97 branch offices with 4000 associates.
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Methods Machine Tools Appoints Phil Janiszewski As Marketing Manager
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has appointed Phil Janiszewski as marketing manager.
“We’re pleased to have Phil on board,” commented Jamie Hanson, director of corporate development at Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “He brings more than thirty years of experience in the manufacturing, machine tool and tool accessories business and will be a valuable addition to our team.”
Prior to joining Methods, Janiszewski spent seven years as marketing manager at Koma Precision, Inc., a supplier of rotary tables, angle heads, and live tooling. In his role there, Janiszewski managed all areas of marketing from database design, advertising, brochure / catalog design, to web site design and tradeshow layout / coordination. Before his marketing career, Janiszewski worked in outside sales for fabrication and machining services, metal stamping and injection molding equipment, EDM machinery, and high-speed vertical machining centers.
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Trio Tool & Die Company Receives Supplier Excellence Award from Raytheon Space And Airborne Systems
Raytheon Company presented supplier excellence awards to thirty companies for their exceptional performance in supporting the company’s Space and Airborne Systems (SAS) business during 2008.
The winning suppliers represent less than one percent of SAS’ supply base. They were chosen for meeting demanding standards in the areas of quality and delivery performance, customer satisfaction, and total business and financial health. Evaluations of their performance by the Raytheon buyers and material program managers who deal with them every day were also part of the selection process. Awards were presented at the 3-, 4- and 5-Star level, and Trio Tool & Die Company, Inc. received a 3-Star award.
Hawthorne, CA. based Trio Tool & Die Company is a leading provider of manufacturing services, specializing in prototype machining, short-run production parts, and mechanical assemblies.
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GF AgieCharmilles Continues Sponsorship of NTMA/NIMS National Apprentice Competition
GF AgieCharmilles has announced its continued sponsorship of the NTMA/NIMS National Apprentice Competition. The 38th annual contest will be hosted by the NTMA Indianapolis Chapter at Ivy Tech State College in Indianapolis, Indiana from June 10 – 12.
“Manufacturing is the key ingredient to America’s economic recovery,” says Glynn Fletcher, president of GF AgieCharmilles. “The participants in the 2010 NTMA/NIMS National Apprentice Competition will help build the foundations for the country’s future manufacturing success, and GF AgieCharmilles is proud to play an role in their development.”
This is the 19th consecutive year that GF AgieCharmilles has provided the event’s grand prize, which includes up to a $100,000 discount on GF AgieCharmilles EDMs, high speed and high performance milling machine.
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Methods Machine Tools Names Jochen Reichert As New Western Regional Technical Sales Manager
Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has selected Jochen Reichert for the position of western regional technical sales manager. He will cover the United States west of the Mississippi River, Mexico and Costa Rica.
“Jochen brings a unique skill set to Methods,” commented Dave Lucius, vp sales at Methods Machine Tools, Inc. “Having been an applications manager specializing in five axis in CNC machining, in addition to owning his own machine shop, he has an in-depth understanding of the manufacturing process for many different applications and can help customers streamline their processes.”
Prior to joining Methods, Reichert spent eight years as applications manager at the North American headquarters for the German-based 5-axis CNC-operated machine tool builder Hermle Machine Company LLC. There he managed all applications projects including turnkeys, time studies, test cuts and training. Reichert specialized in improving manufacturing processes for a variety of turbo machinery products, including impellers, turbines and blisks. Before that, Reichert operated his own machine shop in Alberta, Canada.
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Combines Nikon Industrial Instruments with Former Metris to Create Nikon Metrology, Inc.
Nikon announced that it has formed Nikon Metrology, Inc., a new company that combines Nikon Instruments Inc.’s industrial instruments business with the former Metris business, acquired by Nikon Corp. in 2009. Nikon Metrology, Inc., headquartered in Brighton, Mich., will focus specifically on the industrial and manufacturing business markets for precision measuring and industrial microscopy.
“The formation of Nikon Metrology, Inc. strengthens Nikon’s commitment to the industrial marketplace and offers a renewed focus on the company’s industrial business,” says Myles Richard, managing director, Nikon Metrology, Inc. “This new company brings greater product offerings to the market while continuing Nikon’s tradition of top-quality customer service.”
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Partners In THINC Welcomes Kuka Robotics As a New Partner
Okuma America Corporation announce that Kuka Robotics, a leading supplier of industrial robots, has joined Partners in THINC
The company’s core competencies include the development, production and sales of industrial robots, controllers, software, linear units and omniMoves™.Kuka robots are utilized in a diverse range of industries including appliance, automotive, aerospace, consumer goods, logistics, food, pharmaceutical, medical, foundry and plastics industries.
As a member of Partners in THINC, Kuka Robotics’ mission is helping companies develop and implement ideas–optimizing their production to be quicker, more efficient and more accurate. In conjunction with the Kuka System Partner Network and Kuka’s wide range of industrial robots spanning payloads from 5 kg to 1300 kg, any integrated solution or application conceivable is possible. All Kuka Robots utilize a common PC-based control platform, enabling them to easily connect to and communicate with the Okuma THINC control.
Kuka Robotics products can be seen and demonstrated at the Partners in THINC facility in Charlotte, NC.
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New CompanyDMG And Mori Seiki Announce Combining Of US Operations
DMG and Mori Seiki, two leading machine tool manufacturers, will join forces in the United States. Mori Seiki Co., Ltd. has agreed with the German machine tool manufacturer, Gildemeister Aktiengesellschaft (DMG), to assume all sales and service-related activities in the United States starting April 1, 2010.
The new DMG/Mori Seiki USA will assume responsibility for all product support, regardless of whether the product is manufactured by DMG or Mori Seiki. Expanded service will be available to DMG users as existing product knowledge and expertise is transferred to Mori Seiki and its nationwide distributor network. DMG / Mori Seiki will also provide after-sales service, spare parts supply, training and engineering support.
Dr. Rüdiger Kapitza, chairman of the executive board of DMG, asserts that the timing for a strategic partnership between DMG and Mori Seiki is now.
“Our joint innovative customer focus allows us to approach the challenges posed by the international economic crisis in a more targeted manner and to overcome them,” he says.
Advantages of the partnership include consolidation of parts inventory (located in Dallas), and an overall increased level of customer service for users of both Mori Seiki and DMG machines. The companies’ complementary resources will create an even stronger organization with a vast product line.
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Doosan Sees New Opportunities in Recovering Economy
The tough economic conditions of the past few years are coming to an end, and it’s time for machine tool builders and their distributors to get back to work with new products, new offerings, and new directions.
That was the message communicated by Doosan at its 16th annual distributor meeting held March 4-7 in Orlando, FL. Representatives from more than 50 distributor organizations located throughout North, Central and South America participated as Doosan developed aggressive programs intended to help customers take advantage of emerging growth opportunities.
Guest speaker Peter Borden, president of the American MachineTool Distributors Association, echoed Doosan’s optimism. His presentation demonstrated America’s dominance in world economics, and reaffirmed the long awaited recovery that’s occurring in the manufacturing segment.
New machines with advanced features were previewed, many of which will be introduced during 2010. Already available is the new Lynx 300, suitable for 3” bar stock, to fill a vital niche in the Lynx family of economical turning centers. Other turning centers and machining centers are targeted for introduction during late Summer and early Autumn.
Although the meeting’s emphasis was the future, there was time also to celebrate the past. Hales Machinery (Minneapolis, MN) received Doosan Infracore Distributor of the Year award for Outstanding Sales Achievement in 2009, based on market share and machine tool unit sales. The award was presented by JY Lee (Doosan Infracore President, CEO, and DIA), Jim Shiner (General Manager), and Tom Klukow (Regional Sales Manager). Tim Hales accepted the award for Hales Machinery (Minneapolis, MN).
Other distributors were recognized for their achievements including Jim Selway of CNC Solutions (Milpitas, CA) Western Region.
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Solar Module Maker to Set up Headquarters at McClellan Park
N Solar Inc., a newly incorporated U.S. company and a subsidiary of a Seoul, Korea-based information technology company, has signed a lease for 128,000 square feet at McClellan Business Park, Sacramento, Ca.
N Solar is expected to ultimately bring 150 new jobs to the Sacramento region. N Solar is set to begin operations in September. It was not immediately clear how big the staff will be to start, and when N Solar would ramp up to 150 employees.
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Toyota's Passin to Lead Tesla Manufacturing
Electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc. said that former Toyota executive Gilbert Passin will lead its vehicle manufacturing operations.
California based Tesla said Passin has 23 years of international automotive experience and has led some of the most high-profile divisions at Toyota, Volvo, Mack and projects at Renault across North America and Europe.
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Opus West Suit Says Parent Company ‘Siphoned’ $150M
The debtors in possession of Opus West Corp.’s assets filed a suit against Minnetonka-based Opus Corp. and several related entities, including the Opus Foundation.
Phoenix-based Opus West, which was one of five regional operating Opus companies, claims Opus Corp. used “systematic manipulation and abuse” for the purpose of evading legitimate contracts and debts. It seeks an unspecified amount of money for damages.
During the three years leading up to the filing of Opus West’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the suit claims, Opus’ parent company “siphoned” almost $150 million of Opus West’s earnings.
That action left the subsidiary undercapitalized, inadequately financed and unable to meet its ordinary obligations as a separate business unit, according to the suit.
Since last year, when three of Opus’ regional units filed for bankruptcy, the parent company has tried to distance itself from what it described as independent operating companies.
Opus West disputes that, however, saying the parent “exercised dominant control” over the years and operated Opus West as “an insufficiently capitalized facade for Opus Parent’s individual dealings.”
For example, the suit claims, the parent company had centralized accounting functions and required regular financial reporting of all its dealings. It also supervised Opus West through its common board members.
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Tesla Files to go Public for $100M in financing
Electric car manufacturer Tesla Motors Inc. said it plans to sell stock to the public.
The company, based in Northern Calif., did not disclose in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission specifically how much it plans to raise though it listed $100 million as a placeholder figure. The actual amount it raises could be higher.
Tesla also did not give a date for when it plans to launch the IPO, nor did it say how many shares it would sell or at what price.
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Amonix Inc. Has Announced it Will Build Two Solar
Manufacturing Plants, One in Arizona and One in Nevada.
The Arizona facility will bring 167 jobs to the state.
Exact locations have not yet been chosen for the California-based company’s projects, but they were part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s tax credit program announced.
Amonix is slated to receive $9.5 million for the two projects through the federal tax credit, which pays up to 30 percent of a facility’s construction. The DOE release shows Amonix’s Phoenix facility listed to receive about $3.6 million.
Amonix’s technology is concentrated photovoltaic power systems that increase the efficiency of PV cells by concentrating sunlight on them.
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Suntech Plant Heads to GoodYear, AZ With 75 Jobs
Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. has leased a manufacturing facility in Goodyear, and will bring along about 75 jobs to start. Production of solar panels could begin by the fall.
The company made the announcement at the Arizona Solar Manufacturing Symposium, ending several months of speculation about where its first U.S. manufacturing facility would be based.
The Goodyear location, on Cotton Lane just north of Maricopa County Route 85, offers an existing building and good routes to California, Suntech’s largest sales market, said Steven Chan, the company’s chief strategy officer. Suntech’s relationship with Arizona State University was a factor in the decision, he said.
“This site really stood out because it was a good locale for logistics and it would allow us to expand very rapidly,” he said.
Suntech still could receive $2.1 million in federal tax credits from the U.S. Department of Education, however the application had listed the manufacturing site in Tempe. Chan and other economic development officials said they didn’t believe the choice of Goodyear would hinder the application. DOE officials could not be reached as of press time, but said previously a move could void the credits.
The company plans to invest between $10 million and $15 million in developing the 194,000-square-foot space as a plant for producing 30 megawatts of solar panels annually. That level of production does not qualify for the state’s tax credit, which requires an investment of $25 million and specific job numbers.
The company, however, could expand the facility to a capacity of more than 120 megawatts and earn the tax credits at a later date.
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African Airline Orders 10 More Renton Jets
Boeing and Ethiopian Airlines announced Friday an order for 10 next-generation 737-800s. At list prices, the order is worth more than $700 million. Ethiopian is one of Boeing’s better customers, having flown every modern Boeing jet except the 747. The 737 is assembled in Renton, Washington.
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Arizona Solar Industry Lands Parts Supplier
The Arizona solar industry got another boost with the planned opening of a Tower Automotive facility in the Valley to help supply one of the local solar providers with parts.
The project will bring about 200 jobs to the Valley. The Livonia, Mich.-based manufacturer is still looking at potential sites.
Tower would be doing work for Stirling Energy Systems. That Scottsdale-based company uses a concentrated solar dish technology called SunCatcher, which leans heavily on the auto industry for its technology — including within the engine that produces the electricity.
“Tower Automotive is excited to bring our technology and expertise to the Southwestern United States through the establishment of manufacturing operations in the metro Phoenix area,” Bill Pumphrey, Tower’s president of the Americas, said in a prepared statement. “Through the support of our customer, Stirling Energy Systems, and the state of Arizona, both of which made this possible, we are confident that this is the start of exciting growth opportunities for our company, our colleagues and the communities we support.”
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India Interested in Buying 10 Boeing C-17s
The Indian government has submitted a letter of request to the U.S. government expressing interest in ordering up to 10 Boeing C-17 military transport aircraft, The Boeing Co. said.
If India carries through with its interest in the planes, it would join a growing parade of foreign customers for the four-engine, high-wing transport.
The United Arab Emirates just this week ordered six of the California-built airlifters. Britain, Australia, Qatar and a consortium of European nations have C-17s in their inventories.
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Aerojet to Supply Warheads for Raytheon
Aerojet was selected as the supplier of the MK 125 warhead for Raytheon Missile Systems, with delivery of the system set to begin this year.
Aerojet is a subsidiary of Rancho Cordova, CA. -based GenCorp.
The missile system provides long-range safety for Navy ships from airborne enemies.
The manufacturing of this component will be at Aerojet’s assembly plant in Camden, Ark.
The MK 125 warhead is the attack component of the SM-2 and SM-6 missile systems.
“The competitive selection of Aerojet to provide this critical warhead is a clear indication that our efforts to cut costs have been effective, while continuing to provide high-quality and on-schedule deliveries. The MK 125 consolidates our position as Raytheon and the U. S. Navy’s major energetic systems provider for the SM-2 and SM-6 missiles, complementing our MK 104 and MK 72 propulsion programs,” said John Myers, vice president of tactical programs, in a prepared statement.
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Amkor Technology Raises Outlook
Amkor Technology Inc., seeing the effects of a rising semiconductor market, has announced higher-than-expected revenue in the fourth quarter.
Chandler-based Amkor expects its sales to go up about 6 percent in the quarter over 2008 levels, increasing in its guidance predicting flat revenue, said Ken Joyce, the company’s president and CEO.
Semiconductor companies experienced better news in the second half of 2009 after a dismal start to the year. Some consumer demand has returned, and manufacturers are seeing revenues starting to increase after tailing off at the end of 2008.
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All Nippon Airways to Order 10 Boeing jets
Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA) is ordering 10 jets from aircraft giant Boeing Co., the two companies announced.The order includes five 777-200ER and five 767-300ER jetliners. The order is valued at approximately $2 billion at list prices.
All Nippon uses aircraft from both Chicago-based Boeing and its European rival, Airbus.
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Boeing Sells Two More Next-Gen 737s
Panama's flagship Copa Airlines ordered two more Boeing next-generation 737-800s, the two companies said in a press release.The new orders bring to 15 the number of Boeing 737-800s the airline has ordered this year. The order is valued at $152 million at list prices.
Copa has 29 next-generation 737s remaining to be delivered (including the new order).
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ON Semiconductor Buying California Micro Devices
Milpitas, Calif. based Chip maker ON Semiconductor Corp. said it agreed to buy California Micro Devices Corp. for $4.70 per share.
ON Semiconductor said the deal has an equity value $108 million based on common shares outstanding and issued. Based on California Micro's 22.8 million outstanding shares as of Oct. 30, the deal is worth $107.3 million.
Both boards of directors have approved the deal. ON said the acquisition will strengthen its product offerings in markets such as wireless, computing and consumer electronics.
The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter.
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Kamsco West Selected by Boeing on Tanker Project.
Lamsco West, Inc. announced it has been selected by The Boeing Company to support its nationwide team to compete for the U.S. Air Force's new fleet of aerial refueling tankers. Based in Santa Clarita, Ca.
Lamsco West, Inc. has been supplying engineered details, standards, laminated sheet and aerospace parts categorized as shims, stampings and flat pattern parts to Boeing for over 40 years.
By joining with Boeing to become part of the United States Tanker team, Lamsco West, Inc. will become eligible to increase orders if Boeing is awarded the U.S. Air Force tanker contract in mid-2010.
Lamsco West, Inc. currently makes engineered details, standards, and laminated sheet for Boeing's 737, 747, 757, 767, 777 and 787 programs.
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Over 1,400 Manufacturers Attend Mazak’s R3 Event
Mazak recently announced that over 1,400 manufacturers from North and Central America attended its “Your Manufacturing Future: Refocus, Rediscover and Reinvent” event, which took place at its headquarters campus in Florence, Kentucky. Also known as ‘R3,’ the three-day event introduced new technology and provided innovative strategies to help American manufacturers achieve success.
“We really believed that the manufacturing community would respond strongly to an event focused on positioning themselves for future growth,” said Brian Papke, president, Mazak Corporation. “Our expectations for R3 were already high and we’re absolutely thrilled to have them exceeded. A lot of manufacturers are recognizing that the market has changed and evolution toward a new level of manufacturing productivity is required for continued success.”
Attendees to R3 sat in on a wide variety of seminars, covering topics including automation, MT Connect, multi-tasking, probing and advanced tooling technologies. Manufacturers of tooling, workholding and automation products partnered with Mazak to provide attendees with a comprehensive perspective on optimizing their operations.
In addition to informational seminars, attendees of the R3 event had the opportunity to witness productivity demonstrations on newly introduced machine technologies. Among the 24 featured machines were the Quick Turn Smart 200 and 350, the first machines in an affordable new series ideal for high production runs, and the VT-20. Designed in the U.S. at the Kentucky Headquarters the patent pending Mazak VT-20 represented one of the most unique machines introduced at the event.
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THINC Partners Welcome Edmunds Gages
Okuma America Corporation has announced that Edmunds Gages, a manufacturer of precision measurement tools, has joined Partners in THINC.
Edmunds Gages conceives, designs and builds a wide range of gages for dimensional measurement and more. A vertically-integrated manufacturer, providing complete gaging solutions— including tooling, fixtures, heads, readouts and masters—Edmunds Gages also offers calibration services. With a fully accredited sub-millionth gage laboratory, Edmunds Gages products are provided with traceable certifications of size to National Standards, assuring that manufactured products meet part print dimensions and design constraints.
“Partnering with Okuma and the other Partners provides us with an exciting opportunity to help manufacturers realize the full potential of modern day manufacturing,” stated Jack Gaughan, Sales Manager for Edmunds Gages. “Innovating ideas with experts from other companies, allows us to provide manufacturers with the solutions they need to remain competitive and profitable for future growth.”
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National Tooling & Machining Association Will Relocate to Ohio
The National Tooling & Machining Association (NTMA) has announced plans to relocate its national headquarters to Independence Ohio. The board of trustees approved the move in a recent conference call vote. In announcing their decision, the 2009 NTMA Executive Team said the relocation is being made to strengthen the association by reducing operating costs, allowing the association to be more accessible to members, and to increase the potential of their “One Voice” for American Manufacturing.
The NTMA has agreed to relocate to the building presently owned by the Precision Metal Forming Association (PMA) in Independence OH. The two associations will maintain their separate identities but share common staff duties. The plan is to create a new organization that will manage common staff duties such as meeting planning, customer service, accounting, clerical and others so both organizations will save on overhead.
The move was made possible when the two organizations joined forces earlier this year on their political advocacy work by creating the new “One Voice” political advocacy coalition. The NTMA executive team believes the success of the One Voice effort has shown us that the two organizations can work together on common issues. They feel that doing more work together will make each organization stronger.
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Emuge Named Exclusive North American Agent for Hohenstein Special Purpose Clamping Fixtures
Emuge Corp. announced they are the exclusive North American agent for The Hohenstein Company, one of Germany’s leading designers and producers of work-piece clamping fixtures. This arrangement will combine reliable high-quality, special purpose work piece clamping fixtures from Hohenstein with Emuge’s application expertise in demanding workholding and tooling solutions.
“By adding the specialized clamping fixtures from Hohenstein to our lines, we further demonstrate our commitment to our customers to fulfill their unique application requirements,” commented Peter Matysiak, president of Emuge Corp. “The fixtures are a natural addition, as our precision workholding department specializes in customized solutions where accuracy and repeatability play a major role.”
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Waterjet Manufacturer Jet Edge Acquires Calypso Waterjet Systems
Waterjet manufacturer Jet Edge, Inc. of St. Michael, Minn., recently announced that it has acquired Calypso Waterjet Systems of Dallas, Texas.
Founded in 1992, Calypso Waterjet Systems had been a major manufacturer of waterjet cutting systems prior to its departure from the water jet industry in early 2009. Calypso products include waterjet cutting machines, abrasive removal, closed loop water, and automatic height sensing systems; nesting software; plastic water jet cutting bricks; bulk abrasive feeder tanks; and replacement parts for waterjet intensifier pumps, cutting heads, and waterjet tables.
Jet Edge president Jude Lague said he plans to reintroduce many of Calypso’s products under Calypso’s brand names.
“Calypso waterjets provide an excellent entry-level waterjet solution for price-conscious buyers,” Lague noted. “Through our acquisition of Calypso, we will be able to make precision waterjet cutting capabilities available to a much broader range of customers in the growing entry-level market.”
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Verisurf Donates $528,000 Worth of Software to Cerritos Machine Tool Technology Program
Cerritos College Economic Development in partnership with California Manufacturing Technology Consulting (CMTC) attended the WESTEC trade show, in March 2009. Their attendance at this event resulted in a highly lucrative collaboration between Cerritos College Economic Development, their Machine Tool Technology Program, and Verisurf Software, Inc.
Verisurf Software, Inc. is a California based software development company that specializes in computer-aided inspection and manufacturing software for a variety of industries. Verisurf offered a donation of 24 seats of software (valuing a total $528,000) in exchange for Cerritos College paying to have one faculty member trained in the Verisurf software as well as produce a series of hands on training videos featuring the capabilities of the software that students can use as well as other Verisurf customers. Cerritos College instructor, Yannick Real, was selected to attend the training, create videos showing the basics of the program and some hands-on applications as well as assist with the installation process.
Cerritos College Economic Development and the Machine Tool Technology department is very excited that this collaboration will benefit their departments for years to come because their campus has been designated as the beta test site for future trainings through Verisurf. Their students will have the most up to date software and equipment because of the donations they received.
Okuma America Corporation & Hartwig, Inc. to Provide Machines to Davis Applied Technology College in Utah
Okuma America Corporation and Utah distributor Hartwig, Inc. will provide machine tool equipment to Davis Applied Technology College (DATC) for use in their Machine Tool Technology Program. The machine tool lab, soon to be known as the Okuma Institute for Technology at Davis Applied Technology College, will also serve as a showroom for Hartwig in the Rocky Mountain region, providing local manufacturers an opportunity to see, first-hand, the Okuma machines and THINC control technology.
Okuma and Hartwig are collaborating to provide DATC with a working showroom of CNC lathes, vertical machining centers, multi-tasking machines and a horizontal machining center with a Fastems flexible manufacturing system. The equipment will be used to provide students with hands-on training on state-of-the-art equipment for development of CNC machinists, programmers and quality control and inspection specialists. Additionally, local manufacturing companies will have opportunities to visit the facility and see the machines in operation.
Although machines have already been installed and training has begun, the Okuma Institute of Technology at Davis Applied Technology College will formally open on January 12. Grand Opening activities will take place January 12-14, 2010.
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Jonathan Saada & Associates Announces Expansion –Adds Complete WIDIA Product Line
Jonathan Saada & Associates, the manufacturer’s representative for WIDIA-Hanita cutting tools in Southern California, recently announcee the company is adding all WIDIA-related brands of cutting tools and related products to its product line, effective immediately. They: WIDIA-Hanita™, world-class end mills, WIDIA-Rübig™, solid-carbide drilling and reaming, WIDIA-Manchester™, grooving and cutoff expertise and value
Other products include WIDIA-Clapp/DiCo™, PCD/CBN custom metalcutting solutions, WIDIA-GTD™ (Greenfield Tap & Die), line of premium-quality taps, WIDIA-Circle™, the proven name for optimum small-bore boring, grooving, and profiling and, of course, WIDIA™, carbide tooling and a world leader in indexable milling, turning, and holemaking applications.
“We’ve been providing technical knowledge and expertise to metalworking end users and distributors for 20 years,” explains Jonathan Saada, president. “With these additions to our products and services, we now represent everything from the spindle to the job to improve a company’s bottom line.”
Along with partner David Buchberger, Saada says he plans to hire more people in the near future for additional service capacity to Southern California manufacturers.
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Delcam Establishes California Office
Delcam has established an office in California following its acquisition of the assets and goodwill of its reseller Vizion Technologies. All of the Vizion staff will become direct employees to ensure continuity of service to the many users of Delcam software in the state.
Vizion was founded in 1998 by Jerry Sanders to sell and support Delcam products in the western USA. He was joined by Sheila Cullers in May 2000 to develop further the sales in the region. The company has built up a customer base of hundreds of clients, including internationally-known names in the aerospace, mould and die, medical, dental, consumer products, athletic shoes and sports equipment industries.
Commenting on the decision to move to a direct office, Delcam Managing Director Clive Martell said, “Vizion’s staff have enjoyed considerable success in building up and supporting a large and diverse customer base for Delcam’s products. To expand the organization and achieve even more business in the state, we felt that considerable investment was needed.”
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Mazak Announces ISO 9001:2008 Certification
Mazak Corporation has announced receipt of ISO 9001:2008 certification for its manufacturing plant in Florence, Kentucky. The company’s facility previously held ISO 9001:2000 certification, which it had obtained in 2003.
The ISO 9001:2008 certification is very similar to ISO 9001:2000 certification. Several restrictions have been tightened and language has been added or changed to provide additional clarification. Mazak’s ISO 9001:2008 certification applies to its production operations, including the design and manufacture of CNC machines, spindle rebuilds and remanufacturing at its Florence, Kentucky facility.
The Mazak Florence plant produces the Nexus lines of vertical machining centers and turning centers with multi-tasking capabilities. Mazak will introduce 10 new models from this plant in the fall of 2009.
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Siemens And Fryer Machine Team Up
Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc., announced that Fryer Machine Systems, Inc. has selected the Sinumerik 840D numerical control, together with Siemens’ ShopMill and ShopTurn software packages, for its job shop milling and turning machines.
By using Siemens CNC solutions, machine tool end-users benefit from decreased machine setup time, a unified control for both milling and turning machines combined with superior performance. Flexibility and ease-of-use were key factors in the decision to select Siemens.
The Siemens solution allows end-users to achieve higher productivity through easy and intuitive features and step-by-step, on-screen programming that enable job shops to quickly respond to customer demands by reducing programming times.
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Makino Broadcasts 100th Online Seminar
Makino’s highly acclaimed online seminar series reached a new milestone on June 4, with the 100th seminar broadcast. All 100 seminars are available in Makino’s online seminar library (www.makino.com/library). These online events cover a wide variety of machining solutions, including production machining, micromachining, EDM, die mold, aerospace, and automation.
“It’s really exciting to have shared so much machining knowledge in the last three years,” said Mark Rentschler, Makino’s marketing manager. “When we first started, online video was in its infancy—no one else in manufacturing was doing anything like this, especially without charging people to view the information. We never thought we’d reach the point where we have over 10,000 views of videos that shops use to help their business.”
Makino’s online seminar series is a free service and available to all North American manufacturers. New seminars are broadcasted each month on Thursdays at 11am ET, 10am CT.
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Carl Zeiss IMT Announces Opening Of New West-Coast Tech Center
Carl Zeiss IMT has opened a new tech center in Irvine, California.
“We are dedicated to supporting the high-tech industry on the west coast, by providing customers easy access to our most modern and advanced technology,” says Andy Sisler, vp sales at Carl Zeiss IMT. “The new technical center will provide more local resources and support for this fast paced market. It’s an exciting time for us because this is a chance to be even closer to our customers, and show our commitment to customer support after the sale,” adds Sisler.
The new facility is located in a modern technology park. The new site focuses on application support, contract inspection services, software training, and demonstration of Zeiss equipment.
“Providing contract inspection services is an exciting part of what we are building here,” states Drew Shemenski, software and applications manager at Carl Zeiss IMT. “With a full suite of Metrology Systems at this facility, we have the capability to support the inspection needs of everyone from micro-molders, up through traditional CNC job shops, as well as specialists such as gear and turbine manufacturers.”
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Niigata Appoints HR Machinery In Northern California
HR Machinery has been appointed the exclusive representative of Niigata Products Group; a division of SNK America Inc. Covering the northern portion of California and Nevada, HR Machinery brings extensive experience to customers interested in Horizontal machining centers and FMS applications.
Jim Fahey, owner of HR Machinery states, “ HR is proud to be associated with a company that produces the quality and reliability that Niigata is recognized for not just in our own competitive Silicon Valley, but throughout the country. Niigata horizontal FMS’ are a mainstay of the Tier 1 vendors to the semiconductor market and like HR Machinery, focuses on customer satisfaction”.
Niigata is a Japanese based builder of both box-way and linear-rail horizontal machining centers, pallet pool and FMS cell systems. HR Machinery is a sales and service based organization offering machining, turning, and quality control solutions for the shop floor.
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BTB Transfer Acquires Ottobi Machine
BTB Transfer of Brescia, Italy has completed their acquisition of Ottobi Machine. Ottobi has been supplying the lock cylinder & key manufacturing industry with high speed production systems for more than 30 years. Their operation will be moved into the recently enlarged BTB facility.
Ottobi produces key machines for automotive, residential, padlock, and other security cylinders, including the new tamper-proof security keys with milled slots and conical hole patterns. The lock cylinder lines produce at high speeds up to 5,000 parts per hour. The new Ottobi will benefit greatly from the current BTB infrastructure of advanced technology in electrical controls and a worldwide service organization.
Gosiger Import, a division of Gosiger, Inc. is the importer and distributor for BTB and Ottobi and will introduce the Ottobi product line to the North American market. With more than 100 service techs nationally, Gosiger provides necessary support for the life of the equipment. Gosiger is actively contacting customers who can benefit through the application of Ottobi machine technologies.
In addition to the BTB product line, Gosiger also imports Euroturn multi-spindles, iFP vacuum parts washers and Nomura swiss style lathes. Gosiger has been in business since 1922 and has offices in southern and northern California and Washington.
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Dynamic International, Samsung Machine Tool Division Appoints New President
Steve Lesnewich was recently appointed as the new president of Samsung Machine Tool, a division of Dynamic International. The appointment became effective July 6, 2009. Steve is an exceptional leader who will be responsible for introducing the Samsung Machine Tool line to North America. He will use his experience to develop a cohesive, highly motivated distributor network that is an open conduit between customer, distributor, and Samsung Machine Tool.
Lesnewich comes to Samsung Machine Tool with over 30 years of experience in the machine tool industry and brings a vast spectrum of knowledge to Dynamic International. For the past 15 years, Mr. Lesnewich was at Daewoo/Doosan the Korean builder of CNC lathes and machining centers where he became president and COO. Before Daewoo, Lesnewich was the eastern regional manager for SMW Systems where he worked closely with the builders and importers of CNC machine tools on the east coast. Prior to SMW Systems, Steve started his machine tool experience holding various positions with Marubeni Citizen-Cincom the importer of CNC Swiss style lathes.
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Valenite Becomes a New Competence Brand For Walter in North America
Walter and Valenite recently announce the following organizational developments in an effort to expand their value proposition for their channel partners and their end user customers.
Starting now, until January 1st 2010, the Valenite brand will be integrated into theWalter brand structure, and shall form the Walter Valenite competence brand. MODCO® will become a technology brand under the Walter Valenite competence per below.
Muff Tanriverdi, President of Walter North America will be responsible for the combined operations.
This integration will bring the best of both organizations together to further expand their role as leaders of innovation and technology.
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Verisurf Selected by Spacex as Exclusive Provider of Metrology Software
Verisurf Software, Inc. announced it has entered into an exclusive agreement with Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX). Under the agreement, Verisurf will become SpaceX’s software standard for real time information regarding surface variance on composite tooling, to perform crucial final acceptance inspection, and to create surface deviation reports for the Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 launch vehicles, as well as the Dragon spacecraft programs.
Based in Hawthorne, California, SpaceX cited Verisurf’s ease of use, proven industry experience and leadership in expanding the use of 3D CAD data into complex aerospace assembly and inspection processes as the reasons for the exclusive agreement.
“Verisurf’s CAD connectivity, broad 3D device support and powerful measurement functionality are a great compliment to our current programs,” said Chris Thompson, SpaceX vice president of manufacturing. “ These benefits, coupled with its ease of use and reputation as a standard in the aerospace industry, make Verisurf a great choice for SpaceX.”
“Verisurf is proud to be the corporate standard for SpaceX, a company with the highest level of innovation and quality in commercial spaceflight. We will do whatever is necessary to support SpaceX as they strive to develop affordable access to space”, stated Ernie Husted, president and CEO of Verisurf Software, Inc.
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Ellison Technologies Expands its Engineering Support
Ellison Technologies, recently announced a new applications engineer, Mr. Nguyen Ho, to its Southern California operation. Nguyen brings 13 years of experience working with multiple CNC control platforms, programming and CAD/CAM software.
“Nguyen is a highly skilled applications engineer,” says Larry Duford, Ellison Technologies’ Advanced Manufacturing Group president. “His experience combined with his enthusiasm to develop new capabilities to support our customers, makes him a great addition to our engineering team.”
As part of Ellison’s engineering support team; Nguyen will provide set-up, programming, and training support to Ellison’s expanding customer base. Nguyen began his career as a 2D & 3D programmer and has since enhanced his skills with a focus in set up and operation of CNC milling machines.
