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The Fabricator April 2023
The Fabricator is North America's leading magazine for the metal forming and fabricating industry. The magazine delivers the news, technical articles, and case histories that enable fabricators to do their jobs more efficiently. The Fabricator has served the industry since 1970.
Shop strategies for crack-free bending in V-grooved brass sheet metal
- By Steve Benson
- Jul 24, 2023
- Bending and Forming
- Article
Annealing can help reduce cracking, if done correctly. But if you’re bending brass or any material with a grain direction, try forming against the grain. Changing the bend’s orientation to the material grain can make a world of difference.
How to use imported CAD models
- By Gerald Davis
- Apr 28, 2023
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
CAD guru Gerald Davis shows how imported CAD can be modified almost as fast as it can be downloaded.
A manufacturer's complicated reality of scheduling, measuring performance
- By Caleb Chamberlain
- Apr 26, 2023
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
Aside from quality, supply chain, personnel, compliance, and hosts of other complexities, scheduling alone is complicated for many manufacturing businesses. So how is one Utah-based metal fabrication shop tackling the high-mix scheduling problem? OSH Cut Founder/CEO Caleb Chamberlain explains in his latest column.
Finding the best custom coater for fabricated metal parts
- By Korey Bell
- Apr 25, 2023
- Finishing
- Article
The coating shop that metal fabricators select can make or break the satisfaction level of a customer and the end user of fabricated parts.
Precision metal fabrication needs more exposure to those outside manufacturing
- By Tim Heston
- Apr 24, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
Last month's FMA Annual Meeting in Las Vegas highlighted the need for outreach, but also showed all the enriching teamwork and problem-solving that the metal fabrication sector has to offer the manufacturing industry as whole.
How waterjets stack up against traditional metalworking functionality
- By Ivan Kondeykin
- Apr 24, 2023
- Waterjet Cutting
- Article
When it comes to metalworking functionality, a waterjet can outproduce mills and do some things a mill can’t.
Bump bending and air forming sheet metal on the press brake
- By Steve Benson
- Apr 20, 2023
- Bending and Forming
- Article
Press brake guru Steve Benson answers questions about air forming and bump bending, including the many variables involved in each application.
The robotic press brake gets flexible for metal fabrication operations
- By Peter Vandromme
- Apr 18, 2023
- Bending and Forming
- Article
Historically, for robotic press brake bending to make economic sense, a job needed to be of a certain volume in a metal fabrication shop. That, however, is starting to change across the industry.
Perfecting the job shop schedule in metal manufacturing
- By Tim Heston
- Apr 17, 2023
- Manufacturing Software
- Article
A job shop’s production schedule is never perfect, but that doesn’t mean metal fabricators can’t improved upon it.
How one manufacturing company is reshaping a Virginia community
- By Tim Heston
- Apr 17, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
Virginia MetalFab doubled sales between 2021 and 2022, all while losing several weeks of production moving to another, much larger facility in Appomattox, Va. But making sales goals isn’t the driver; it’s about changing people’s lives.
Missouri metalworkers turn to arts, large metal sculptures as their main gig
- By Rafael Guerrero
- Apr 15, 2023
- Metals/Materials
- Article
Metalworkers Ben Boyher and Brian Watson have transitioned from metal roof flashing and ornamental work to full-time metal sculpting. This has led to some large-scale projects involving mallards and bald eagles near St. Louis.
Misconceptions about cobots and safety in manufacturing, fabrication settings
- By Tim Heston
- Apr 14, 2023
- Automation and Robotics
- Article
Collaborative robotics are commonly seen as inherently safe in the manufacturing industry. In truth, how safe cobots really are depends on the application, a fact any risk assessment should take into account in a metal fabrication shop.
Legacy acts as a foundation for family-owned Texas metal fabrication company
- By Dan Davis
- Apr 14, 2023
- Shop Management
- Article
Alvin, Texas-based Woven Metal Products has been around since 1967, and the company’s history still greatly influences how it operates its family-owned manufacturing business today.
- Podcasting
- Podcast:
- The Fabricator Podcast
- Published:
- 05/07/2024
- Running Time:
- 67:38
Patrick Brunken, VP of Addison Machine Engineering, joins The Fabricator Podcast to talk about the tube and pipe...
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- Industry Events
Laser Welding Certificate Course
- May 7 - August 6, 2024
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- June 5 - 6, 2024
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- June 25 - 27, 2024
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Precision Press Brake Certificate Course
- July 31 - August 1, 2024
- Elgin,
- Upcoming Webcasts
Navigating Change: The Manufacturer’s Guide to Change Management with ERP Implementation
- May 16, 2024
- Sponsored
- Presented By: ECI Software Solutions, M1
Managing Dangerous Dusts from Metalworking
- June 26, 2024
- Sponsored
- Presented By: Camfil Air Pollution Control