To fabricate a new tonneau cover for pickup trucks, Leer Div., Truck Accessories Group Inc. (Elkhart, IN) is joining ABS and high-impact Telene thermoplastic panels using a polyurethane adhesive.
Thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) continue to find use among manufacturers of power tools and other industrial applications. An example of this is an overmolding application for a palm-sized sanding tool from National Detroit Inc. (Rockford, IL), a manufacturer of pneumatic handheld sanders for industrial, autobody and woodworking applications.
Rayovac Corp. (Madison, WI) carefully selects the materials that make up its industrial flashlights, because industrial and construction workers purchase flashlights based on their ability to withstand harsh conditions. Industrial flashlight components must be impact-, heat- and chemical-resistant, as well as easy to handle.
PTC (Waltham, MA), a collaborative product development company, is using Fakespace Systems Inc. (Kitchener, Canada) for stereoscopic visualization with built-in motion tracking and interactivity for virtual reality application suite demonstrations.
Traditional construction methods for high-performance boats use plywood egg crate and heavy glass epoxy laminate in the hull structure to provide the power, rigidity, security and ride qualities needed for speed over the water.
When Polaris Pool Systems (Vista, CA), a manufacturer of automatic pool cleaners, was experiencing gear jam-ups due to loose-fitting bearings, they turned to the SureWeld 20 ultrasonic plastic welder from Sonobond Ultrasonics (West Chester, PA) to weld the bearing securely in place.
Skill Tool & Die (Cleveland, OH) set a goal of producing a spare tire bracket more efficiently and with better quality. Achieving this goal required streamlining the job from manual welding to a fully automated welding operation.
The path to manufacturing excellence begins in grade school classrooms. And the foundation for manufacturing excellence is not touchy-feely stuff; a solid foundation for manufacturing excellence is built on engineering, mathematics and science. Without this foundation, the most superior workforce in the universe cannot produce manufacturing excellence.
The product has been designed, the assembly process laid out and the appropriate technologies selected. Now all you have to do is pitch the project to the person who signs the checks.
RSS