Columns

10 Takeaways about the Industrial Internet of Things

What will it look like for manufacturing to embrace and make use of interconnected hardware? Here are some clues.

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Even My Accurate Predictions Are Wrong

The future does not come in a straight line. Multiple factors affect one another and the final outcome. My prediction that machine shops would see more composites is playing out, but I missed an important means by which this would happen.

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The Many Possibilities of Additive Manufacturing

Why would anyone want to use additive manufacturing?

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CNC Tech Talks

Helping Machine Operators with Math

Requiring machine operators to perform calculations repeatedly has a negative impact on productivity.

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Basics

Holding Size with Tight Tolerances

Tolerances of less than 25 microns can be challenging to achieve and hold. Here are some suggestions for holding them for multiple workpieces.

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Basics

10 Reasons Why Machine Shops Vary So Much in Quoted Pricing

Many factors explain the potential 10X variation in different shops’ bids for the same machining work.

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After the Build Is Done Why Do the Bills Keep Coming?

When your additively manufactured part is done printing, you just pull it out of the machine and start using it, right? Not even close.

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Basics

The Art of Submicron Measurements

Special attention must be paid to the selection of the gage and readout as well as to mastering.

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CNC Tech Talks

How to Deal with Complexities That Affect Worker Skill Levels

The goal must be to keep tasks as simple as possible for those who perform them.

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Why Does My AM Part Cost So Much?

The machine, the facility and the material are just three costs behind the price tag.

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Measurement

Float Your Air Plugs for Easy Part Alignment

One way to design clearance forgiveness into an air plug is to enable some float.

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