Brent Donaldson

Brent Donaldson Editor-in-Chief

Growing Closer: Machine Shops and 3D Printing for Production

Machining a large 3D-printed part for aerospace composite tooling is fundamentally different than manufacturing the part traditionally. Baker Industries knows this first-hand.

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A Methodical Strategy to Bring Additive Manufacturing into Sheet Metal Fabrication

When Wilson Tool International launched its additive manufacturing division in 2018, it had already proven 3D printing’s value through dozens of printed parts for its own line of equipment. Demonstrating that value to customers required a new, highly focused approach.

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How Machine Tool Dynamics Could Become a U.S. Supply Chain Strategy

A collaborative agreement being overseen by the U.S. Department of Energy involves a deceptively simple test — a test that could radically increase throughput of the United States’ existing base of CNC machine tools.

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Grinding

Lessons from a COVID-19 Shutdown and Reopening

Weldon Solutions, a manufacturer of CNC cylindrical grinders and robotic automation systems, had to close its doors for two months due to COVID-19. Now allowed to reopen, the company is taking stock of the lessons learned and a path forward during the pandemic.

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Medical

An Unusual Machine for an Unusual Time: Mazak Helps AquiSense Fight COVID-19 with PearlSurface

When a company that specializes in rendering viruses and pathogens harmless via UV light looked to produce a portable disinfection device, it turned to its neighbor Mazak to move from design into production.

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CNC Machining as a Business Strategy for 3D Printing

As the additive manufacturing company 3rd Dimension Industrial 3D Printing prepares for production, it has one critical advantage over the competition: a standalone CNC machine shop.

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Lean Manufacturing Means Taking Nothing for Granted

As foreign competition undercut Valtech Corp.'s business throughout the aughts, the company had a choice to make: Switch production to CNC machining for one of its products, or abandon the product line. Starting from scratch with older machine tools has helped the company scrutinize each step of its processes.

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Automation

Autonomous Bin Picking for CNC Machining Applications

With the launch of a new application kit for collaborative robots, Universal Robots is creating a new option for lights-out machining. But the company may have tapped into a solution for a deeper problem: attracting millennials to the manufacturing workforce.

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At Purdue University, Emergency Production of PPE and Ventilator Fittings

After campus had largely shut down, several labs and departments at the venerated engineering school organized with local hospitals to manufacture critical parts needed to fight the coronavirus.

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Aerospace

Does Asia's Low-Cost Manufacturing Option Still Make Sense?

As U.S.-based companies try to stay ahead of COVID-19, global supply chains are under renewed scrutiny. Are uncertainties and delays caused by global crises worth the short-term cost savings?

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EDM

Cool Tricks: How to Photograph Sinker EDM

Sometimes it takes a little extra effort and ingenuity to solve a problem. In the case of the February 2020 cover of Modern Machine Shop, it took a lot of each — and a cheap plastic spaghetti container.

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Basics

Inside the Sinker EDM Process, One Spark at a Time

Successful sinker EDM operations rely on understanding the relationship between each individual spark, the electrode and the workpiece. 

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Schunk
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TCI
Horn USA
CoroMill Plura Ballnose
IMTS 2024
One-Touch Clamps. No Tools Needed.
Precision grinding & hard turning custom solutions
Pat Mooney Saws