Tag : cnc automation manufacturing

manufacturing companies

How to find new customers in the manufacturing industry

Currently, there are so many manufacturing companies which mean there is bound to be competition for whichever products you produce. Does that mean you exit the manufacturing industry? No. It merely means you need to act smart when targeting customers. You have to keep in mind that your customers are always right.

So, how do you find new customers in the manufacturing industry? Here are a few tips which you can use to drive customers to your manufacturing companies.

Focus on Current Customers

The best way to get customers is through referral. But how do you get referrals? By focusing on your current customers. Once you get a customer, do everything you can to make him or her satisfied. Serve them with the best products in the market regarding quality. Make sure your employees can relate to the customers such that they would be willing to come back to the same shop the next time a need arises.

Once the customer is satisfied, you can relax knowing that he or she will tell other people about your business. And in that way, you will get more customers.

Research Customers

Most are the times when we research the market to know what is in demand and what is not. However, that should not be a priority. What is essential is to know customers. Even if customers are in the same industry, they always have different needs. Focus on their needs, their projects and their purchase criteria. Try to keep relationships by knowing why some customers stopped coming to your shop and why others keep coming back.

With that, you can know where you are going right and where you are going wrong and thus improve your sales strategy. In the end, you will attract more customers.

Improve your social media presence

We are living in a technological era where everything is done online. That means the best way to get customers is going online. Make use of the social media platform by posting your products and blogs on your company. In that way, more people will know about you, and ultimately, people will contact you, and that is a chance to sell your products and to make new clients.

Optimize your website

Your website should tell people who you are. Also, it should be appealing, mobile friendly and easy to use. In that way, people can access your products and your team. However, for your website to be recognized by many people, it has to be highly ranked by search engines. Therefore, the first step should be to optimize your website such that it is among the top-ranked on the internet.

Compete on scope

When looking to increase sales, it is easy to focus on the scale other than scope. But to get more customers, supply customers with what they want and not necessarily what you are making. You can partner with other manufacturing companies who will use your brand to produce different products. In that way, you can get what your customers need from such companies even if you don’t gain so much. In the end, what people see is the brand, and so, next time they need something they will come to you.

Make your customers your priority, and you will get new customers every day.

manufacturing future

Is there a future for the manufacturing industry in the US?

When you think of the manufacturing industry, what comes to mind? For most people, the term manufacturing brings a picture of reserved and dirty workers with different machines. That is not the case anymore, thanks to manufacturing technology. It is now a high tech industry which produces products such as iPhones, prototypes and vacuum cleaners among more.

Though the manufacturing industry is not a solution to all our economic problems, it is very important when it comes to creating job opportunities. It contributes to economic growth, and at the same time, it raises technological skills in the world. In most countries including the US, it is the backbone of industrialization, and so, the state of manufacturing should be a priority for any nation.

Over time, the manufacturing industry has evolved bringing both challenges and opportunities. There have been changes in the economies of production, nature of products, consumer demand as well as supply chain which has made companies change their way of doing business. That means, for any company to survive in the industry, they have to embrace change otherwise they will be forced out of the market.

As manufacturing technology evolves and develops, barriers to entry are eroded, and that means new markets can be developed. That creates competition and even if the vast CNC manufacturing companies still dominate the market, more innovative models are developed which make the manufacturing industry to continue growing. Therefore, as long as any US Manufacturing companies take advantage of these new opportunities, there will be a future for this sector.

Mechanical engineering schools and US Manufacturing schools should embrace the changes in manufacturing technology and educate the students on how to produce products that have a future despite the various changes. In that way, the manufacturing industries will keep growing since new and innovative CNC machining, and CNC automation models will be developed.

In the meantime, as the country waits to see how the NAFTA agreement will turn out, the manufacturing industries can only hope that it is not signed. In that way, there will be an increase in employment, stabilized trade and satisfactory wages for the people of US. However, as per now, there is pressure on the manufacturing industries given that the margin separating the manufacturers and the product sellers is slowly fading away. Most manufacturers are forced to build or create on order.

Looking at all the above factors, is there a future for the manufacturing industry? Is there a future for the mechanical engineering schools? Do the students focusing on manufacturing have a place to be in future? That will only be determined by the manufacturers. Are they creative and innovative enough to create a market even where there is no demand?

Manufacturers will need to understand the forces driving their industry. By doing that, it will be easy to leverage the skills and convey a structural advantage as they restructure their business models. As a manufacturer, you need to define your success by embracing the new manufacturing techniques.

So, is there a future for the manufacturing industry? Yes, there is as long as the companies consider factors such as product size and complexity, laws and regulations and level of technology or digitalization. Every business has to act smart and also, US manufacturing schools need to research ways of keeping the manufacturing industry. After all, it is the backbone of most economies.

CNC precision

What Is CNC Precision? When And Why OEM’s Need CNC Manufacturing and CNC Machining?

Original Equipment Manufacturing companies that strive for maximum production while operating complex industrial processes require CNC precision. CNC machining employs the use of computers to run, regulate and manage tools. Tag Team Manufacturing is a cutting-edge player in the precision industry. We provide state of the art solutions that revolutionize and set trends the manufacturing industry.

What is CNC Precision?
Computer Numerical Control precision is a technique of creating complex parts, components, and products with a very high level of accuracy. The journey of using computers in manufacturing started way back with the utilization of computer-aided design and computer aided machining methods. The advancement was not a walk in the park but embraced as an industry player in the late 80s. A program is loaded into the machines which have been calibrated professionally to produce intended products.

Who Uses CNC Machines?
Previously, CNC Machining was believed to be meant for large industries. Currently, the machines have shown exemplary performance in various lines of work including small sectors. It is indisputable that irrespective of the component you need, the right CNC machine produces required results. Some of the industries that have embraced them include wood industry, metal removal, and fabrication, electrical among many others.

When You Need CNC Manufacturing?
Various signs should tell OEM’s need CNC Manufacturing technology. If you are an OEM and you are wondering here are five questions you need to ask and answer.

Do you need Consistency?
Once you are in business, consistency in production with high degree precision could be what you need to remain relevant in the competitive market. With CNC automation, you can sit relaxed that technology will keep you consistently producing quality products 24/7. As a bonus, the time lost taking breaks, repairs and maintenance will be a thing of the past.

What is the cheapest way to Increase Production Rate?
Previously, for a manufacturing company to increase production was to employ more people. This can turn out to be not only expensive but also has the risk of human errors. A CNC Machine follows a specific program to produce the same product a million times.

Are you Efficient Enough?
Efficiency plays a significant role in reducing the cost of production in any industry. If you are efficient, you use little resources which can be raw materials and minimize wastage. There is no better way of being productive and maintaining intricacy better than CNC machines.

How safe are your Personnel?
Working in the manufacturing industry can be lucrative and at the same time risky. Sometimes one handles materials that are considered dangerous regarding toxicity, heat, and corrosion. With CNC devices this fear is taken away.

Do you want to simplify production?

Majority of manufacturers rely on complex production processes which can be expensive as it requires skilled operators. Instead of relying on 10 personnel, why not let one person manage 9 CNC Machines?

Do you like Interruptions?
Interruptions in manufacturing processes can be as a result of many avoidable things such as working hours. You can replace it with robots and say goodbye to unnecessary stoppage in your business.

All things mentioned above, the best CNC Precision comes from trusted, reliable, proven and experienced players in the market. Tag Team Manufacturing remains true long term caring partner.

automation

What is Powering the New Manufacturing Plants?

CNC manufacturing is evolving at a rate that is faster than anticipated. Today, regardless of whether the source of power is wind, water, gas, solar, or steam, automation procedures and the latest technologies in CNC machining are essential in manufacturing industries. Here is a detailed view of what powers new manufacturing plants:

Water Power

This kind of power sources requires different turbines which as designed to produce efficient power in water power plants. When it comes to machining in these facilities, speed and accuracy are essential. Water can only generate productive electricity if it is made to flow at high speed, meaning that turbines with have not been appropriately reinforced can crack under pressure.

Wind Power

Whenever wind energy is used, the plant needs to have superior performance capabilities. Wind power, when used for mechanical engineering processes, for instance, requires gears and systems that are not only precise but also very efficient. The equipment needs to be highly flexible, and it also needs to react to the slightest changes in wind pressure without compromising the performance of the power plant.

Across all the states in the US, there are more than 500 manufacturing plants that manufacture equipment used to generate wind power. There is a lot of demand in the sector by manufacturing facilities.

Steam and Gas

Geothermal power stations use these forms of forms of energy to generate power. Steam and gas power comes with a lot of pressure, so the manufacturing processes using these resources for energy need to have turbines and equipment that can remain functional even when subjected to high stress and tension.

Gas, being a non-renewable source of power, is not as popular as the renewable sources. Manufacturing companies, however, still use gas because of its speed and efficiency in producing electricity.

Solar

Solar energy is the most efficient source of power currently in use in USA manufacturing. All countries around the world, and even in manufacturing schools, solar power is perfecting processes that have been in existence for years.

Manufacturing in the USA and the rest of the world is quickly embracing CNC automation procedures. To power these plants and these processes, companies are moving towards better power sources. Wind, water, solar, and steam are just some of them, but these four are the best and most efficient sources of power for new manufacturing plants.

The most manufacturing in the world today is done in China eve through for a time, the United States held the number one position. The US, however, still holds the number position when it comes to providing quality manufacturing processes.

Monitoring the Environment

Power generation needs to be by the laws of the environment. Power plants, in sourcing for ways of energy generation, need to be wary of the effects that they have on nature and the well-being of the people around them. Using natural sources of power like wind, water, and solar is best as they have minimum effects on the environment.

These energy sources are also renewable, meaning that manufacturing plants can reduce wasted during their processes. Although some plants still use non-renewable sources that are harmful to the environment, manufacturing processes, technologies and automation are making it much easier for these companies to switch to sources of power that do more good than harm to the surrounding areas.

manufacturing technology

New Manufacturing Technology Means Greater Value for Customers

The Factory of the Future, as it has come to be called, is all about lean manufacturing. One of the most important components of lean manufacturing is incorporating the latest and best manufacturing technology, including machining tools and robotic manufacturing.

At the moment, probably in part because they’re leery of another economic downturn, U.S. manufacturers have been slow to embrace many of the improvements now available. This is a mistake because these advances—and many more that are just down the road—make for faster, more durable, more precise and far more productive tools. At Tag Team Manufacturing, we believe these factors together translate into greater customer satisfaction.

Taking Advantage of Today’s New Tools

Incorporating faster, longer-lasting tools doesn’t have to be prohibitively expensive. So the cost of doing business doesn’t have to go up. In fact, the new technology can increase both productivity and quality, giving customers more for their money.

How does this work? The new technology can be implemented easily and inexpensively. Programming manufacturing machinery is simplified, resulting in:

• Reduced production times and greater production accuracy

• Reduced cross-training of operators and programmers

• Greater flexibility in operations, so one piece of equipment can perform a variety of functions

All these advantages reduce our costs and, consequently, costs to our customers without in any way compromising quality. This combination of lower cost and higher quality results in greater value.

The technological advances affect just about every aspect of the manufacturing process. They improve every step, from product design through production and even packaging. Each component of the process, including human and machine, is able to communicate more quickly and more accurately, creating an integration that greatly increases coordination and efficiency.

We at Tag Team Manufacturing look every day for ways to improve our lean manufacturing processes and so move closer to the Factory of the Future. We can see ahead to innovations that are on the horizon. What does the future look like?

The Tools of Tomorrow

What’s ahead in manufacturing technology tools looks great for both manufacturers like us and our customers. Our challenge is to meet the demand for value from our customers. This challenge will be met with:

• Machining that delivers ever more precisely and efficiently made products
• Software capable of increasingly sophisticated operations
• Shorter production time

So we’re looking at software and hardware on the road to greater and greater value. The progression includes further development of things like:

Source ( characters / words)

NTN Technical Review No. 74 (2006) http://advancedmanufacturing.org/advances-cnc-technology http://www.manufacturing.net/article/2012/02/10-trends-manufacturing-technologies http://www.industryweek.com/manufacturing-day/fast-forward-factory-future?page=1

There were no Copyscape matches found.

• Multifunctional machining tools that increase accuracy and reduce machining time while, at the same time, being able to produce products with more complicated shapes

• Control hardware and software that costs less but offers “intelligent” functions that turn information into more efficient and precise production

Not all advances in manufacturing technology apply to the work Tag Team Manufacturing does. But we’re keeping our eye on every improvement to make sure we deliver the best value to our customers.

manufacturing shop

Superior Customer Service in the Manufacturing Industry can be the Difference in Winning Work

Manufacturers may work with machines, but they are working for people, and people like knowing that they are working with someone who demonstrates a genuine concern for their best interests. In many cases, this quality is more apt to win over a potential client than anything else a manufacturing shop has to offer.

Clients Remember Superior Customer Service

Superior Customer service is a good way to win over new clients, but it’s an excellent way to win repeat work from existing clients. As a general rule, clients tend to remember instances of excellent customer service for a long time, and they will reward it with loyalty and repeat work. In contrast, clients remember instances of poor customer service as well and are very unlikely to offer repeat work to a manufacturing company that demonstrates poor customer service even if they were happy with the products they received.

Customer Service is Critical to Word-of-Mouth Advertising

Good or bad, people tend to talk about their experiences with a company’s customer service, often much more so than they tend to talk about any other aspect of their experience with a particular company. With this being the case, great customer service can lead to valuable word-of-mouth marketing while poor customer service can be a serious blow to a company’s reputation. In a digital world where people are constantly connected and able to communicate to larger audiences than at any other point in history, word-of-mouth marketing ad reputation management are more important than ever before, and customer service is key to maintaining these things.

Putting Superior Customer Service to Work for You

There are a lot of aspects that go into making a manufacturing company successful, but customer service is certainly one of them. At our Denver manufacturing shop, we recognize the undeniable value of superior customer service and always strive to provide an experience that leaves our clients completely satisfied and eager to work with us again. In addition to promptly addressing any questions or comments a client may have, we believe that superior customer service entails protecting all of a client’s proprietary documents and intellectual property with the best possible security, making ourselves available at all times, and always striving to deliver high quality parts on time and at the lowest cost in the industry.

If you would like Tag Team Manufacturing to put these qualities to work for your business, let us know how our manufacturing shop can help you today by contacting us at 303-841-5697.

lean manufacturing

Lean Manufacturing at Tag Team

At Tag Team, we believe that “lean” as a concept is more than just a way to streamline and simplify the manufacturing process. It’s a way to shine a powerful light on the areas of manufacturing that add value in a way that lets you support them and strengthen them. It’s a methodology that lets you get the right products into the right places at the right time. Most importantly, it’s a way to guarantee the type of competitive advantage necessary to be able to constantly grow and evolve within the ever-changing demands of the market as a whole.

What is Lean Manufacturing?

At its core, lean manufacturing is a concept built on the idea that if you take steps to identify and eliminate waste and overburden within a system, you immediately identify the core pillars that are truly adding value to your organization. It’s a philosophy that was spearheaded by Toyota during the 1990s and is also directly responsible for that company transitioning from a small, niche company to the largest automaker on planet Earth.

Lean focuses on eliminating three core types of waste from within the manufacturing process:

  • Muda. As a term meaning “futility” in its original Japanese, these are all the steps within your process that may get you the results you want, but in the least efficient way possible.
  • Muri. This is the type of waste generated by overburden. These are decisions that may have seemed great when you made them but that, over time, prevent you and your team from working “smarter, not harder.”
  • Mura. This refers to the waste in your process created by uneven workloads.

By overhauling a manufacturing process with an eye towards these three simple ideas, you don’t just improve the quality of the work you’re doing – you improve costs, delivery times, stability and absolutely everything in between.

The Lean Manufacturing Approach

At Tag Team, lean is the very foundation on which our entire manufacturing process has been built. We use one of the best manufacturing software systems available in the world today – E2 – to track everything from machine and employee efficiencies to material and labor costs. We automate wherever possible, allowing us to not only use technology to do things we couldn’t have dreamed of even 10 years ago but to free up the valuable time of our employees so that they can focus on the things that matter the most.

At the end of the day, lean manufacturing doesn’t just allow us to support our own growth and profitability. It lets us support yours, too.

Tag Team has over 30 years of experience serving customers just like you by way of a highly trained, passionate staff with a commitment to quality that is second to none. If you’d like to find out more information about how lean manufacturing can benefit your organization, or if you’d like to sit down and speak to someone about your situation in a little more detail, please don’t delay – contact Tag Team today.

high speed machining

What Is High-Speed Machining?

When referring to CNC machine tools, the term high speed machining (HSM) usually means making products or prototypes rapidly by using milling machines at higher spindle rates with lighter, shallower cuts to achieve greater metal removal rates and lower operating costs.

How Did HSM Develop?

HSM grew out of CNC techniques developed in aerospace manufacturing at companies such as McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing). Originally, one of the reasons for using HSM was to machine at specific speeds that would avoid what’s known as “chatter” (machine vibration that can become noisy and/or violent) by taking advantage of milling at natural frequencies. By keeping high speeds stable, parts could be more milled more accurately and have less “ribs,” resulting in a lower weight. Lighter parts meant less heavy, more efficient aircraft. The goal for McDonnell Douglas became reducing the weight of many of its sheet metal parts and combining pieces together for even more efficiency. Eventually, so dramatic was the success of HSM that a jet that formerly was built with 14,000 parts now required only half that number. This greatly reduced costs and allowed speedier production of finished airplanes. As such, HSM became an assembly solution for McDonnell Douglas and eventually other aircraft manufacturers.

What Makes HSM Effective?

Although it may seem counter-intuitive, the way high speed machining works is that a higher machine “spindle rate” (measured in rotations per minute of the tool) combined with lighter cutting will actually remove more material faster than slower spindle rates and heavier cutting. Lighter cutting also means more efficiency from a power perspective — some CNC machines may be rated at a high horsepower but can become overloaded if their cuts are too deep.

With HSM, cutting temperatures are actually reduced; surface finish is also improved, and the machines’ spindle and cutter acquire less wear-and-tear over time. This is especially true with harder materials. Cutting becomes more consistent and more reproducible. Often, HSM combines the roughing and finishing passes that are normally separate at lower speeds. This means that throughput generally increases when HSM is applied to process workflows.

What Are the Benefits of HSM?

In mold making, HSM allows for intricate cavity and core geometries and can enable the quick machining of large, complex components out of solid blocks of material. Material walls can be made very thin, and edges can be very sharp. Accuracy and precision are improved, and time spent polishing surfaces can be reduced. Automation can be improved because errors and interruptions are fewer. Molds and dies have more durability because fatigue cracks are lessened, hence there’s less risk of breakage. Assembly of finished products often can go faster. In general, customers are very satisfied with the output of pieces produced with high speed machining.

How Has HSM Helped Tag Team Manufacturing?

At Tag Team Manufacturing, high speed machining has allowed us to boost our capacity and handle more orders in a shorter timeframe. This, combined with our sophisticated MasterCam CAD/CAM programming system, makes us the leading provider of machined components in the Denver, Colorado region.

Source:

https://www.makino.com/about/news/Ramping-Up-To-High-Speed-Machining/204/

http://www.mmsonline.com/zones/hsm

modern manufacturing

The Role Of CNC Automation In Modern Manufacturing

No business can survive without adopting the most advanced technologies, and in manufacturing, there are few devices more important than CNC machines. CNC, or Computer Numerical Control, manufacturing involves operating lathes, mills, drills, and other devices from a single computer. Manufacturers program the computer with precise instructions for the products they want to make; the machines can then manufacture those products without any additional input. CNC devices dramatically improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness, and have thus become a mainstay of modern manufacturing.

The CNC revolution is only beginning, and with each year manufacturers develop new, more effective ways to use this technology.

Advantages Of CNC Automation

CNC automation has a wide range of benefits for the manufacturing process, including:

• Consistency

    1. – Other than needing occasional downtime for maintenance and repair, CNC machines can perform the same job exactly the same way 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

• Volume

    1. – A CNC machine can produce the same product over and over again, thousands of times. All of the products will be identical to each other, eliminating the chance of mistakes after the programming stage.

• Intricacy

    1. – A CNC machine can follow any programmed instruction down to the most intimate detail. This allows manufacturers to create products with much more precise designs than manual devices or older forms of automation could achieve.

• Efficiency

    1. – The precision of CNC machines also means that they can use every material presented as efficiently as possible, dramatically reducing waste and thus the cost of production.

• Safety

    1. – CNC machines represent complete manufacturing automation; the operator never has to touch the materials being used. As such, it is ideal for manufacturing tasks that involve extreme temperatures, toxic or corrosive materials, or other factors that would place human operators at risk.

• Speed

    1. – CNC devices combine multiple steps in the modern manufacturing process, dramatically reducing the amount of time it takes to finish production.

• Simplicity

    1. – Whereas other forms of manufacturing automation require skilled operators, a CNC machine requires a relatively low level of skill to use. Under ordinary conditions, a single operator can also supervise multiple machines at the same time, leading to lower labor costs.

 

    Compared to these advantages, the only significant disadvantage of CNC automation is the high up-front cost. By improving efficiency, reducing waste, and preventing mistakes, CNC machines quickly make up for their initial prices, providing long-term savings for manufacturers in a wide range of industries.

What Comes Next? The Future Of CNC Automation

The CNC revolution is only beginning, and with each year manufacturers develop new, more effective ways to use this technology. At present, experts are focused on ways to integrate CNC machines with with the robots used to move and pack finished goods. Doing so will streamline the manufacturing process, reducing waste and increasing simplicity. A single control panel may one day be enough to direct an entire manufacturing operation.

Another key development is the advent of the CNC 3D printer, which has made this type of manufacturing available to smaller businesses and even individuals. As these devices fall in price and grow in complexity, CNC manufacturing will become increasingly personalized and decentralized.

To learn more about modern manufacturing, robotics, and other hallmarks of manufacturing automation, contact Tag Team Manufacturing today.