ArecentUSATodayarticle,“ManufacturersbringingthemostjobsbacktoAmerica,”indicatesachanginglandscapefordomesticmanufacturing.MoreandmoreU.S.-basedmanufacturersaredecidingtomakeproductsclosetohomeasrisinglaborcostsinAsia,higherglobalfuel/transportationcosts,thenaturalgasboomhere,andcustomerdemandsforqualitycreateaplayingfieldwhereU.S.companiescancompeteandwin.NewManufacturingTechnologies“TheUnitedStatesisintheearlystagesofamanufacturingrenaissance,”accordingtoCNBC,“andisexpectedtogrow.”Newmanufacturingisdifferentandiscreatingnewjobs.“Researchbyeconomistsshowstechnologyhascreatedmorejobsthanit'sdestroyed—andtheyhave140yearsofdatatoproveit,”CNBCsaid.ThetrickforU.S.companiesistodevelopnewmanufacturingtechniquesaheadofglobalcompetitorsandthenusethemtoproducegoodsmoreefficientlyonsuperautomatedfactoryfloors.
NEW GENERATION OF MICRO MACHINING SOLUTIONS MAKES NEW PARTS POSSIBLE
New technology brings higher precision, faster production to make small parts more efficiently than is possible with traditional micro machining technology and equipment.
GF MICROLUTION, INC. 6635 W IRVING PARK RD. CHICAGO, IL 60634 TEL. 773-282-6495 FAX. 866-417-4459 www.microlution-inc.com
WritinginTechCrunch,manufacturingexecutiveVickiHoltwrites,“Whenmostpeopleheartheword‘manufacturing,’afewimagestendtocometomind:lowskill,wrench-turning,physicallydrainingwork;dirty,grease-stainedworkplaces;amale-dominatedworkforce.Forwhateverreason,thesestereotypespersist,andtheyareantiquatedandmisleading.”“Thankstomassiveadvancementsinautomationtechnologyandanalyticssoftware,”shecontinues,“theAmericanmanufacturingindustryoftodayisafarcryfromtheassemblylinesandmanuallaborofthepast.Manufacturinginthe21stcenturyisahigh-techfusionofsoftwareandmechanicalengineering,automatedprocessesandcomplexproductionequipment,3DCADmodels,andon-demandparts.TraditionalMachiningLosingitsEdgeAllthiscomesastraditionalmicromachiningtechnologyisrunningupagainstlimitationsofprecisionandproductivity.Conventionalmicromachiningmethodsarelosingtheiredge.Moreandmoremicromachiningapplicationsrequiremultiplepostprocessingsteps—suchaslappingandgrinding—toachievesingle-digitmicronqualityresultsusingconventionalmanufacturingmethods.Atthesametime,materialsareevolving.Brittlematerials,ultrahardmetals,polymers,andothermorecomplexandchallengingmaterialshavetakenamuchmoreprominentroleinprecisionmanufacturing,andtheirrolewilllikelycontinuetogrowfornext-generationproductadvances.
GF MICROLUTION, INC. 6635 W IRVING PARK RD. CHICAGO, IL 60634 TEL. 773-282-6495 FAX. 866-417-4459 www.microlution-inc.com
TheRacetoSmallThereisalsoaracetosmall.Newproductdesignsarerequiringincreasinglyintricatefeaturestoenablenewperformanceresults.Forexample,newtexturinginsideoffuelinjectorholesisapotentialsolutiontofurtheroptimizespraypatternsforfuelinjectors—thisisnotpossibleusingtraditionalmachiningmethods.Microfluidicschannelsmustbemachinedtodimensionsthatallowthemtoseparatedifferentmoleculesintodifferentchannels.Andcoronarystents,madeofbothpolymerandhardmetals,mustbemachinedtoensurestructuralintegritywithstrutslessthan100micronswide.
Intheend,anewgenerationofmachiningtechnologyisneededforthefutureofprecisionmanufacturing.ThisiswherecompanieslikeMicrolutioncomein.Microlution’sadvancedmicromanufacturingtechnologyisoneofthosenewmanufacturingtechniquesthatmakesnewproductspossible,achievingthehigherqualitythatendusersdemandfaster,cleanerandultimatelyatalowercostthanthemorecoarsetechnologiesofthepast.Manymanufacturersdevelopingnext-generationproductionprocessestomakenewproductsmoreefficientlyareembracingthistechnology.
GF MICROLUTION, INC. 6635 W IRVING PARK RD. CHICAGO, IL 60634 TEL. 773-282-6495 FAX. 866-417-4459 www.microlution-inc.com
Faster,Cleaner,MorePreciseThesenewsolutionsarefaster,cleaner,andmoreprecise,leadingtohigheryieldsthroughmoreaccurate,repeatablemachining.Ultrafastlasersthatremovematerialatthemolecularlevel,createfinishedpartsinasinglestepwithnomelting,burringorrecast,andnochemicalpost-processing,areenablingmanufacturerstomakebetterproductsatalowercostperpartandtogainacompetitiveadvantageintheprocess.Newmechanicalmillingandturningsolutionwithg-forceacceleration,highspindlespeeds,andunprecedentedstabilityalsorepresentanewgenerationofmanufacturingequipmentthatmakessmallerpartsbetterandfaster.
Sensortechnologyisalsoenablingmoreefficientproductionprocesses.Glassscalesthatgivereal-timepositionalfeedback,lasersensorsthatmeasureaccuracyin-situandself-correctingsoftwarefurtherimprovesyieldsandreducecostperpart.Combinethishighprecisiontechnologywithmanufacturingautomationandyouhavehighlyefficientmicrofactoriescapableofmachiningparts24/7,withunprecedentedaccuracyandrepeatability.
GF MICROLUTION, INC. 6635 W IRVING PARK RD. CHICAGO, IL 60634 TEL. 773-282-6495 FAX. 866-417-4459 www.microlution-inc.com
"Theabilitytomakethingsisfundamentaltotheabilitytoinnovatethingsoverthelongterm,"WillyShih,aHarvardBusinessSchoolprofessorandauthorof"ProducingProsperity:WhyAmericaNeedsaManufacturingRenaissance,"tellsthemagazine."Whenyougiveupmakingproducts,youlosealotofaddedvalue."Enablingmanufacturerstomakethingsnooneelsecanmakedeliversthatvalue.That'spartoftheenormouspromiseofnonextgenerationmicromachiningtechnology--achievingnewlevelsofprecisionthatenablecompaniestobuildvaluablenewproductsquicklyandefficiently,openingthedoortonewindustrialdesignsthatcouldn'tbeotherwiseberealized,andofferingacompellingcompetitiveadvantagetomanufacturersinmultiplesectors.Microlutionhaspioneeredacompletelineofmicromachiningplatformsoptimizedforhighprecision,smallpartfabrication.Thecompany’sproductlineincludesmechanicalmillingandturningstationsaswellaslaserprocessingcenters.Allplatformsutilizeallthekeyfeaturesofaprecisionplatform.Mechanicalplatformsincludethe363-S3-axishorizontalmillingstation,the5100-S3or5-axisverticalmillingstation,andtheMR-44-axismicrolathe.ThelasermachinesincludetheML-55-axisultrafastlaserplatformandtheMLDSdual-stationmachiningcenterthatcanbeconfiguredwithasamechanical,laserorhybridplatform.
