Welding
As I continue working on my book I have come to a section that has been difficult to classify. Chapter 7 concerns the various trades that are involve working in the automation field. The first part describes primarily engineering and …
Category: Techniques
Applications
My goal is to become a national and international resource and as such I am hoping to expand my network considerably. Please contact me if you wish to become part of my new automation solutions network.
Six Sigma and Lean Manufacturing
As part of my preparation for moving back into the consulting world I recently signed up for a series of classes and certifications through Purdue University on Six Sigma and Lean Manufacturing. These classes lead to certification as a green …
Japanese Words…
For all of my thousands of followers I’m sure you all noticed that I didn’t post for the last couple of weeks. I spent some time on a badly needed vacation, visiting Seattle and Japan. As mentioned in a previous …
The Bite Too Big to Chew
This is the loading station of a machine that was one of the last jobs I did with my small machine building company. It is a precision hydraulic press for torque converters. During the years of 2005-2006 we had acquired …
Upgrading Old Equipment
When I was on my own I often got requests quote the rebuild of old and obsolete equipment. There were various factors at work to make companies want to do this: inability to obtain spare parts due to discontinued components, …
Safety Classifications
I have spent the last few days working on a fairly elaborate safety system that involves linking and unlinking safety zones. Usually I have used on machine as a “master” and the the other a “slave” or sub-zone, but this …
The Art of Pokayoke
Poka-yoke is a Japanese term roughly translated to “mistake-proofing”. Techniques include the use of sensors to verify part location, orientation and quality, fixturing to ensure incorrect components can’t be installed, sequencing and detection of proper assembly steps by such techniques …
Choosing the Right Sensor
With all of the different types of sensors available and so many manufacturers and vendors competing for your business sometimes it can be difficult or confusing to choose the correct sensor for an application. In many cases such as detecting …