Machining and Outdoors Recreation Industry

Recreation as a whole is one of those industries that flourish in a recession. I found myself picking up a fishing rod and reel and hitting one of the small inland lakes in Michigan, which was a state heavily hit by the recession. For citizens here, there is the choice of the largest fresh water lakes in the United States, and the fishing is world renown. It had been at least 2 years since my last fishing trip, but it was very rewarding. I think the renewed interest in recreational products extends beyond me to those who manufacture the components for fishing gear. And for Michigan manufacturers, at least those in precision machining, this could be a way to diversify.

Because of their high price tags, automobiles were one of the first things consumers stopped purchasing when the recession hit, and it really hit Michigan hard. Not only for General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, and other automotive companies, but the many CNC machining service providers and part suppliers to those companies. For screw machine shops and precision CNC machining companies, the recreation industry can be a good way to diversify. At least in Michigan, the automotive industry encompasses most of the gross sales for many of these manufacturers, so the pressure to have a diversified sales pipeline is ever increasing. According to the RBFF or Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation, fishermen spend $176 a year on just fishing tackle alone. Moreover, they contribute an additional $40 annually to conservation through license purchases. That is why when the sale of fishing licenses goes up, so too does the sale of associated tackle and goods, not to mention live bait.

Although fishing rods themselves are generally made of spun carbon, and the really nice leads are generally porcelain, some leads are still made out of Titanium, steel, or aluminum. However, the reel is what yields the most potential for precision machining companies. As far as the reel is concerned, the end user wants a smooth action with easy casting and reeling of the life. This requires that the reel have several smooth ball bearings with a low level of friction and resistance. This requires very tight tolerances in the machining process. Additionally, there are complex fishing reel gears and the real seat that would be the parts to go after. I am sure that some of these components may be OEM, but with the drive in innovation and distinction in the marketplace, many reel and spool manufacturers are turning to custom designs with various gear ratios and tooth counts. Moreover, many components for fly fishing reels are cold forged, but CNC machining offers a greater level of precision and control over design. This is also an opportunity for manufacturers whose primary process is cold forging or stamping. Moreover, there are great secondary service opportunities such as anodizing and metal treating. And because the industry in Michigan is always growing, this is not only an area for reel manufacturers to gain input about the quality of their products, it is a great marketplace to find suppliers. In fact, there has been a strong social movement in the area to support Michigan commerce from everyone, including local consumers. Therefore, a patron may prefer a rod and reel that includes Michigan made components, which is something for fishing equipment manufacturers to consider.

 

In the end it really boils down to local sourcing. China is no longer the cheapest place to do business, and there are more than enough case studies to show that products coming out of the country are sub quality. After searching many online supplier databases and international websites for the machining and manufacturing industry of recreational products, the list of companies is saturated by companies from China. It is time to bring the industry back here to the U.S shores.

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Technology and Machining Shops

Technology is probably my favorite topic in the news world, and innovation and growth in this area is a pretty valid indicator of prosperity and economic growth. Machining shops are starting to invest in new machinery and are spending a lot of money on rebuilding their current machinery. When the economy went into a recession it was neither a good time to buy or sell equipment, because let’s face it, there was a lot more than straight line depreciation running the value down on manufacturing machinery. Companies were filing for bankruptcy which exacerbated the saturated of ‘for sale’ machinery in the marketplace. This was a goldmine for those companies that were doing great because they could get equipment at liquidation cost, which is one of the first signs of heavy industry consolidation. Therefore, it is pretty obvious that investment in new equipment stopped. Fortunately, the Robotic Industries Association or RIA reported that orders of manufacturing robotics has increased by 41% which represents about $600 million in machinery investment for North American manufacturers. 

This is up 50% from the same period 2010 and the second quarter of this year has seen even more growth. The orders come from companies like Ford and General Motors. General Motors reported some of their first strong profits this year since the sale of automobiles dropped off a cliff in late 2008. What we’re not seeing is a lot of spending on software or e-commerce, because computer technology takes a back seat to the shop floor. Of course, software goes obsolete quickly, sometimes overnight. But in both the professional world and the academic setting, e-commerce is going to be a key investment in the near feature for most firms. Firms are buying the machinery, exporting is up, and the technology to better handle international relationships and selling is mostly going to be on the Internet.

Some companies already understand the importance of e-commerce as the way to not only dominate sales leads from search engines, but to export their products and services to other countries without aligning strategic alliances or setting up regional sales offices which is extremely costly. It all really starts with a strategy. Managers need to ask what they need the website to do, what traffic they want, and where they want exposure. In the case of manufacturing, which is the industry that I’ve had the most exposure to, lead generation using an informative strategy is the best bet for most firms. This means educating the user about your products, services, or capabilities and then calling them to action. What do you want the user to do? Ask them to do something on every page of your site. For example, after providing information on CNC milling or turning, tell them to get a quote by filling out the contact form. Make sure to establish credibility through the use of body copy, rich media content such as images and videos, and then provide the necessary link to contact; whether it is a form for a quote request or a number to call or in some cases, even online chat using Skype or social media chat like Facebook.

 
In order to soften the burden of technology spending, have the site built in a manageable platform. Edits to the content I was talking about earlier is far easier when you use a content management system or CMS. These provide a backend interface to the website, which makes changes to text, images, and video easier. I suggest asking your web designer to use Joomla! or Word Press to build your company’s website. These have mostly the same functionality, but each of these CMS platforms has different plug-ins, extensions, and styles of templates. Template files can be modified so there is a lot of room for customization. You have to install these into C-panel in order to use them, but once they are installed then the CMS becomes your interface to website creation. This is something that your web designer would already be in tune with. It reduces the need to learn some HTML or CSS, but as I’ve quickly learned, you can only avoid it for so long. You’ll want to integrate your branding across every page, but your home page or index page needs to be the core focus of your site. Because exports are up and automation machinery is on the rise, why not give some focus to technology. Although costly up front, we’re in the information age and it will keep the cost of doing business down. It will also make it easier to make contact internationally.

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The Automotive Industry Goes Full Auto

When I hear the word robotics, I automatically start thinking about Johnny 5 from those 1980’s movies, but in recent years, even recent days, robotics has become more popular. My personal fondness of robotics took off when I was reading about a U.S based company called Hanson Robotics that was developing animated robots with pretty robust artificial intelligence; technology so advanced that ‘Jules’ as he is called, could identify you by your face and respond to nearly any question you could throw at him. 

The implications for human like robotics are always the topic of science fiction and reality. This is certainly a topic that could foster hours of conversation within MIT’s elite. Automation is the topic at hand, and it seems to be the talk in nearly every facet of operations, including information technology. Automate a process and you will not only reduce the margin of human error, you will ultimately reduce your direct labor cost, and it is certainly easier to monitor quality when functions are linear. The very reason why CNC machining took off in the 1970’s was because it was computer controlled, precise, and nearly autonomous in nature, except for a little human interaction by the operator.

 
When robotics started to take off in the automotive industry in the 1980’s, specifically on the production line, the cost of technology was far greater. Not that it isn’t very costly today, but compare the prices of even personal computer technology during that period and you’ll understand what I am really implying. There was an obvious return on investment that automotive manufacturers like Ford and General Motors realized, but the upfront costs were in fact great. You would only want to invest in such technology if you were expecting to produce extremely high levels of inventory, where gained efficiency would create a higher margin of cost savings, resulting in a shorter investment return period. This would also help supply consumer demand if scarcity was a threat, but we’ll save micro economics 101 for another day. I believe that history is repeating itself as far as the investment in robots goes, especially on this scale. The North American robotics industry, represented by the Robotic Industries Association or RIA, has released purchase data for the first 2 quarters of 2011 and the numbers are really good. As a whole, robotics orders are up 41% overall, and the industry says that is the best results they have seen since 2007. 

Nearly 600 million dollars in robotics were ordered by North American based companies. When compared nominally to the same base period in 2010, there were 50% gains in purchase orders for the second quarter this year. Most of the orders have come from automotive companies and their suppliers. It is no surprise that the automotive industry purchases more robotics technology than any other industry but both the food and consumer retail industry saw growth as well; 60% versus their previous results in 2010. However, automotive has taken a hit in recent years, so paired with increased exports from small to medium sized firms, manufacturing here in the United States is starting to see a few gleams of sun through their piles of inventoried steel. I would just like to see towns like Braddock, Pennsylvania recover after the U.S steel industry took a nose dive. I know that this is another industry that needs help, and that if growing, would produce high paying jobs. Now that I’m reporting on the recovery of the automotive sector, let us see if we can’t jump start a few industries through speculation and optimism.

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Precision Machining Safety

I worked in print manufacturing for 6 years. As a chairman of a safety audit team and ergonomics auditor, I’ve seen my share of safety issues in a manufacturing environment. One such example is actually my own story, a point in time where I decided that if I wanted to make my company even safer that I would need to be a part of it. Most machinery, even CNC machines, printing presses, and folder glue machines have work plates that the operators often lean against to inspect parts and samples, and to fill out appropriate paper work for maintenance and paperwork for the current job run. If the user repeatedly presses against the plate over a long period of time, the injuries could be as extreme as permanent nerve damage.

Injuries from repetitive motion are the most prevalent, and generally have a lower level of awareness. This is due to the fact that major accidents are severe enough that they create a heightened level of awareness and response from administration, not to mention investigation from OSHA. However, because the repetitive injuries are incremental as far as timeline is concerned, they go unnoticed until they are problematic. I was in fact a machine operator that experienced this type of repetitive exposure that prompted managers to install a rubber gasket on all work station plates in order to prevent these types of accidents from ever happening again. If you’re the administrator or shift supervisor for a shop floor, then you’ll want to consider some easy precautions to avoid not only repetitive injuries, but major accidents. It is often found, if not always found, that major accidents are preventable.

Although it is required to offer proper eye wear such as side protective glasses when handling corrosives or machines with moving parts, don’t be frugal with this expense. In this case of high speed part turning or working with high RPM machinery, the protective eye wear may need to endure high speed impact from a piece of rogue steel or bronze, even wood. This means to look at the toughness ratings of the eye wear. Moreover, be sure to select eye wear that covers both sides of the face, trailing back to the ears. A piece of debris could easily make it past the side of the glasses and into the eyes of this is not covered. This is just in case the user is not directly facing the machinery, and may be looking off to the side. Make sure that the eye wear is rated to handle corrosive materials such as solvents and certain types of acids and chemicals such as inks. Not all eye wear is intended for general use; there are special glasses for different applications. Eye wear that is in the style of eye glasses can be risky, so as mentioned below, make sure to purchase eye wear that has the protective lip that stays tight to the skin of the face. Be sure to post signs at all work stations to wear protective eye wear where applicable.

Proper lifting technique can prevent irreversible back injuries that could result in not only high medical costs for the patient but for the company as well. This includes lost time due to the accident, and there are high rest periods for back injuries, not to mention the need for multiple surgeries in some cases. Keeping onsite training videos and manuals for proper lifting techniques is imperative. In fact, during safety audits at the company, we would pick an employee at random and conduct an evaluation of their lifting techniques. All new employees should be trained and then documented on their ability to lift properly. There should be lifting restrictions that outline when to ask for a second person for help. Just because you lift an item properly, the overwhelming weight of an item could stress the disks in the lower back. Employers should be more proactive when there are seasonal employees on staff. Make sure that these employees are also trained on proper lifting techniques, even if their period of employment is only 30 or even 90 days. These two things alone could prevent accidents from occurring. It is critical that manufacturing facilities are proactive about these safety measures.

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