Midwest city embracing non-automotive tooling
Sunday, August 30, 2009
By Joe Brown

Windle Mechanical Solutions has taken on niche, low-volume and high-profit manufacturing jobs. Reporter Diane Mastrull of The Philadelphia Enquirer wrote an excellent article giving a glimpse into the transformation of small manufacturers in Pennsylvania.

There are no snaking assembly lines, no massive stockpiles of steel, aluminum, and bronze. But then, there are no big orders.

On last week’s jobs list:

* Six positioning devices for probes on an automatic welding machine;
* Four wheels for a military carrier launch and retrieval system;
* Four couplings for a nuclear pump application;
* Two helicopter-frame fittings;
* Two airplane landing-gear parts, and
* Two parts for biopharmaceutical freeze-driers

Source: http://blog.toolanddieing.com

Aluminum Parts Types – Their Roles in Welding. Have you ever heard of welding? The welding industry is growing fast and the requirements for the materials are also getting tough. It is in this sense that the welding companies see the usefulness of aluminum and its alloys. Basically, the aluminum parts types are fairly amenable when it comes to welding metalwork pieces. Aluminum is after all considered to be one of the best metals to use because of its fluidity during the heating process. Even when a much lower or a relatively higher temperature is used, there is really no problem in handling the aluminum and its alloys.

Aluminum bears properties that react effectively in the welding process. It easily melts and then never cracks even after solidifying. The procedure of aluminum welding is performed depending on the aluminum parts types. Many of these parts are those that contain the so called commercial grade aluminum which are compacted with about 99% of purity. Therefore, the effects of the heat treatment vary as well. Those that have lead or copper in them are too hard to weld and usually end up cracking during the process of welding.

The welding procedure of the aluminum parts types include the TIG and MIG along with the other traditional techniques of resistance welding, plasma, gas, and use of covered electrodes. TIG is the approach used in generating the fine surface finishes and in the welding of pipes and repairing the castings. Meanwhile, the MIG technique suits the welding of thicker aluminum metal pieces that require a longer welding cycle.

Kinetic Die Casting gets a lot of requests for pricing from the internet. Many of these requests have been unanswered because of the limited man hours available to track down information necessary to provide pricing to potential customers.

We are currently searching for Sales Reps in other areas of the United States to follow up on quote requests. We will supply potential leads for the Rep to follow up on. These are leads generated from the internet when potential customers ask for information.

If you are already an experienced manufacturers sales rep, you know how valuable this can be to your commission structure. Contact us at 800-524-8083 and ask for Bob for further details.

More Sales Rep Information…..

Kinetic Die Casting Company
6918 Beck Avenue
North Hollywood, California 91605 USA
(800) 524-8083 Free Telephone Number
(818) 982-9200 direct number
(818) 982-0877 fax number
E-mail info@kineticdc.com

Last year Tesla Motors scored a nice coup with former Chrysler executive Mike Donoughe as Tesla’s new Vice President of vehicle engineering and manufacturing. Now they’ve scored big again with the hiring of highly-respected and former GM, BMW and Audi exec, John Walker.

The electric-car company also hired an exec in the communications department from YouTube, Ricardo Reyes. Finally, a spokesperson from Tesla recently said they will be looking to hire 150 more employees–most in engineering from the automotive industry.

TRAVERSE CITY, MICH. — While the North American auto industry may have been taking a series of economic hits, international auto suppliers are still looking to the U.S. for future growth.

Mexico’s Grupo Bocar is building a third injection molding plant for its Plastic Tec group, and headed north to the auto industry’s Management Briefing Seminars, being held Aug. 4-7 in Traverse City, to promote its capabilities.

The Mexico City-based company already is a direct supplier to U.S., European and Japanese-based carmakers. It has three business units producing aluminum die cast parts, machined parts and plastics. It came to Traverse City to boost its profile and show off its capabilities.

Plastic Tec currently has plants in Mexico City and Lerma, Mexico, with a combined 80 injection molding presses, ranging in size from 25 to 1,600 tons. The new plant, which is now under construction in San Luis Potosi, will add another 25 to 30 presses.

“We are not a shoot and ship company,” said Jaime Puente, office manager. “We have state-of-the-art equipment and facilities.”

Plastic Tec made the first in-mold application of a textile skin for an auto interior part in North America for Volkswagen AG’s Jetta. It makes air vents for BMW AG’s assembly plant in Spartanburg, S.C., replacing parts previously made in Europe, Puente said.

Italian auto suppliers, meanwhile, are touting their knowledge of Fiat SpA — a relationship that takes on added importance now that Fiat has purchased a controlling interest in Chrysler Group LLC of Auburn Hills, Mich.

“[Fiat and Chrysler] are in an early limbo stage now but there are opportunities it is going to happen,” said Luigi Giachino, business development manager for Mecaprom Technologies Corp., of Bergamo, Italy, in an interview at the Management Briefing Seminars in Traverse City.

Mecaprom recently opened its first Detroit-area office, in Plymouth, Mich., and it is looking for a partner in the region that it can team with to combine its knowledge on small engine development with Fiat.

The company is just part of an outreach from auto suppliers in Italy through the Italian American Alliance for Business and Technology. The alliance of auto suppliers located around Turin, Italy — which is home to Fiat — wants to make connections with Chrysler and its supply base.

Many of the alliance companies have had business in North America in the past, but expect to build on that now that Fiat will be working with Chrysler on future small vehicles, said Alliance President Massimo Denipoti.