Mazak Newsroom

December 2014

Shrinking the Skills Gap Through Education

As U.S. manufacturing continues to see improvement in both orders and job creation, factories face a collective problem that could put a damper on this growth: the skills gap. As more jobs become available, and as a growing number of qualified workers begin to retire from the workforce, the need for trained, qualified workers from younger generations becomes ever more necessary. And this need will not change anytime soon.

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Multi-Tasking Takes Sled Production Efficiency to the Xtreme

Business is all up hill for Black Diamond Xtreme in Cannon Falls, Minnesota. That's because the shop relies on our Multi-Tasking machines to manufacture aftermarket high-performance components that transform average snowmobiles into aggressive, supercharged and lightweight extreme mountain machines.

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Invest in Innovation Without Paying a Fortune

With our new UNIVERSAL Series of small-footprint milling and turning machines, we've forever changed how job shops process workpieces. These machines, while simple in their design, feature advanced technologies that bring maximum productivity and profitability to small parts production, without requiring a huge capital investment.

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Multi-Tasking Now Involves Additive Manufacturing

Over the past 20 years, additive manufacturing has transitioned from use in rapid prototyping to a fully developed manufacturing solution for a variety of industries. These days, companies are blending additive and subtractive processes together to create complete process chain systems – but none compare to our new INTEGREX i-400AM HYBRID Multi-Tasking machine.

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Multi-Tasking Takes Sled Production Efficiency to the Xtreme

Business is all up hill for Black Diamond Xtreme in Cannon Falls, Minnesota. That’s because the shop relies on Mazak Multi-Tasking machines to manufacture aftermarket high-performance components that transform average snowmobiles into aggressive, supercharged and lightweight extreme mountain machines.

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Part Processing Operations Just Got a Whole Lot Smoother

Every shop faces constantly changing part-processing requirements as the needs of the industries they serve continue to evolve. Workpiece designs can change on a daily basis, and in most instances, they become more complex. This makes the role of the machinist increasingly difficult and the need for a highly capable, agile and user-friendly machine tool control interface and adaptable software all the more necessary for shops to keep pace.

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November 2014

Going Big to Solve Common Large Part Machining Issues

Shops processing for industries such as oil and gas, aerospace and heavy equipment need bigger, high-performance machines to stay competitive. Because much of the challenge with large parts has to do with producing as much as possible in a single setup, multiple-setup operations are often inefficient and time consuming. Multi-tasking functionality helps machining centers accomplish this, and should be essential in any large part operation.

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Attention Job Shops: Investing in Innovation Doesn’t Mean Paying a Fortune

If you own a job shop, being innovative and responsive to change are important elements for success in today’s competitive manufacturing world, especially with reshoring on the rise and unskilled labor still an issue. That’s why it’s important to keep an open mind when it comes to new technology, especially if it can substantially improve your productivity and profitability without requiring a huge capital investment.

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October 2014

Medical Shop Fixates On DONE IN ONE Throughput

Lowell Inc, a medical contract manufacturer in Minneapolis, sometimes ignores part machining cycle times, and instead focuses its attention on overall throughput speed. In its current state, the shop could immediately reduce several of its machining cycle times by half, but doing so would add significant amounts of manual processing to the equation.

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Shop Hammers Out Production for Hard Rock Drilling Systems

Typically, directional drilling is associated with extracting oil and natural gas from underground shale formations. But most people are unaware of the fact that directional drilling also plays a key role in actually getting energy resources, such as natural gas and electrical power, into the hands of residential, business and industrial end users, as well as a whole host of others.

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Attendees DISCOVERED MORE at IMTS 2014

IMTS 2014 was a huge success for Mazak as we showcased a level of technology that was among the highest in the machine tool industry. With more than 114,000 visitors from around the world joining together in Chicago’s McCormick Place, the 17,000-square-foot DISCOVER MORE WITH MAZAK™ booth was constantly abuzz as attendees flocked to experience the new, highly innovative ways we can boost precision, productivity and profitability in part production.

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August 2014

Mazak Launches New Global Online Initiative

Japan-based Yamazaki Mazak Corporation and its global subsidiaries - leaders in the manufacture of highly productive machine tools, CNC technology and automation solutions - recently launched a new global online initiative comprised of fully responsive, multi-language websites to effectively support its metalworking customers around the world. These new websites are easily accessible via a unified global landing page at Mazak.com.

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Social Media in the Manufacturing Industry

Is your company still resisting the urge to jump onto social networks? Although the manufacturing sector lagged behind others in joining new digital trends, the time has come for the industry to adopt the fastest growing marketing tools like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

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July 2014

World Leader in Multi-Tasking

Multi-Tasking may be the single most important innovation in manufacturing technology for companies seeking to be lean, efficient and globally more competitive.

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Celebrating 40 Years of Advanced Manufacturing

Technology has changed the world, and nowhere else is that more evident than in today’s manufacturing industry. Advancements in machine tool technology, automation and digital connectivity, for instance, have evolved yesterday’s stereotypical dirty, smoke-stack factories into those that can only be described as sleek, lean, agile and extremely productive.

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June 2014

Mazak Leads The Way With Fully Responsive Website

Just as we’re committed to the continuous advancement of our Manufacturing Campus to support your changing technology demands, we take the same approach when it comes to our website so we can constantly provide you with new, forward-thinking online tools.

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Top Five Reasons To Attend the MTConnect Webinar

Our MTConnect webinar is less than a week away. If you still haven’t registered for this incredible opportunity, here are five top reasons we think you should attend the webinar and learn about the technology that has catapulted manufacturing into the digital age.

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Filling the Skilled-Worker Pipeline

Despite high unemployment nationwide, manufacturers are finding it increasingly difficult to hire workers with the skills required for today’s technology-intensive shop-floor jobs. To add to the problem, the pool of experienced personnel is shrinking as older workers retire, and many young people aren’t entering the industry due to misconceptions about the nature of factory work.

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May 2014

Shop Centers Success on Self-Contained Single-Cell Automation

Ask Michael Olano, president of Dynomach Inc., how to be a profitable high-volume production shop, and his answer will be self-contained single-cell automation – more specifically, twin-spindle machines outfitted with bar feeders and automatic parts catchers.

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Automated HMC Cell Powers Rod Production Flexibility

Automotive connecting rod production is not what it used to be. Gone are the days of vehicle engine platforms that would run for 10-plus years requiring connecting rods that basically remained unchanged design wise. Instead, today’s automakers, in efforts to reduce vehicle weight and emissions, continuously introduce new and smaller engines – with fewer cylinders, yet increased horsepower – at an average rate of every three or so years.

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7 Simple Ways to Minimize Spindle Repair

No manufacturer wants to see part production come to a screeching halt due to a down machine tool spindle, especially if it involves a repair that could have been avoided through proper maintenance. To help keep your operations running smoothly, I offer you these seven simple, yet important, spindle maintenance tips.

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April 2014

Shop Gives Props to DONE IN ONE Cellular Manufacturing

Hartzell Propeller Inc, with roots tracing back to a relationship with the Wright Airplane Co. (founded by the Wright Brothers) is one shop that gives the utmost proper recognition to manufacturing cells - in particular those that incorporate multi-tasking done-in-one machine technology. These special types of cells, over the past few years, have not only allowed the shop to continuously boost its aircraft propeller production output, but do so using less equipment and smaller amounts of manufacturing floor space.

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March 2014

Celebrating 40 Years in Kentucky

Yamazaki Mazak Corporation entered the U.S. market in 1968, opening its first subsidiary outside of Japan in Long Island, New York. In 1974, the company moved its U.S. operations to Florence, Kentucky to establish a forward-thinking manufacturing venture with the capacity to modify its Japanese imports to meet the unique requirements of the North American market. This year, Mazak Corporation (USA) celebrates 40 years in Kentucky and its evolution into a high-tech manufacturing campus that is second to none.

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February 2014

Midwest Event Welcomes Manufacturers, Penske Racing & Reshoring Initiative

Each year we look forward with great anticipation to our region’s DISCOVER MORE WITH MAZAK™ event. For three days, we welcome regional manufacturers to join us at the Mazak Midwest Technology Center to experience the latest developments in machine tool, automation and cutting tool technology through...

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Machine Tool Trends in Aerospace Manufacturing

The aerospace industry today is a hotbed of manufacturing activity and advanced machine tool technology. At Mazak, we see a strong trend of increased interest in machine tools with 5-axis capabilities for aerospace part machining. It’s very similar to the early days of mill-turn machines, when manufacturers began to recognize the benefits of adding milling and drilling capabilities to standard 2-axis lathes.

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Discover How CAM Software Simplifies Multi-Tasking Machining

DP Technology, a Mazak VIP partner, has a passion for excellence and innovation in the development of its CAM software as well as supporting its OEM partners. So much so that I am stationed at Mazak’s Kentucky headquarters to enhance the performance of the company's machine tools via DP Technology’s ESPRIT product, a full-spectrum programming system for milling, turning and multi-tasking solutions.

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January 2014

2014: The Year of Must-Attend Events

At the 2013 Performance Racing Industry show in December, we wrapped up an extremely busy and highly successful year of attending trade shows and hosting technology-driven education events at our various Technology Centers, including our groundbreaking DISCOVER 2013 event that took place at our Kentucky headquarters. And 2014 promises to be just as exciting as we continue to participate in major industry shows and host regional DISCOVER MORE WITH MAZAK events across the nation.

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