crosswind

To Bid or Not to Bid, that is the question….

Tue, 26 Mar 2019 00:00:25 GMT

Here is a truth every job shop knows, and sometimes customers (potential and existing) seem to forget: Quoting isn’t free.

Preparing quotes is costly because it consumes the attention of knowledgeable staff members who could otherwise be giving attention (to existing) paying jobs.

Customers (potential and existing) want the best pricing and delivery times they can get, economics 101, right? The belief is that sending out RFQ’s (bids), will cause job shops to yield the lowest pricing they are willing to take to “win” the RFQ, thus providing the customer (buyer) his pick of RFQ responses with the lowest pricing available. The truth is, that is not always the case. Every shop is different when it comes to employees, availability, scheduling, capability, tooling, raw material availability & delivery, machinability and of course machines themselves, thus pricing may vary greatly. However, it is a necessary process to ensure your job schedule remains booked and securing the financial future of your business.

So, when CrossWind receives an RFQ, we (like everybody else I’m sure) have a process in which we go through to scrutinize each RFQ quickly, as to limit our time and resources spent on even deciding to respond to an RFQ. I should point out, that CrossWind DOES respond to EVERY RFQ that we get. However, the response may not be a bid, but rather an email or phone call stating that we are NOT bidding on the RFQ and a reason why we aren’t going to bid.

Please let me explain a bit further, for any shop to bid a project, they literally must sit down visualize the entire manufacturing of a single part from start to finish. Assuming we have the capability to do the part, CrossWind takes into consideration the following when quoting:

Material costs and availability Including shipping time (get quotes?)
Tooling costs and availability Including shipping time (get quotes?)
Setup time for machining 1 part (which is the same for 500 or 5000 parts) – this may require multiple setups depending on what delivery schedule the client is asking for.
3rd party vendors needed (heat treating, anodization, laser etching, passivation, etc.) Inc. shipping costs & process times (get quotes?)
Cycle time of making 1 part (which requires working through physically machining 1 part, and then we extrapolate for each quantity tier bid)
Any special handling, cleaning or assembly of each part
Any special instructions (i.e. packaging) on RFQ
Delivery schedule requested
Qty requested (5,50,500,5000?) (R&D or Production?)
Is there a middleman involved (sales rep or bidding website)?
Is this just an RFQ to check their current vendor of these parts or is it possible an order will come out of it.

Given these considerations, CrossWind’s RFQ process involves several people, so I want to make sure I’m not wasting valuable resources on an RFQ that we can’t even complete or meet expectations as the RFQ is requesting.

I won’t bore you with the internal process to get from RFQ request to an actual quote, but just know that an accurate bid takes at least an 1-2 hours to accurately complete, once you’ve got it started. Which is at least 1-2 hours @ $0 revenue for any resources used during that time, and many times we are waiting for quotes BACK for the quotes for material, tooling, 3rd party processes, etc. So realistically, it’s 1-2 days before you get all the information together to put it in an RFQ response back to the customer.

So, why am I explaining this you ask? Because I’d like our readers out there, sending out RFQ’s to multiple vendors (shops) to see that it takes time to put together an accurate quote on our end, and sometimes we may not have the time to complete the quote, or the part may not be a good fit for us to make, or we may see that we can’t make the delivery schedule you are asking for.

I also want to point out that “Economies of Scale” really come into play in bidding on RFQ’s…in laymen’s terms, the higher the quantity we’re bidding the lower the pricing per part. We amortize the cost of the entire job over the quantity bid per tier. That’s why 25 parts may cost you $27/each, but 250 parts may be $10/each and 2500 parts may be $7/each. The longer we can keep your parts on the machine, they cheaper they get…job shops like CrossWind Machining don’t make any money, unless the machines are making parts!

Lastly, don’t be offended if we ask you to “Price Point” the part (What are you currently paying for it?). We sometimes can tell you instantly that either we can’t beat the current price, or it will be close to what you are paying now. And it’s not worth the time and resources on our end to go through the exercise of verifying what we already knew, and not worth wasting your time waiting for an RFQ response that doesn’t do you any good.

I also want to point out, that when responding to an RFQ in which we’ve never made a component, we are basing our quoted pricing on mostly estimates of some those considerations…mainly cycle time & setup time. Once we get the job, the cycle time and setup times may vary from our estimates. So, we always look at the first time making a component as a learning curve, and maybe the cycle time and/or setup time is different than our estimate. Even though we are already bid at a certain price, the NEXT time the same component is asked to be bid on we may change the pricing…either up or down.

I hope this gives you some insight into what it takes on our end to figure out not only how much to quote when asked to do so, but the process and resources that go into just getting an accurate quote back to you so that CrossWind doesn’t lose money, but also we meet all of our clients specifications and delivery times needed.

CNC (Including Swiss Screw) Machining vs. Injection Molding, Which is the Right Choice?

ken@crosswindmachining.com — Fri, 07 Dec 2018 22:07:14 GMT

Since I just got back from the BioMedevice Show in San Jose, I thought a post is warranted since I spoke to a lot of injection molding companies while I was there.

Where do I even start....

When talking with some of my customers that we machine parts for, the path is always the same...R & D components (maybe 5), then several iterations (maybe up to 5; which may/may not require prototypes), then small production run (100-500), then larger production runs (500-5000/yr) and then increasing as the product continues its life cycle and gains familiarity in the market then then at some point, the conversation comes up about switching to injection molding instead of continuing machining them (insert audible record player needle scratch!).

When moving from design to creating your parts, you must decide how to make the parts. In the best-case scenario, you had already considered this during the design process and your design is already optimized for one of the processes. Keep in mind, during the development life cycle; the right choice MIGHT change. Two common methods I want to talk about are CNC Machining (Including Swiss Screw) and injection molding. Both have advantages and disadvantages when choosing between them.

Before I get started, let me preface this blog with CrossWind Machining is a CNC Swiss Screw Machine shop, WE DO NOT and HAVE NOT done injection molding but I/we do understand the nuances of both processes pretty well. This post is NOT about advocating for one or the other process, only you can determine which is right for you. But rather laying out the nuances of each that will help you make your decision to go with either (or both!) processes.

First of all, if you've gotten your production to the quantity levels to even consider injection molding, bravo to you! However, just because that's what the industry considers the standard progression in manufacturing, it isn't always the answer ... just like in Indiana Jones when the knight protecting the Holy Grail is making them choose a “cup” to drink from - a word of caution.... Choose Wisely!

Now let’s get started and look closely at each process!

CNC (Including Swiss Screw) Machining:

A process that typically starts with a block or bar of the desired material. CNC machining involves precisely removing material layers at a time. This process allows for many different materials to be used with few limitations. Also, because it is computer controlled, very precise tolerances can be achieved.

Injection Molding:

As the name suggests, this process involves injecting material into a mold. This is done by melting the stock material and forcing it into mold at high pressure. The part is then allowed to cool in the mold and then is ejected from the mold. The process is repeated for the next part.

Which process is right for you?

In general, this can be looked at as a trade-off between multiple of different characteristics; speed, volume, material, tolerances/surface finish, and design. Each one of these can be a limiting factor in using one process vs. the other and might even require changes to the part in order to manufacture.

Speed :

This is the simplest. For low volume of parts, CNC machining is the fastest. If you need 10 parts in 2 weeks, CNC machining is probably your only solution. If you need 50,000 parts in 4 months, injection molding can be the way to go. Injection molding requires time to make the mold and ensure the parts are in tolerance. This can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months. Once this is done, creating parts using the mold is a very fast process. The upfront time & cost investment of injection molding will pay off at high volumes….

Volume :

Let’s look at this independent of time. Instead, the focus here is price per part. Which are cheaper changes depending on volume. CNC is cheaper when you need a few parts up to a few thousand. While you do get some benefit of volume in the price, it is typically seen between a few parts and a hundred. At larger volumes, you do not get any additional benefit of volume. This is from distributing the setup cost over the number of parts made + material needed.

The actual cost per part of injection molded parts is significantly cheaper that machined parts. Unfortunately, for injection molding, the creating the mold can be a large upfront cost. This is than spread out across the number of parts made to determine the cost per part. At a certain volume, even with the large upfront cost of the molds, injected parts become cheaper than machined. As more parts are created, the gap in cost becomes greater. This crossover can occur from as little as 1000 parts up to about 5000 (but there usually is many factors that dictate this).

At least to some degree, asking what plastic injection molds cost is a lot like asking “How much is a car?”. Will your mold be a Pinto or a Porsche? Features? Complexity of the mold? You get the picture....

According to Rex Plastics, "the determining factors in the cost of your mold are a combination of the part size, complexity, material, and anticipated quantities. For instance, if you wanted 1,000 washers per year, we would recommend a single cavity mold, meaning it makes one washer per machine cycle. In that case the mold would probably be $1,000-2,000."

"On the other hand, if you are going to need 100,000 xbox controllers every month, we would build a 12 cavity hardened “family” mold which made four Fronts, four Backs, and four Button Trees every cycle, and you’d better have $60-$80,000 or more to invest."

"Of course these examples are extreme, but it illustrates the range of costs to anticipate. Your particular part will most likely fall somewhere in between that, and the molds that Rex Plastics builds average around $12,000."

"Material selection is another consideration in determining what plastic injection molds cost. If your product requires a fiberglass filled material for instance, it will most likely need a mold made from hardened tool steel due to the wear those materials cause when being injected under high pressure."

"If you have a target price established for your parts, it will be helpful to let your mold builder know that, because they can design the mold with that in mind, and plan for the right number of cavities to achieve that price. The more cavities (or parts made per cycle), the less expensive the parts will be, also allowing for higher output."

"While you don’t need to know every detail about the types of molds available, it’s always a good idea to come prepared. Supplying the basics to your mold builder will help them build the best tool for your project. It’s also recommended that you find a mold maker who also has production capabilities. The company running the production won’t want to build an inadequate mold because they know they have to use it!"

Material :
CNC machining offers a greater selection of materials that can be used to create the parts. This can be very important deciding factor if a high-performance plastic or a specific plastic is required. In general, harder plastics are easier to machine than softer materials

For injected molded components, the material selection can be more limited. More and more high performing materials are being created with injection molding in mind. There are some materials which would be impossible to machine, but you can mold. Rubbers and other flexible materials would fall into this category.

Tolerance / Surface Finish:
Once again, the advantage goes to CNC machining. With most materials, a tighter tolerance can be held, and a better surface finish can be obtained. One advantage of injection molding is the repeatability from lot to lot. Molds can last for millions of parts with minimal wear. This allows for the parts from one batch to the next to be almost identical. With CNC machining, each part is made on the machine to be created and more variability will be seen. Some of the variability is due to different material lots, tools dulling before replacement, even different employee’s might have ever so slightly allowable discrepancies but still within tolerance.

Design:
First question should be; is the design going to change? If so, then you might not want to spend the money to make a mold yet . Molds are difficult and many times impossible to modify for changes in design.

But even before that, designing a part for machining can be much different than for molding. In both cases, one process can make features that would be difficult or impossible to create using the other process.

Machining allows for great flexibility in the design. Many features can be easily made with machining that would be very difficult or cost prohibited in molding. Some of these include, overhangs, large walls with no drafts and variable wall thicknesses.

On the other hand, injection molding allows for deep features, square holes and living hinges to be produced easily that could be difficult and expensive with machining.

As you can see, the decision between machining vs. injection molding is not straightforward. If you hadn't picked up on it, quantity is probably one of the most important factors...lower quantities aren't usually worth injection molding. But, If you need some of the advantages of both from tolerances, price and design features, you might want to consider a two-step operation where the main features of the part are injection molded and secondary machining options are done to perform the final steps. This is common technique to blend the benefits of the two processes together.

Hopefully this has been informative for you, please feel free to email me with any questions and I will try and answer your questions -

Ken Smith

Quality Systems Director

CrossWind Machining

ken@crosswindmachining.com

CNC vs. CNC Swiss Machining

ken@crosswindmachining.com — Tue, 09 Oct 2018 22:14:00 GMT

What Are the Differences between Conventional CNC and Swiss Machining?

As somebody who has been around machining and machine shops all my life, yet not fully understanding some of the differences between various machine types and/or their capability differences. I found a great article published by the CSI Group, that had a very good comparison that includes not only the differences between CNC (Lathes) & CNC Swiss (Lathes) Machining, but some Pro's & Con's of both. I hope that this helps you understand more of what the differences are and the capabilities are of each and why CrossWind Machining chose to exclusively use CNC Swiss Screw Machines -

There are distinct advantages and applications for both CNC & CNC Swiss machines, but they are very different processes. Choosing which precision machining process depends on the specific job. Let me see if I can summarize them here for you.

CNC Swiss Machining

Swiss-type precision machining provides a cost-effective way to produce components for medical and defense products such as dust cover pins and firing pins used in military rifles. These long, slender components feature a tolerance band of 0.0005 inch on the part’s diameter.

A Swiss-type lathe consists of a variety of turning machines that feed the stock through a guide bushing. This means the OD turning tool can always cut the stock near the bushing, and therefore, near the point of support, no matter how long the workpiece. The machine feeds the work out of the spindle and past the tool as it goes. This makes the CNC Swiss-type particularly effective for long and slender turned parts.

Advantages of Swiss Turning Process

The advantage of a Swiss turning process is that the material is supported close to the tools that are cutting, using a guide bushing that the bar stock is pushed thru and into the tools. This prevents deflection of the bar stock when using a conventional turning process. On many machines, the tools are only a few thousands from the face of the guide bushing.

Swiss-Style Distinguishers

Swiss-style screw machine, running off bar stock, typically creates a cylindrical part
A 12-foot bar with automatic bar loaders in which 15-20 bars can be placed and fed through the machine
The tools are machining as the bar is pushed forward through a guide bushing
There are often numerous tools and multiple axes that can be used to complete the part
Swiss machining can deal with complex designs and complex parts can be machined to completion on one machine
Small runs from 1,000 pieces to high-volume production can be done through Swiss machining
Processes can include drilling, turning, milling, boring, knurling, and many special processes

Swiss turning is ideal for long parts and small-diameter parts under .125″.

Examples of Swiss Parts Are:

Contacts used in connectors
Watch parts
Shafts
Long medical devices and implants
A variety of connecting components for aerospace and electronics

CNC Conventional Machining

The first CNC precision machines were built in the 1940s and 50s and became the workhorses of the modern machine shop. Motion is controlled along multiple axes, normally at least two (X and Y), and a tool spindle that moves in the Z (depth). The position of the tool is driven by motors through a series of step-down gears, in order to provide highly accurate movements, or in modern designs, direct-drive stepper motor or servo motors. Open-loop controls work as long as the forces are kept small enough and speeds are not too great. On commercial metalworking machines, closed-loop controls are standard and required in order to provide the accuracy, speed, and repeatability demanded.

Advantages of Conventional Turning

Conventional turning extends the material from the chuck/collet to the overall length of the part, and then tools will move into the bar. Conventional turning is better suited for short, large-diameter parts with very tight tolerances. Conventional turning is also best suited for larger parts with difficult materials.

CNC-like systems are now used for any process that can be described as a series of movements and operations. These include laser cutting, welding, friction stir welding, ultrasonic welding, flame and plasma cutting, bending, spinning, hole-punching, pinning, gluing, fabric cutting, sewing, tape and fiber placement, routing, picking and placing (PnP), and sawing.

Conventional Turning Distinguishers

CNC machining is ideal for forgings, castings, plates, or blocks of steel
The use of higher production, special fixturing, and palletizing systems are created to facilitate the volume efficiently
Tool changers in the machine store multiple tools, and the machine picks a tool for the operation, puts it back, picks the next tool and repeats the process until the product is machined to a finished state
Fixtures can hold any number of parts from approximately one to 40

Examples of Conventional Turning Parts:

Fluid controls
Castings
Automotive
Anything with a diameter larger than 1.5″

I hope this sheds some light on some of the differences between conventional CNC (Lathes) & CNC Swiss (Lathes) Machining - it certainly helped me really understand which is the best to use in certain applications.

Ken Smith
Quality Systems Director
CrossWind Machining

How Will ISO 13485:2016 Impact Your Relationship With Suppliers...

Fri, 03 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

...Why You Should Be Using ISO 13485:2016 CERTIFIED Suppliers From Now On

The 2016 revision to ISO 13485 may have profound implications for the medical device industry. The updated standard will alter the way device makers interact with suppliers, from supplier selection to the management of supplier relationships. Speaking as the Quality Systems Director of CrossWind Machining (component manufacturer for the medical device industry) and just completing our ISO 13485:2016 Certification, the new 2016 revision (from 2003) is all about mitigating risk from every aspect of the medical device manufacturing process. And with ISO 13485:2003 no longer being valid after 2019, suppliers are having to decide how much time & money they are willing to put into separating themselves.

What the new Standard Says About Risk
One particularly notable change with ISO 13485:2016 is the addition of more explicit risk management requirements. Companies will be required to consider the risk associated with a device from conception through its use. Device makers must plan and implement corrective action when problems are detected. Risk management must be incorporated into every aspect of the quality management system.

"Whenever you bring expectation to the forefront, whereas you take what is implicit and make it explicit, which is really what the standard has done, then it definitely will have an impact on medical device manufacturers to reach those standards," says Alexander Crosby, Americas Program Manager-Medical Device for Intertek Business Assurance.

Risk assessment has been part of this process for a long time, says Darrell Lehman, principal of DKL Solutions LLC and a former senior vice president at Intertek. "What this standard does is put it in context for the industry as well as put it in context for the supply chain and the life cycle of the product." Less is left to interpretation than in previous standards.

"It extends the process of risk-based analysis as well as risk-based control and risk management and puts the onus of control on the organization that's creating the product or service," says Lehman. "That's not only just the medical device that hits the market, but it could also be a company that's providing a critical service or a critical component to that device as it goes to market."

The abstract of the standard states: "The processes required by ISO 13485:2016 that are applicable to the organization, but are not performed by the organization, are the responsibility of the organization and are accounted for in the organization's quality management system by monitoring, maintaining and controlling the processes."

For companies that supply goods or services to medical device companies, ISO 13485:2016 clarifies what they should be doing, and perhaps should have already been doing, to mitigate risk, says Lehman.

Safety is a paramount concern. A recent white paper by BSI Group noted the following: "ISO 13485:2016 maintains the need for organizations to focus improvement activities on the continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness of the quality management system and the safety and performance of the medical device."

The standard seems to be evolving to read closer to FDA requirements. "The way I think it is that the international standard for medical devices is harmonizing with the FDA QSR, 21 CFR Part 820 where risk assessment is something we need to think about in everything we do," says Terry Hamm, vice president of quality assurance and regulatory affairs at GW Plastics, Inc. They make a Class II device, but this might pose a particular challenge for certain types of suppliers. "If you're making components in a molding environment, you may not be accustomed to this process. It is critical to define requirements, especially, risk assessment with your suppliers," he says.

The FDA recently announced they will accept audit reports from the Medical Device Single Audit Program (MDSAP) as a substitute for establishment inspection reports. The MDSAP was established to allow one regulatory body to satisfy the requirements of US FDA, Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration, Brazil's Agencia Nacional de Vigilancia Sanitaria, Health Canada, Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency. The MDSAP on-site report form features several entries regarding ISO 13485 compliance.

Large device makers and suppliers may already manage risk in a fashion similar to what the new standard will require, says Mike Delpha, founder of Delpha Quality Consulting. However, for smaller companies with 25 to 100 employees, compliance may be more of a burden. "For them, the notion of normal risk assessment, risk analysis, when to fail, what the impact would be, how likely the impact would be, these are concepts they've never had to deal with formally," he says.

Implications for Supplier Selection

It can be a challenge to assess the level of risk each supplier could potentially add to your process. However, this is a critical exercise. Under the new standard, device makers are responsible for the potential risk suppliers bring to a device.

Although the updates to the standard are new this year, the concept of monitoring supplier risk is hardly new. In 2008, the Global Harmonization Task Force, a group of medical device industry representatives (now the International Medical Device Regulators Forum), revised their guidance document on the control of products and services obtained from suppliers in the medical device industry. In it they state: "Failure to have any evidence on-site or provide access to any objective evidence of the controls associated with products and services from suppliers could result in the manufacturer's quality management system being non-compliant."

The MDSAP on-site assessment report form has an entry for "critical suppliers" that asks for name, address and product or service of critical suppliers that provide products or services used in the audited process.

Under EU regulations, quality management systems should address "resource management, including selection and control of suppliers and sub-contractors."

When assessing potential suppliers, any supplier that is not aware of the new standard should be considered high risk, says Lehman. Meanwhile, suppliers who are certified to ISO 13485 themselves might be considered lower-risk. "If I was a supplier and I wanted to improve my value proposition to a group of companies, I would certainly want to be certified to this standard," says Lehman.

Any supplier involved in making an implantable product should be certified, says Delpha, because of the sensitive nature of these devices.

Some small suppliers may lack the resources to become certified, but even so, they cannot afford to just ignore the ISO 13485 revision. "If a small company is too burdened or does not need to do the 13485 certification, what I'm telling them to do is be able to provide evidence on request that they've done their risk analysis and risk management homework to make themselves more attractive," says Delpha.

Impact on Supplier Relationships

Once suppliers are selected, they must be monitored routinely. Device makers and suppliers must collaborate and communicate more than ever to make sure their risk management and quality management systems are compatible.

Suppliers who support medical device may have different interpretations of how to meet the requirements of ISO 13485:2016. "One thing we've typically seen suppliers do is say, 'well, we're not producing a medical device, so how much of this applies to us?'" says Crosby. "And it does become something of a thorny question, which is, how do you apply medical device risk management if you're not ultimately producing a medical device?"

Crosby encourages device makers to communicate with their clients about their role in the risk management puzzle. Be clear about how your supplier can contribute to risk mitigation and control. "The supplier over the course of time becomes somewhat educated to that and kind of understands where they sit in the ectosphere of the medical device," he says. Some suppliers may have a good handle on how the complexity of the product or service they provide contributes risk to the final medical device. However, it is difficult for suppliers to do this in a vacuum if they lack understanding of the final medical device. The more information device makers can give suppliers, the better. "We do see that to be very stovepiped," Crosby says. "That is not really an area where organizations typically work together to depict a holistic risk management picture." The 2016 revision of ISO 13485 is pushing for more continuous dialogue, monitoring and oversight. "There's opportunity for suppliers to be value-added participants in the risk management cycle."

This focus on continuous feedback is new. "Historically the standards, 13485 as well as the rest, asked the company to evaluate and select suppliers and then monitor their performance and help them get better when they do, or drop them," says Delpha. However, there was not much guidance on how that process should go. Now, companies have to be more cognizant of supplier failures. Errors must be documented and managed.

Some companies have been quick to step up their game. "We've gone through an evolution with supplier management," says Hamm. GW Plastics is now managing suppliers more rigorously, including audits of critical suppliers. They have three risk categories of suppliers, and they do separate risk management on each. "It's critical to clearly divide your suppliers," Hamm says.

Challenges Associated with Suppliers of Services

The risk associated with suppliers that provide services, rather than components, can be particularly difficult to define. For example, a supplier providing product labeling services might contribute a substantial amount of risk to the final medical device since improper labeling could result in direct patient harm.

"Usually from a quality management system perspective, when we look at resources, one of the big things is understanding any individual's contributions to or the impact on quality," says Crosby. For instance, if you have hired somebody and they happen to be moving boxes from point A to point B and their impact on the medical device is low, their understanding of that context may be low. However, if those boxes happen to contain sterile, sealed medical devices whereby there is a potential for damage and thus risk to the medical device, their context needs to be higher, he says.

Temporary labor is one intriguing example of a service that could potentially contribute a large degree of risk to a medical device. If you bring workers into your organization, you must ensure these individuals comply with your quality process. You can assign some of that responsibility to the firm providing workers although you are still ultimately responsible, says Lehman. "You might want to go to the contract firm and say, 'bring me people with these credentials that have already achieved this training that you're going to impart on them.'"

Ideally, the supplier of temporary labor should provide context on the impact to quality and potential risk associated with the activities workers perform, says Crosby.

A temporary staffing firm that trains workers would be a good choice, Hamm says, so long as his team has the chance to evaluate the training program. He would also prefer a firm with ISO 13485 certification. "If we had two comparable firms providing the same service and one was certified to ISO 13485 and one was not, we'd probably go 13485," says his colleague Sarah Brown, compliance manager at GW Plastics.15

"We're Intertek; that's part of our business is certification, so we certainly strongly believe in standards, and the application of 13485 throughout the supply chain is a good way of showing control," says Crosby. However, he adds that it is not necessarily the only way. For instance, some suppliers may have ISO standards that apply to their specialty—such as ISO 17100 for translation services.16 That can be an equivalent way of demonstrating quality control to an auditor. If a temporary labor firm had an in-house training function to educate workers on risk, FDA requirements and more, the performance of training also would demonstrate to auditors the firm is holding up its end of the risk management equation.

However, certification is certainly a more explicit way of showing control than other methods. "It is a good baseline that shows an operating system," says Crosby. "You basically have shown me that your supplier understands medical device, has a quality management system and what you would need to show me is that you have given them the information that they need, information on your device or the components of your device or the service that you're providing so that they can give you back the pieces you need with quality."

In an article published last year in QMed,17 Jim Ready, the manager of quality and regulatory systems at Nypro, Inc., said "A temporary labor company that holds an ISO 13485 certification demonstrates that they understand the specific quality and regulatory requirements of the medical device manufacturing environment and have made the commitment to train their temporary workforce to meet those standards."

Conclusion
Suppliers like CrossWind Machining that are ISO 13485:2016 certified will be well-positioned to suit the needs of device makers. Although ISO 13485:2016 certification is not the only criterion companies should use in selecting a supplier, it is certainly an important one. ISO 13485:2016 also now carries FDA compliance at the higher level than every before. Device makers are responsible for the risk their suppliers contribute to their products and certification to this standard is a signal a supplier is committed to mitigating risk. So, if you're supplies are mitigating risk at every step of the manufacturing process, it certainly limits the risk with the final medical device product. It is my opinion that only a small portion of the suppliers will follow through with the ISO 13485:2016 certification, and roll back to ISO 9000 guidelines which are NOT medical device specific (and extremely "loose"), thus leaving medical device manufacturers at a much higher risk by using those suppliers. Can you really afford that type of risk?

Why You Should Consider Trade School Instead of College

Mon, 23 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

For a lot of people, going to a four-year college seems like an automatic choice when they graduate from high school. The reason is obvious – higher income. According to the National Center for Educational Statistics , a bachelor’s degree accounted for an average of $16,900 in additional income per year compared to a high school diploma ($30,000 versus $46,900).

Over a 30-year career in the workforce, that’s more than a $500,000 difference in earnings. These numbers may not paint the whole picture, however. Due to the increasingly high costs associated with a college education, as well as other drawbacks, more and more people have been considering trade school as an education alternative. Skilled labor is needs just as much as an educated work force!

Trade School vs. College: Drawbacks to College Education

Length: Four (or More) Years vs. Two Years

For starters, a bachelor’s degree typically takes four years of study, which means that people who enter the workforce after receiving their bachelor’s degree aren’t doing so until age 22. That shaves some years off of a person’s career and can be considered an opportunity cost for experiencing the ‘real world’ hands on instead of being in a classroom. Plus, a four-year program usually makes you take classes outside of your major to fulfill credit requirements. Unless you enjoy spending time in a classroom, it may seem unnecessary to pay for extraneous credits and courses. Sure, that improv theater class was fun, but was it helpful for your chemistry major?

High Cost of a Bachelor’s Degree

Another drawback is the cost. Research conducted by the Idaho Department of Labor found that the average bachelor’s degree in the United States costs $127,000! Not only that, but nearly 70% of students take out loans to help pay for school. According to the study, over 20% of students with loans owe more than $50,000, and 5.6% owe more than $100,000 at the end. Although some student loans are certainly better than others , the added cost of accruing interest makes the overall expense of receiving an education in the U.S. significantly higher for the average student than the already steep price tag suggests. The college lifestyle isn’t cheap either — dorming, paying for food, going out, and even doing your own laundry adds up!

Dropout Rate + Late Grads

A third drawback: Some people simply aren’t prepared for the rigors of a four-year college. For many students, college is their first experience away from home and, without an adequate plan, it’s easy to stray off course. In fact, the Institute of Education Statistics estimates that 40% of attendees at a four-year college drop out before completing their degree . If you find yourself as a part of that 40%, not only have you incurred some of the expense of college, you left without receiving a degree. For the 60% that do complete their degree, a whopping 64% take longer than four years to graduate , costing themselves nearly $70,000 in lost wages and educational expenses per year, according to U.S. News. Most colleges don’t even require students to pick a major until the end of their sophomore year, creating a class of undecided students who may have wasted their time and credits on courses that they chose not to pursue.

Poor Economic Conditions
Finally: Job prospects for new graduates may not be as bright as they had expected. Although some college majors are faring better than others when it comes to labor market outcomes, a recent report released by the Economic Policy Institute states that overall, the unemployment (8.5%) and underemployment (16.8%) rates for college graduates under the age of 25 are nearly double what they were in 2007. Over the past five years, graduates have faced sluggish labor markets Young graduates are faced with limited job opportunities and difficulty paying off their student loans . College degrees are a career investment that require a considerable amount of both time and money, and the portion of grads who are unable to find desirable employment (or employment at all!) are seeing negative returns.

Trade School as an Alternative

My response to these statistics is that people approaching high school graduation should seriously consider trade school, particularly if they are not at the top of their class. A traditional four-year degree is not for everyone, and trade school offers a pretty compelling career path, especially when considering the factors associated with a college education outlined above. I’ll provide an overview of what a trade school education is, who it would be best for, and some of the advantages of trade school versus college.

What is a Trade School or Vocational School?

A trade school, also known as a technical or vocational school, is an educational institution that exists to teach skills related to a specific job. Trade schools are a more streamlined approach to education, with curricula focusing on developing a particular skillset and knowledge base for a career rather than receiving a general education. Trade schools typically take a lot less time to complete, have smaller class sizes, and the majority of the training is hands-on, which is an ideal environment for many types of learners. Vocational degrees can lead to well-paying jobs like electrician, mechanic, machinist, pharmacy technician, nuclear technician, and dental hygienist, with room for growth and managerial potential in each field.

Advantages to Trade Schools Salaries for Trade School Jobs

For starters, salaries for trade school graduates aren’t that much of a drop-off compared to a four-year degree. According to the National Center for Educational Statistics , technical and trade school jobs have a median annual salary of $35,720, though this figure varies heavily based on the particular industry and the experience level of the worker. The BLS predicted earnings for bachelor’s degree holders to be roughly $46,900, amounting to an annual difference of $11,180. This stat, of course, doesn’t factor in long term earnings growth.

However, because trade school only takes an average of two years to complete versus four, that amounts to an additional two years of income for the trade school graduate, or $71,440. Factor in another $70,000 in costs for the many students who take an extra year to graduate from college, and trade school grads can be over $140,000 ahead at the get-go, making up for over 12 years of difference in income.

Price of Education

The average trade school degree costs $33,000, which, compared to a $127,000 bachelor’s degree, means a savings of $94,000. But that’s not all! If you assume that students are fully financing their education with loans at 4% over 10 years, the bachelor’s degree will cost $154,000, while the trade school degree will cost only $40,000. That’s a savings of $114,000 just on the degree.

Of course, most students in both cases won’t fully finance their education. They’ll work and find other sources of income to help with the process, meaning the gap will be smaller in the average case. Research gathered in 2012 suggests that the average college student debt load is $29,900, and that number rises to $36,327 when factoring in interest. Conversely, the average debt load for students graduating from a two-year technical school is $10,000, roughly 70% less than the four-year graduate.

Job Security

Yet another advantage of technical trade school is that most of the jobs you’ll get are extremely difficult to export to another country. More and more jobs are being outsourced to places where labor is cheaper, making domestic employment in certain sectors difficult to get. It is much easier to export, say, computer programming work or other information economy work than it is to export carpentry or electrical work, as that requires a physical presence.

Not only that, but there’s a growing domestic demand for high-precision skills. According to Forbes, skilled trade workers are a disproportionately older population, and will only continue to get older, creating increased opportunities for young workers to fill their shoes.

Some Final Thoughts on Trade School vs. College

It should be noted that I’m not opposed to a four-year degree; instead, I’m simply making a strong case for an option that many people overlook when deciding what to do after high school. In lifetime earnings, a bachelor’s degree still pays off – don’t get me wrong. According to statistics, a person with a bachelor’s degree is projected to earn around $1.1 million, compared to the $393,000 projected earnings of an associate’s degree or trade school program graduate.

The advantages of a four-year degree are many: You’re going to earn much more later on in life and you also have the door wide open to continue your studies and earn substantially more with a masters degree or doctorate, however the cost/benefit equation to even higher education is changing every day.

Trade school graduates are very limited in opportunities to continue to bolster their education. That being said, a four-year degree is expensive, and not suited to everyone’s learning style and skill set. If you’re a hands-on learner, excited by the prospects of getting out of the classroom and starting to work immediately after high school, trade school is a relatively inexpensive alternative education that may work well for you. Take advantage of the search tool above to learn more about trade schools near you and what they offer.

I’ll leave you with an anecdote. My wife’s cousin graduated from high school at roughly the same time my wife graduated. Her cousin went to electrician’s school, while my wife went to four-year university. Her cousin started working three years before my wife and incurred much less student loan debt. Today, though he makes a little bit less money than she does, the difference isn’t very significant, plus he had hardly any debt to pay off after school.

This past May, my nephew graduated from high school. He is now attending electrician’s school as well. I think it’s the wisest move he could have made in his situation.

If you are graduating from high school soon, or have a loved one who is approaching graduation, I recommend seriously considering trade school as an alternative option. Or in the very least going to a junior college for at least 2 years and getting your A.A. in general education. Getting a general education 2 year degree, effectively gets all of your "core" general education out of the way, so in the future, your education can be continued in a more specific direction if you want (choosing a major) without having to take further general education classes. Junior College is very cheap or EVEN FREE almost everywhere, then move into a trade/vocational school, this way let's you: gain college experience for almost $0, achieve a 2 yr degree (better than NO degree) and doesn't take up 4-6 years and massive debt load to get into the work force. Most employers now subsidize or fully pay for further education while working for them in a night school capacity or specialized program.

I hope this sheds some light on alternatives to just going from H.S. directly into a 4 yr college program!

Wanted: Women to Fill Well Paying Jobs in Manufacturing

Sat, 28 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Here at CrossWind Machining we know hard difficult it can be to find skilled workers to run our machines. We are in a niche here, making small diameter parts for the medical device industry. Not to mention that the machines we use are swiss screw machines, which are even harder to find machining talent for than your standard mill or lathe machine. CrossWind is situated in the Sierra Foothills of CA. The scenery is amazing, it is cheaper here than many areas in the state, we have a low crime rate, great schools, etc., but it is still very difficult to find the talent that we need to help our company to grow. One of the biggest reasons for this is that women are not being drawn to this field.

“Women constitute manufacturing’s largest pool of untapped talent in the United States. They comprise just over one-fourth (27 percent) of manufacturing employees even though women make up nearly half (47 percent) of the total U.S. labor force.” Overall, there is a shortage in skilled workers in the manufacturing field which contributes to this, but how can we attract women to manufacturing? The Manufacturing Institute did an intensive study on women in manufacturing. They asked questions like “why aren’t there more?”, “how do we attract women?”, and “how can we retain them once they are there?”. They found that one of the biggest problems hiring companies are finding is that manufacturing jobs aren’t well promoted in schools as being well-paying jobs. There are so many careers in this industry that pay $40k+/yr. Currently, as of 03/2017 the Bureau of Labor and Statics reports that jobs in the manufacturing field make an average of $51,240. This, of course, encompasses wood products, metal products, machinery, medical device, aerospace, etc.

Another issue that we're facing is that when people think of mills, machine shops, and other manufacturing businesses they think of a dirty and dark building full of men that “talk shop” all day. That kind of atmosphere is not one that will draw many women in. However, this isn’t the case anymore. With modern technology and increasing demands for cleanliness and precision of products, these shops have become a wonderful place for men and women that want jobs in the STEM field. Business like these have moved towards automation to bring up their quality and product output which also makes some of the older machinery (that people think of as dangerous or messy) obsolete.

Even though these jobs are open to both sexes only 27.4% of these employees are women. Someone starting out in the field as an assembler, machine operator or fabricator (no college degree is needed for the vast majority of these jobs) can expect to make somewhere between $37k and $70k, but a programmer, with an average salary of $69,000/yr is a better paying option for those with good math skills and some schooling. The best paying average wage in the manufacturing category is for an engineer. with a 4 year degree, making between $60k to $127k. There are so many well-paid career opportunities in manufacturing that are a fantastic fit for so many women out there, but it’s not “put out there” in a way that draws women in.

Women in Manufacturing is one group that is really gaining steam in trying to bridge the gender gap in the industry. “WiM is a more than 700-member-strong national association dedicated to supporting, promoting and inspiring women who are pursuing or have chosen a career in the manufacturing industry”. They hold conferences, have on-line professional training, assist in networking, and have many other benefits for their members. In 2016 WiMEF was established as a branch which aims to provide funding for many of the initiatives that will help women improve their skills and themselves professionally. One of their goals is to just get the word out that manufacturing can be a great fit for women. WiM’s Chairperson of the Board of Directors, Shiela LaMoth, recently sat down with Thomasnet.com for an interview and was quoted saying “A recent WiM survey found that more than 80% of women who work in manufacturing find their work rewarding. We need to get the word out and recruit more women into these high-tech, high-paying jobs. More women entering manufacturing and succeeding is good for women and for the industry. “

Sources:

-The Manufacturing Institute: Minding the manufacturing gender gap. How manufacturers can get their fairshare of talented women.

-Thomasnet.com, Women In Manufacturing — Q&A With Sheila LaMothe

-Bureau of Labor and Statistics - Got skills? Think manufacturing

Is Going Automated Worth the Investment?

Thu, 03 Nov 2016 00:00:00 GMT

With new technology comes change in the way we do everyday things. For instance I spend about 5 minutes, before I even get out of bed, checking the weather for the week, reading through my emails and texts, checking my Facebook updates, and maybe even playing a word or 2 on Words With Friends.

Sometimes I’ll text my husband or one of my sons about something that needs to be taken care of or to ask co-workers if they need anything for the shop on my way in and then update my shopping list. I haven’t even left my bed yet and I’ve already done so many things that I couldn’t have done, from the comfort of my bed, without my smartphone. Now I did have to spend a few hundred dollars on this phone so that I would be able to do these things, but it saves me a lot of time searching the internet or reading a newspaper (which hardly anyone does anymore anyways) for the exact same information. Not to mention, when I show up at work I won’t have to turn around and head back to town to get supplies for the shop because I made sure to text everyone first. This is definitely a cheap comparison when talking about the investment needed to make some of your processes automated at work, but you get where I’m going with this.

Automated machines most definitely cost more than traditional machines. It’s not a minor price difference either. We’re talking tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars more. However, you really have to look at long term benefits to see why it may be worth the initial cost. First of all, you immediately up your work capacity. More work equals more income, especially if you don’t have to hire more workers to run the new machine because once you set it up it mostly runs itself. Secondly, once you’ve gotten past the learning curve of the new machine, it no longer has to be tended to the way a manual machine does. Of course you will need to check on it, change or sharpen tools and measure parts regularly to make corrections, but it doesn’t have to be babysat constantly so one person can work multiple machines. Not to mention the machine no longer has an 8 hour work day. Depending on your set up and what you’re making, it can run 24 hours a day, giving you lights-out options.

Here at Crosswind we have a job that is running almost every single day that we are open. Out of approximately 250 work days a year, this machine runs probably 200 of those days. The process is fairly automated with the main problem being that every minute and a half someone has to open the door, move the oil lines out of the way, remove the part, put the oil lines back, close the door, and then press start again. Because this happens every minute and a half we must have a person dedicated to this job. In between parts they measure and countersink the pieces, but again, they have to stop what they’re doing every 90 seconds. Also, there is a bar feeder, but it is single bar only so every time the bar runs out, another one must be loaded.

If a couple of improvements were made to this job to make it more automated, it would leave the machinist free to work on another machine while coming over to measure a part every hour or so. Between checking parts and deburring them that would leave about 5 hours per 8 hour shift of time for another job to be worked on. That’s 25 hours more per week or 1300 hours per year. Assume that you pay your operator $15/hr, you’ve just gotten that much more work done without spending the $19, 500 annual salary (plus more for insurance and benefits), to have another body there loading bars and opening the door to remove the part. That’s only for the one operator now free to work on other jobs and only one machine upgraded. Not to mention there would now be a higher output on the machine leaving more free time to run other jobs on it.

When you have a human running the machine they get distracted or caught up in other things like taking breaks, talking to other people, walking away to check on another job or helping a co-worker. These small increments o f time add up to hours per week. Automation and robotics also removes the human factor when it comes to mistakes. Measurements on product won’t deviate from one part to the next.

It’s hard to match prices from shops overseas with countries like China and India. However with the advantages of automation comes the opportunity to bid at a lower hourly shop rate and become more competitive. Automation isn’t lazy machining; it’s efficiency and that equals money.

Check out these articles below for more on the subject.

CNC Robotics And Automation: Knowing When To Say 'When'

Manufacturer Gets Aggressive with Automated Machining

Do Our High Schools Teach Students the Real Basics of Life?

Mon, 10 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMT

A couple of months ago my 18 year old son had to mail a letter off to request his high school transcripts.

Before it went into the mailbox I took a look at it and realized that he had the “to” and “from” labels backwards. It never occurred to me that my son wouldn’t know how to mail off a letter properly. When I was younger, in elementary school and even higher, we had to send off letters to pen pals, government officials, and even some companies seeking correspondence. Everything is done digitally now so my son had never had to learn. At the same time, I’m seeing credit card offers coming for him in the mail. He’s almost 19, so legally he can get one if he wanted to, but what a huge mistake that would be for him at this point in his life. He’d have $10,000 racked up in debt in no time. We’ve sat down together and discussed how credit cards and other loans work so I know he has some basic knowledge, but I would really love for him to learn much more before he jumps into that pool. I’ve spoken to other parents who have had the same realizations about their children, but nothing changes.

I have had 3 kids in high school thus far and still have 1 more to go. High School is where they begin their preparations for becoming functioning adults. Kids are expected, between the ages of 15-18, to demonstrate that they can handle some adult responsibility and in return they will get more freedom. In class they are taught basics like math, English, science, and even have electives like shop, music, and art where they can explore their interests, but what about things like balancing a checkbook, how important your credit score is, how to do a great interview, how to file your taxes, and other basic real-world knowledge? Only 13 states in the US require a basic financial class to graduate high school. How is that acceptable?

Go online and you can read story after story about people who get out of high school, decide to go to college, and get student loans to pay for everything. They assume that they’ll go through college, get a great job, make lots of money because they have a degree, and then pay off their loans easily. Many don’t realize that if you make only the minimum payment on loans, how much longer it will take you to pay it off because the majority of the payment covers only the interest you’ve accrued. (What Happens If I Only Pay The Minimum on My Credit Card?) Fast forward to your mid 30’s and they’re still trying to pay off their loans and they’ve damaged their credit score. They’ve essentially mortgaged their futures without realizing the long term affect that loans can have. I’m not saying college is unnecessary or loans are a bad idea, but if they fully understood what they were getting into, they might think twice or have a PT job to help with expenses rather than having to borrow more money. Maybe a basic financial class in school would be a good idea?

What about other things that kids should know before graduating? Things like having a marketable skill? Many young people don’t go because they have family or financial responsibilities that prevent them from going. They graduate high school and go directly into FT employment. How do we prepare them for the real world then? Recently, I read an article in Modern Machine Shop Magazine about a school in Wisconsin that actually has a machine shop that is run by their students. This isn’t just your run of the mill AG shop. This is a real, working, profit building machine shop. The name of the company is Cardinal Manufacturing. The kids in this program make and weld machined parts for customers. They are, in fact, a functioning job shop. Their profits have even allowed them to purchase modern CNC equipment and provide profit sharing for the students that work there. In addition to machining, these kids also learn valuable skills like customer service, ordering materials and invoicing. Their program has become so successful that 6 other schools in and around the state have started something similar. What an amazing way to give our kids a head start in life!

Here, in Grass Valley CA, our high school has a fantastic AG department. The students in this program learn forestry, welding, woodworking, mechanics, electrical work, bookkeeping, animal husbandry, sales skills, and a lot more. I’ve gone to some of their Parli Pro meetings (Parliamentary Procedure Career Development, which is part of FFA) and am amazed at how these kids run the whole show. During the Parliamentary Procedure CDE, teams conduct a mock chapter meeting to demonstrate their knowledge of basic parliamentary law and the correct use of parliamentary procedures. It’s like watching high school students in a congressional meeting. Other students in the AG dept create things out of wood and metal that are sold at the annual county fair. Last year I saw beautiful tables, chairs, lamps, swings, trailers, etc that students sold for hundreds of dollars. The craftsmanship of these items was fantastic. Many students raise livestock and sell them at the fair also. I’ve watched some of these kids and they have to put a lot of work into caring, grooming and training their animals. They usually make a pretty decent profit, but they have learned that they must put in some serious time and hard work for it. In a time when so many adults are complaining about a lazy and entitled generation, it is wonderfully refreshing to see that these kids know what it means to work hard for something and they do it day in and day out.

What I am trying to get at, is that we are in dire need of more programs like these for our kids. Why are we not preparing our children to enter the workforce and the world of paying bills and becoming financially responsible? If we really want them to live a successful life and do better than we did then we need to start equipping them for that. How many times have you gotten into a loan or into credit card debt and wish you’d realized from the beginning what you were really getting yourself into? Did you really worry about your credit score when you were 19? How many of our youth would benefit from job training before they have to be out on their own and worrying about paying bills? In high school, the majority of young people start out working fast food jobs or retail. I’ve done it and it was fine. It paid what bills I had, but I couldn’t own a home and raise 3 kids on that kind of pay either (Can 2 Parents, 2 Kids Live on Minimum Wage? Not Even Close: NBC Report) . I definitely couldn’t do things like go on vacation or pay for braces for my children. Classes and programs like these give our kids a boost. Isn’t that what we’re trying to do for them?

Below are a few links to sources that I have found are worth browsing through. Let’s start getting our children prepared for success!

CA Depy. of Education - Grades K-12 Financial Literacy Resources

U.S. News - Why Most High Schoolers Don't Know How to Manage Their Money

USA Today - More high schools teach manufacturing skills

U.S. News - More high schools teach manufacturing skills

5 Ways to Keep Your Employees Happy Without Breaking the Bank

Fri, 05 Aug 2016 00:00:00 GMT

I’m sure most of us have had a “lousy” employer or two in their life. You know, the boss that expects everything and gives nothing. You’ve probably also worked for companies that you really enjoyed.

What made you like where you worked? Was it financial incentives? Maybe you had good benefits or was it just the atmosphere of the place? What keeps employees showing up day to day, being productive, and not looking for employment elsewhere?

About 15 years ago I worked for a company that published a magazine for the higher education market. They also put on a tradeshow annually. When I started the job the pay wasn’t great, but I saw potential in what my job could eventually become and I really liked some of the people working there. I got along very well with almost everyone and the benefits were decent too. I quit after 6 months. Why? My boss was a jerk. He lied to me repeatedly about introducing me to customers so that I could start doing sales and also took credit for my ideas that saved the company money. On top of it, he’d go on and on about his online dating conquests and how amazing his luxury apartment complex was. I couldn’t continue working for him anymore.

My next job was fantastic. It was in a HR call center for a large company. This employer implemented programs and ideas that benefited their employees on and off the job. Training was very thorough, benefits were great, and they brought in people to make your workspace more ergonomically comfortable for you. We did casual Fridays and had pot lucks for people’s birthdays. You could even get a mini massage on breaks, lunch or after work (free, but tip was expected). There were even more perks, but what I liked the most was that my manager repeatedly told me that I was doing a great job and that I was valuable. He would ask me to help out other employees because he felt that I did my job very well and wanted them to learn from me. I felt important and needed.
Unfortunately, it was for a computer company that ended up having to lay off thousands of people and I was one of them. However, it made me realize what it meant to work for a good employer. I decided that I will not ever go back to working for someone like that first boss I mentioned ever again. Not every company can afford lavish benefits like what I had at one time. That was nice, but not necessary to make me loyal to my job. So, what is necessary to make employees show up day after day?

1. Talk to your employees like they are valued, not like indentured servants. Running a company is hard work. Your life revolves around it. You sacrifice a lot to make your business successful, but don’t take your stress out on your employees. You know what’s stressful? Spending thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours to train a new employee and then have them quit because they can’t stand working for you.

2. Be extremely clear about your expectations and chances for promotion BEFORE you hire someone. During the interview let them know if they are expected to do overtime or even if business is slowing down so that their position may be temporary. Do you expect everyone to spend 30 mins a day cleaning up their work area? Is there room for advancement? What are some work goals that you expect them to reach and in what time frame? If they reach these goals, is there some type of reward whether it’s a bonus or even advancement?

3. Do team building events. This doesn’t have to be monthly. Do it quarterly or even bi-annually. It doesn’t have to be big. Have a bbq at a local park or lake. Have sandwiches delivered for lunch and spend the time telling them what they have done to make you appreciate them. For Christmas, have everyone do a secret Santa exchange. Get tickets to local events like the fair, an auction, car show, or concert, and have a drawing for them.

4. Be careful of the topics you discuss with your employees. It is said that “Religion and politics make strange bedfellows”. There is good reason for this. Both subjects are things that many people are quite passionate about. If you discuss them with your employees it is quite possible that they will feel like you are pushing your ideas and beliefs on them and they will not feel comfortable being honest with their responses out of fear of recourse from you. I have read plenty of wrongful termination cases in the news where people say they were fired or looked over for promotion because they disagreed with their boss when it came to religious or political ideas. It can be very intimidating when someone who has authority over you, comes to you and tells you they believe “XYZ” and anyone who disagrees with them is wrong.

5. Allow everyone to feel comfortable coming to you with ideas. You most likely have a way of doing things that is based on what has worked for you in the past. You know what works and you know what doesn’t. However, everyone has different job and life experiences that will make their point of view different from yours. This can be really valuable. Being open minded to suggestions not only makes people feel valued, but it also can save you time and money. I know, personally, of a couple of times when we (here at Crosswind) had someone suggest a change in how we made one of our parts that seemed “iffy” at first. In the end, though, it automated a step we always had to do by hand after the part was made. This saved the company hundreds of dollars every time we fill that particular order. We also now know that if we come across another part that has a similar issue, we can use that change to the program then also. Not every idea someone has is going to be great, but 2 minutes of your time listening to your employees is worth so much more in the long run than the time you just lost.

None of these suggestions are difficult or expensive to implement. “People work for people, not companies.” Is something I’ve heard so many times over the years and it makes sense. You may love a company and believe in what they do, but if your manager (or boss) makes it miserable to show up at work every day, you will never become a loyal employee. When someone spends 40+ hours a week somewhere, it needs to be a positive atmosphere or they won't stick around for long. This is definitely not an all-encompassing list. I'd love to hear what you or your company has done to make the workplace a pleasant place. Also, check out a few of these other articles on the subject.

How to Reduce Employee Turnover - Wall Street Journal Causes & Effects of High & Low Staff Turnover - Houston Chronicle A New Report Ranks America's Biggest Companies Based On How Quickly Employees Jump Ship - Business Insider.com

3D Printing vs. CNC Machining

Thu, 14 Jul 2016 00:00:00 GMT

Recently I have been looking into 3D printing for Crosswind Machining. There is so much buzz all over the news and internet about it and I wondered if we could benefit from adding it to our shop floor.

I think companies need to always be open to change. Not only so that we make quality products with the machines that we already have, but also looking for ways to improve our capabilities to serve our customers with new ideas and new technology. As a matter of fact our Quality Policy states ”…to consistently surpass customers’ expectations in both quality and delivery scheduling. We make every effort to continually maintain and improve our system.” That includes looking at newer technologies like 3d printing. After doing quite a bit of research I have no doubt in my mind that this technology will play a large part of the manufacturing industry in the next 10 years. Additive manufacturing is being utilized in multiple fields already such as medical, manufacturing, art, automotive industry, and defense.

First you need to realize the difference between additive and subtractive machining . Additive machining is where material is laid out, layer by layer, to create a product (3d printing). Subtractive machining is where material is subtracted by tooling (drills, laser cutting, etc) to create a product. This technology is fantastic. It’s even become so mainstream that people are buying inexpensive 3d printers to use at home for things like school projects, jewelry making, and creating simple tools and useful items for the home out of plastic. I am fairly sold on the abilities of 3d printing when it comes to plastic materials. It’s cheap, quick, and the design possibilities are endless.

One of the great uses for these machines in a machine shop is their ability to produce a component for R&D purposes within hours or days rather than weeks. If you only need 1 to a few parts there is no need to tie up a more valuable CNC machine and also the valuable employee running it. A 3d printer doesn’t have to be babysat either because there is no tooling to break or wear out, no material to change, chips to remove, or 2ndoperations like sanding and deburring. Not to mention the fact that designs can be so much more complex with additive machining that simply cannot be done with a CNC. Complex geometries like cavities, honeycomb patterns, and undercuts are almost impossible with a traditional CNC machine.

Another thing additive machining can do for a machine shop is create usable tooling for the company such as nuts, screws, hand tools, tubing, fixtures, and adapters. This is where DMLS enters in. DMLS is short for Direct Metal Laser Sintering, also commonly referred to as 3d metal printing. There are definitely some pros to DMLS, but some very strong cons also. First of all, materials for DMLS are more expensive when compared to bar stock, but you won’t have scrap or have to order large quantities either. When creating parts from metals like iconel or titanium this can be especially helpful. Titanium and iconel also wear through tooling quickly and need high pressure cooling because of the high temperatures occurring while being machined. This is not the case with DMLS. For short run jobs, especially popular in the biomedical, aerospace, and high speed racing fields, this can be a plus.

However, there are 2 large problems that I am finding when reading into DMLS vs. CNC machining. The first is the speed of production. This may be great technology for a short run job of only a few pieces, but if you need 1,000 pieces it doesn’t make sense to use it. The speed of a CNC machine when churning out large quantities of components cannot be beat. It may take hours to make 1 part on a DMLS printer, but once the CNC machine is set up, it can take seconds to minutes. The other problem I am finding is the quality with metal additive machining. Parts made on a CNC machine are much less porous than those made on a DMLS machine. The quality of those made through DMLS is similar to something made via injection molding, but needs heat treating to bring it up to strengths closer to that of wrought metal. After that, if it requires a smooth finish, it will have to have a finish treatment because they are also not as smooth as machined parts. The parts will typically come off of the printer with a surface roughness of 350 R a- µ inch or R a-µm 8.75.

So, to summarize, I do believe that 3d printing is a great compliment to a CNC machine shop. I believe this especially to be true if you are in an industry where you are doing R&D jobs, hoping they will turn into long production runs. You can churn out 1 or a few parts relatively quickly without tying up man hours and a machine. Your customers can have a sample part to hold in their hand, to test, or decide if there are changes that need to be made. Also, it can be extremely helpful in making in-house tools rather than searching all over the internet and hoping you can just buy 1 or 2 pieces of something for cheap. The biggest thing that is really driving my interest in 3d printing, whether it be for plastics or metals though, is that I truly believe it will become a regular staple in machine shops all over the world in the next decade. If you don’t have one, you will be behind the times. Customers want vendors that are good at what they do, give a good product for a good price, and are using the latest technology. However, these machines are nowhere near being ready to replace CNC machines.

Take a look at some of the interesting links I have included below for more information on the subject.

Where 3D Printing Fits In
CNC Machining vs DMLS. Which One is Best for You?
Your Shop, Too, Will Have a 3D Printer
Will metal 3D printing replace CNC machines in the near future?
CNC Machine Walkthrough: 3D Printer vs Laser vs Table Router (Video)

EOS M290 3d Metal Laser Pinter in Action (Video)

How Does the IoT Work and How Will it Benefit Me?

Thu, 30 Jun 2016 00:00:00 GMT

What exactly is the IoT (Internet of Things)? How does it work? Will everything eventually be part of it? How will it benefit me? Will it make my life easier for hackers to take advantage of?

These are all questions that I was trying to get answered recently. I read probably a half of a dozen articles without really getting a clear picture of what it was and how it would affect my life. Don’t get me wrong, I got a fairly decent idea of what it was, but not fully. I realized that it meant that physical objects, such as my washing machine, would have sensors on it that could communicate with a repair guy when it broke. I thought that was nice, however, what if it wasn’t the repair guy I wanted? Did I have to set that up beforehand? Would the repair guy just call me out of the blue to schedule a time to come out and fix it before I even knew there was a problem? Or if I’m out of dish soap will Amazon send me some without me ordering it? I didn’t really like that. I didn’t like the thought that things would automatically be done for me without me having a say in it. I like convenience, but that was a little over the top for me. I don’t want my life to be automated.

So, exactly what is it? I found an article in Computer World Magazine that finally made things clear and gave me some real life situations. One of the examples the writer gave was this:

“Here's the scene: You are away on vacation and the house is empty. A moisture sensor detects water on the basement floor. That sensor finding is processed by an app, which has received another report from a temperature sensor that detects the flow of water in the main water pipe. (When water flows, it takes away heat and lowers the temperature).

That both sensors are detecting anomalies is cause for concern. A high rate of flowing water may signal a burst pipe, triggering an automated valve shutoff; a slight water flow might be a running toilet, and the water on the basement floor by routine leakage from a heavy rain. In either case, you get a machine-generated message describing the findings.

Here's how you investigate. Via a mobile app, you get two one-time codes to unlock your front door, one for your neighbor and another for a plumber. When the door is unlocked, a text alert tells you who entered. Having knowledge of the condition of your home may be a big driver of IoT adoption.”

This sounds fantastic! Knowing almost immediately about a problem with your home, without you having to be there, could save time, money, and even irreplaceable items in your home.

How else could the IoT help your everyday life? What if, for instance, it helped make running your errands faster? Imagine this: you need to get your hair cut, go to the grocery store to get stuff for dinner, and pick up the kids from school. You leave to go to the salon. You arrive to find out that the parking lot is being repaved and you can’t park there. It’s 12:30 so the lunch rush is in full boom and you can’t find parking anywhere. You go on the mobile app Streetline to find an open spot. Sensors that were placed in a parking space let the app know someone has just moved their vehicle out a nearby spot and thankfully it is right around the corner so you get there 1st. After your hair is done you have just enough time to pick up the kids before you go to the store. You drive up to the school and a sensor in your car communicates with a screen that the line attendants watch to let them know that you have pulled up. They call your children to the front so they are waiting curbside for you. Next, you go to the store and you decide you want to make a chicken stir fry for dinner. You know you have onions and ginger, but do you have carrots, broccoli, or other veggies? You get on the your phone and open the app that is connected to your smart fridge and have it take a picture of the inside of your refrigerator and it sends it to you so you can see what you have. Good, you thought you had enough carrots, but you were wrong. Turns out you’re also out of milk and didn’t even think about it. You’re done, you drive home and as you pull up to your house your garage door opens up without you having to push any buttons and the door into your home unlocks as you are recognized by your home security system. The hall light turns on for you as you walk in and also the air conditioner since it automatically switched the thermostat control from 72 degrees to 78 when you left. Nice right?

The IoT won’t just help your home life. It is already being implemented by many large companies worldwide to increase productivity and reduce overall costs. For instance, if you’re out of the office and receive a call from one of your customers saying that they need 200 pcs. of product urgently you can go onto your laptop, phone, or tablet and find out exactly how many you have. You can also find out, if you don’t have enough, if you have material on hand to make them, how many are made per minute/hr, if the machine is available, what job each of your workers is logged into at the moment, etc. Another benefit of this technology to manufacturing is troubleshooting. Software can be used to troubleshoot errors and make adjustments in real time. This can give significant savings to companies. No more waiting around to find out a problem until it causes a machine to be down for repair.

All of these benefits sound amazing, but there is most definitely a downside to this kind of connectivity. Security issues are a very large hurdle. The more connected you are, the more at risk you and your personal information are. The sensors that tell your hall light or air conditioner to turn on can also tell a lot about you. They can tell someone what your patterns are as far as when you’re home, at work, sleeping, etc. That can be scary information for the wrong people to have. Not to mention, what if your security system feed is hacked? People can watch what is going on in your home. There have already been reports of baby monitors being taken over. Not to mention that cyber-criminals can take over the operations of things. What would happen to a company that uses robotics that are tied in to an IoT system that is taken over? Not only can it ruin your product, but it could injure people if they decide to make your equipment malfunction. Honestly though, that is more likely to happen with your smart fridge or washing machine because they may not have security already built in when you buy it. However, it is obvious that these things will take years to sort through and to address.

So, how long before IoT is becomes mainstream? Honestly, it depends on the industry. There are already companies utilizing the technology. However, the programs used are brand specific. One brand does not talk to another. You have to buy one company’s whole system and stick with it or maybe their partner company. How long before manufacturers decide that it is beneficial for the growth of the technology on a whole if your system is able to communicate with other IoT environments? That issue and security, many believe, will be the biggest hurdles. People want to make sure they are able to maintain their privacy and if everything is connected, that won't be easy to do. Below are some links to articles that I found interesting on the subject. By all means, feel free to give me your thoughts on the subject.

https://techcrunch.com/2015/10/24/why-iot-security-is-so-critical/
http://www.computerweekly.com/feature/Realising-the-benefits-of-a-totally-connected-world
http://www.forbes.com/sites/ptc/2014/07/01/how-the-internet-of-things-is-transforming-manufacturing/...

Why Should You Consider a Job in the Manufacturing Field?

Wed, 08 Jun 2016 00:00:00 GMT

It’s that time of the year again, graduation. High school students are ending a huge part of their lives and making decisions that will shape their future.

Some teens know from a young age what they want to do with their lives, but most are still figuring it out as they go. Should they go to college? Should they go directly into full-time work? Maybe join the military? What should they major in if they do go to college? At 17 or 18 these are life altering questions that many aren’t’ prepared to answer. Or, if they do have an answer, they don’t know how to go about accomplishing their goals as college can be very expensive. Most people can get college loans, but do you want to start of your adult life with huge debt already hanging over your head? This is where a career in manufacturing comes in.

Long gone are the days where a career in manufacturing meant long hours in a dark and dirty shop doing manual work for little money. Today’s jobs require skill and ingenuity. So, why should you consider a career in manufacturing? I’ve compiled some reasons that should get you thinking.

Many companies offer training, pay for school, or do apprenticeships. CrossWind has participated in the VA Apprenticeship program for 2 of the veterans that have worked here. We have also had online training courses that the company pays for and are willing to pay for college classes that relate to the field of machining. It’s not just our company that does this either. I know many other companies offer these same or similar benefits. Many places even offer internships while you go to school. Think of it this way, if the company invests in your future, they are also investing in their own. If you become better at your job through education and training then it benefits the company you work for as well as yourself.

Students that excel in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) are highly desirable in this field. Most shops run CNC (computer numeric control) machines which need programming. If you are considering a job in IT, this could be a great fit. I know that finding a programmer with experience in running Swiss Screw Machines has been extremely difficult for CrossWind. We offer good pay and benefits and we live in beautiful Grass Valley, CA and still have a very hard time finding someone to fill programmer positions. Even if you aren’t a programmer, to be a great machinist, you need good math skills . You use math daily in this job. I’m not talking calculus, basic math is fine (decimals, fractions, etc), but having a firm understanding of math concepts is what’s really important.

Product Design and quality assurance are great for hands-on people. If you are a real problem solver this is where you may fit. The median salary for a Manufacturing Engineer is $65k. You can even be a Design Consultant for different companies if you’ve got a mind for innovation. Seeing things from the idea/design stage through to a finished product is exciting! Have you always liked building things with Legos? How about playing Mouse Trap or doing projects for the school science fair? Does the idea of building a catapult out of common household objects or a scrap metal pile sound like fun? Sounds like you could find a very rewarding career in this field.

Pay is better than you think. I already mentioned what an engineer makes on average, but there are other good paying jobs in the industry. You may start off as a machine operator. The average pay is about $16/hr for this, but between good work ethic and reviews, you can climb the pay ladder petty quickly and be earning closer to $20-$22/hr within a couple of years. As a machinist the median pay is $20/hr, but there are often bonuses plus benefits which can add up to thousands more per year. Quality control starts off at around $28k, but can go as high as $73k (Bureau of Labor Statistics) .

You can avoid racking up huge college loans. Who wants to mortgage their future before they even get out there and start their career? I know plenty of adults in their late 20’s and into their 30’s that are still paying off loans because they deferred them for so long. You can work part-time while going to school to help pay for college. Another option is taking advantage of many company’s training and education benefits. You may even opt to delay or skip college and work full time for a while and decide if this is the right industry for you.

All-in-all manufacturing can be a well paying field with a stable future. What other field can you actually see goods being made from start to finish? Not to mention how exciting it is to see advancements in the field such as 3D printing and laser cutting. In some fields, such as machine shops, architectural manufacturing, food manufacturing, and transportation equipment manufacturing, jobs over the next 10 years are expected to rise above levels from 2002 which is when the economy was doing so well and jobs were abundant (BLS.gov) . If you or someone you know may be interested in this field you should watch some videos I have posted here and go take a look at Craigslist or Indeed and see what’s out there. There is quite a plethora of jobs and careers to consider.

STEM Education Is Key To Manufacturing Innovation (article)
The Coming Rise of Women in Manufacturing (article)
Edge Factor: Metal & Flesh Sneak Peek (video)
Advanced Manufacturing Career Pathways (video)

So Stressed Out: 23 Problems Caused by Stress

Thu, 02 Jun 2016 00:00:00 GMT

What do all of these ailments have in common? They can all be caused by stress.

We, as a nation, have decided that if you’re not living a stressed life, you must be lazy. If you’re not working 40+ hours a week, taking kids to their after school athletics, involved in your local community, keeping a spotless home while learning to be an amazing chef (and wine connoisseur), and training for your next 5k then you are wasting too much time being unproductive. This week I was trying to decide what to write about for our blog. I just returned from an 8 day vacation with 16 other members of my family in Hawaii (yes, a little stressful, but amazingly fun). I answered the phone and the person on the other line said “Wow! You sound so relaxed! Hawaii must’ve really helped!” It got me thinking. Can people really hear the stress in my voice? I try and sound professional and polite, not stressed. I love my life here in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and life is less stressful here than when I lived in the Bay Area, but it is still stressful nonetheless. My husband and I work full-time, have 3 kids at home, are active in our church, have band practice, and attend a walking group. In between those things you must add in housekeeping, cooking, running errands, going to gymnastics and girl scouts, etc, etc, etc.

The list of health problems related to stress (listed above) are not all-inclusive. These are just some common things that are treatable or even preventable. In addition to these health issues stress can exacerbate almost any condition. So, if we must absolutely live these busy lives, what can we do to relieve some of this stress? No one wants any of these things in their lives right?

1 The American Psychology Association says that Chronic stress causes the muscles in the body to be in a more or less constant state of guardedness. When muscles are taut and tense for long periods of time, this may trigger other reactions of the body and even promote stress-related disorders. Relaxation techniques have been shown to effectively reduce muscle tension, decrease the incidence of certain stress-related disorders, such as headache, and increase a sense of well-being. So, try some yoga. When I was a college student, I was taking classes for massage therapy. We did a lot of yoga, stretching, deep breathing exercises, and meditation. They all worked wonderfully for making me feel relaxed and revived. It also made me focus on the moment rather than the million things I had going on in my life. It really became “me time”.

2 Regular exercise is probably the most commonly prescribed at-home treatment for stress. It literally changes the chemicals in your brain and body. The Mayo Clinic states that “Virtually any form of exercise, from aerobics to yoga, can act as a stress reliever. If you're not an athlete or even if you're out of shape, you can still make a little exercise go a long way toward stress management.” Exercise causes your brain to release endorphins, which are the body’s feel-good chemicals. It also helps you to sleep better at night. Lack of sleep is definitely part of the stress/anxiety/depression cycle. Not to mention that exercise helps with every single one of the ailments listed above that are caused by stress.

3

Make some changes to your diet. I personally suffer from panic attacks. After learning my triggers I’ve had to give up caffeine, alcohol, aspartame, and msg. Some people are literally mortified when I tell them I gave up caffeine and alcohol. I can have the occasional drink (maybe once a month or so), but I was never a big drinker in the first place and not drinking was definitely more appealing to me than the feeling of “I am having a heart attack and am going to die” from the panic attacks. Also, I do miss caffeine. I’m not going to lie. That one still hurts. However, I feel the same way as I do about alcohol. If I have a cup of caffeinated coffee right now I will be on the floor within 15 minutes in extreme pain and feeling as though I am suffocating. Why would I want that cup of coffee if that’s the result? You may not have the same issues as I do, but caffeine is directly related to stress, anxiety, and depression also. Sugar is another culprit. It causes inflammation in the body which worsens stress, pain, weight gain (especially weight gain in the belly area), and don’t forget that ever-famous “sugar crash”. It leaves you exhausted and hungry.

4 Get a massage! As I mentioned in #1, I went to school for massage. I had no idea how positively that would affect me. There are so many benefits to massage. First of all it raises levels of dopamine , endorphins , and serotonin which are all chemicals released in the body that relax you and make you feel happy. Not to mention it reduces cortisol levels which is a stress hormone that is released when our fight-or-flight instinct kicks in. High levels of cortisol have been linked to many stress-related symptoms and illnesses including sleep deprivation, anxiety, inflammation and aggression.

Last, but not least, consider seeing a therapist or having a life coach. Is your stress caused by day to day things or is it more deeply rooted? Is it caused by a specific incident (or multiple specific ones) that have plagued you for a while? A therapist can help you work through those feelings and help you to process and deal with them. A life coach can help you to organize and prioritize things in your life and give you a new perspective. Sometimes people need someone who’s not in our inner circle to show us things we never would have thought of because they’re view is not tainted by being in the situation with us or having feelings for us.

Not everyone can go on a week-long vacation to Hawaii. Most people working in the US never accrue large amounts of vacation time from their jobs and even if they do, going on a vacation like that is expensive. Even if you vacation at home, you won’t be going to work every day, but you will still be doing house work, running errands, taking the kids where they need to go, etc. It’s hard to relax completely when you still have all of that to deal with. Try one or more of these things and let me know if they worked for you. Comment and let me know if you have more suggestions too!

Here are a couple of links that I found helpful while writing this blog: Web MD , Massage Therapy , and Skillsyouneed.com

H1B Visas and the American Job Market

Wed, 11 May 2016 00:00:00 GMT

This week, as I was searching around for inspiration for our blog, I was feeling extremely uninspired.

I really do try and find a subject that relates to CrossWind’s field (swiss screw machining, manufacturing, medical device components, etc), but also to blog about things that are interesting to people that aren’t in those fields themselves. Nothing was calling out to me this week and I was feeling very frustrated. Then I happened to hear a conversation between 2 employees about needing skilled workers and how hard it is to find one that has experience working with the tight tolerances that we do and I started thinking about where other companies find their skilled workers. Do they take years to find what they’re looking for like CrossWind has? Do they try staffing firms? Do they start looking overseas for talent? This isn’t something that is just limited to our field. This is a problem that almost all industries face at one point or another. What is the solution? Is it hiring an H1B visa employee? What does that even mean? Does that take away from American jobs? Reading up on this, I found different opinions and point of views.

First of all, let me explain what an H1B Visa is. It is explained as “a non-immigrant visa in the United States...it allows U.S. employers to temporarily employ foreign workers in specialty occupations. The regulations define a "specialty occupation" as requiring theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge in a field of human endeavor including but not limited to biotechnology, chemistry, architecture, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, medicine and health, education, law, accounting, business specialties, theology, and the arts, and requiring the attainment of a bachelor's degree or its equivalent as a minimum” ("8 U.S. Code § 1184 - Admission of nonimmigrants".) . These visas are good for 3 years, but are extendable to 6 years, with an exception of 10 years in certain circumstance. Also, there is currently a cap of 65,000 of these visas per fiscal year.
There are quite a few exemptions to this though. You are exempt if you work at (not necessarily for) a university, non-profit research facility for a university, or a government research facility. Also, 1,400 of these visas are set aside specifically for Chilean nationals and 5,400 for Singapore nationals due to Free Trade Agreements. However, whatever visas reserved for this purpose are not used, are rolled over to the following fiscal year and are available to nationals from other countries. This has approximately doubled the amount of H1B visas issued over many years.

How does this affect the American job market? I read several articles today and there is definitely varying opinions and statistics (as there is with any political issue, right?). Even reading the comments on the articles it seemed to be a 50/50 split. Many people were saying that increasing the cap and bringing foreign nationals to the US keeps the larger companies from opening offices in other countries and outsourcing. They feel that it’s better that foreign nationals come to our country, keep the jobs on our soil, and have them spend their money in our economy. Another point was that, by bringing over qualified people from other countries, we are expanding our horizons here. Why not let these brilliant people bring their talent to America and help to better our country? Many of the CEO’s for high tech companies (like Microsoft and Google) are from other countries so it is benefiting this country in the long run.

The opposing side makes strong arguments also. By hiring people with H1B visas, some companies are letting go employees that require higher pay due to their years of experience and are being forced to even train their replacements. Pfizer did this to hundreds of workers a few years back. Also, according to Computerworld Magazine “the top 10 users of H-1B visas last year were all offshore outsourcing firms such as Tata and Infosys. Together these firms hired nearly half of all H-1B workers, and less than 3 percent of them applied to become permanent residents.” “The H-1B worker learns the job and then rotates back to the home country and takes the work with him," explains Ron Hira, an immigration expert who teaches at the Rochester Institute of Technology. With unemployment concerns forever looming this is a big issue.

In 2009 President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (aka the stimulus bill) that limited banks and other financial institutions from hiring H1B workers until they had offered positions to other qualified U.S. workers first. This also was to help keep them from laying off workers in the U.S. and then hiring H1B workers in their place at a cheaper rate. However, this only applies to that specific industry. This does not apply to STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) jobs. Reuters reports that “Facebook, Apple, Amazon and a host of top technology companies are planning to publicly urge the next US president to support a swath of new regulation that would make it easier for them to hire highly skilled workers from overseas.”

Where do our presidential candidates stand on this topic?

Marco Rubio (who has dropped out of the presidential race) wants to expand the H1B program – back to 195,000 visas a year (which is what is was from 2001-2003) – to make U.S. tech firms more competitive and to attract foreign talent. However, jobs should be advertised for 180 days to privilege U.S. job applicants.
Donald Trump is against this approach and instead proposes to keep the current quota but raise the minimum wage for H1B hires to avoid replacement of U.S. workers by cheap labor.
Bernie Sanders takes a similar view and also urges tech firms to raise (rather than cut) wages to make engineering jobs attractive again.
Hillary Clinton has not contributed to the H1B debate recently – maybe a strategic decision given the difficulty of this subject.

Regardless of where you stand on this issue, it is obviously an important subject to consider when voting later this year. Do these visas help to grow technological, medical, and educational horizons in America or do they keep U.S. workers who have attained the education and experience that they thought would give them the career they envisioned from having that? What’s your take?

Machining, 3D Printing, and Injection Molding: Which is right for your prototype?

Tue, 03 May 2016 00:00:00 GMT

In the medical device industry, before a product is realized, there are generally multiple prototypes made.

This can get very expensive. With the technology of 3D printing becoming more and more available how do you know if that's what you want to use for your prototype? Should you have it machined? What about injection molding? What’s the most cost effective? What will get to you faster? Today I will discuss the pros and cons of all 3 methods.

First of all let’s look at 3D printing. 3D printing is explained as such: “The creation of a 3D printed object is achieved using additive processes. In an additive process an object is created by laying down successive layers of material until the entire object is created. Each of these layers can be seen as a thinly sliced horizontal cross-section of the eventual object.”. There are obvious pros to this. Making only a couple of pieces is relatively cheap. You don’t have tooling for machines, you don’t have to pay for the manpower to run a CNC machine, you don’t have to pay thousands for a mold to be made either. You are also removing human error from the picture which takes away material loss, time wasted, etc. Last of all, but most definitely not least, is the time factor. You can get your components made within hours or days rather than weeks or even months. That is definitely a lot of pros. What about the cons of 3D printing though? Once the prototype process is done and you go into production will you then have to have a program created or a mold created? In some cases it would be like starting over. You have to find out what can and can't be machined or molded. What if you need your prototype to be made from a specific material so that you can test it? What if it has to be stainless or even copper? Then this won’t work for you. (Read more on 3D Printing pros and cons)

Next we have Injection Molding. With this method of manufacturing a prototype there is a high initial cost for the mold to be made, but once that is done it is quite a bit more cost effective if you need to turn out a lot of pieces. You get a high production with a low overhead cost. There isn’t much work to be done to churn out parts after the making of the mold. There isn’t very much human error involved either. The component will come out exactly the same, every time. Also, there is a lot less waste with injection molding. Whatever material isn’t used can be melted back down for later use. So you have low production cost, lower material cost, quick production (once the mold is finished that is), and less handling by human hands. There are disadvantages to this though. The cost for a molding machine is very high and the machines are huge. We’re talking anywhere from $10,000-$400,000 and a machine the size of your living room. This can be extremely difficult for a start-up or even a smaller shop. Also, if your prototype is very intricate or uses materials not handled by these machines then you’re out of luck. (Read more on Injection molding pros and cons)

Finally, let’s discus CNC Machining as a viable option for your prototype. As with the other 2 options, there are highs and lows to this method also. CrossWind Machining uses CNC Swiss Screw Machines to create our components. Probably the best thing about having machined parts is the ability to make extremely precise pieces. I’m talking thousandths of an inch. A human hair is approximately 3 thousandths of an inch (.003”). At CrossWind we routinely make parts within +/- .001” tolerance. You can’t get those kinds of strict tolerances with 3D printing or injection molding. Another major pro for machining is that your prototype can be made out of whatever material your finished product must be made out of so that you can put it through what testing must be done for approval. Machines are programmable, can hold multiple tools, and have multiple axis so quite a bit can be done. Now for the cons to machining. First of all is the wait time. Machine shops that are slow on work can possibly have your prototype to you in a couple of weeks. If they are busy though, it could take a couple of months. Also, there is the problem of human error. Even when a program is created and perfect components have been machined problems can still arise. Tools on the machine can break or wear out and have to be replaced. There can be problems with the material that is being used. Often the product have to be deburred or a 2nd operation must be done to them manually or on a separate machine. They then may need special cleaning or plating done to them. All of these processes require them to pass through more hands. The more hands on a part, the more chances there are for mistakes to be made. The parts are put through a thorough inspection process, but sometimes there are mistakes that aren't caught right away. (Read more on CNC Machining pros and cons)

All in all there are justifications for all 3 methods. They ALL have some very poignant pros and some frustrating cons. In the end, it all comes down to what you need to have and what you can do without.