Machining.Blog® is a weekly blog focused on manufacturing career development. It features blog articles on the fundamentals of manufacturing for aspiring machinists. Our goal is to create an interest in manufacturing in the USA. Our writer Matthew Schowalter has worked in manufacturing for 24 years, and he covers the topics that matter to someone starting their career in manufacturing.
“The soft skills the machinist uses are the unseen tools in their box and can directly impact the success or failure of a dreamed after machining career.”
All in Manufacturing
I was provided with a few opportunities to talk about my STEM project and my career in several schools. It can be a very rewarding experience to a part of. I never saw myself as a speaker or presenter but with my deep knowledge in the subject, I developed a passion for sharing my experiences in manufacturing.
When people hear the term "paperless," they typically associate the elimination of this office resource as an act that helps the environment. And while this is true, adopting a paperless manufacturing solution can do so much more. In addition to promoting a more sustainable business, going paperless can decrease operating costs, enhance productivity and help a shop floor work smarter (and not necessarily harder).
Machining is by far more interesting than what most people know. From the challenges of implementing new complex equipment in the shop, to CNC programming, or even making complex parts in one setup. It is definitely a career choice that most don’t know how advanced it can be, especially the machining of today. Now, we can make parts in one setup that were once made in many setups on multiple pieces of equipment over a long time frame. My career is a success story in manufacturing technology as I have embraced the technology of today.
Starting a machine shop can be an overwhelming task. There are many factors to consider while keeping it running efficiently. Besides the operational tasks, we have broken it down on what it might take to have a steady stream of work in your machine shop.
Cardinal Manufacturing in the Eleva-Strum School District in Wisconsin is a student-run manufacturing business that has repair services, welding services, woodworking services, machining services, design services, and 3D printing services.
When I got started in machining, I really didn’t know what kind of tools to purchase. There is a vast variety of tooling to use in the shop, from inspection tools to hand tools. While having a limited budget, I had to choose to first buy the tools that I thought that I would use the most. This will vary from machine shop to machine shop often dependent on the type of work that the machinist does. Here is a list of some of the more popular choices for tools:
I recently had an opportunity to work with the technical education program at Eleva-Strum School District in Wisconsin. The project that I had for the students was to modify a few parts for a mechanical clock. It was an amazing experience to be greeted at the door by a student and the student gave me a great handshake. The technical education class teaches these soft skills to the students, starting in seventh grade.
Within the manufacturing industry there are many sectors and a lot of terms to know and understand. Here we will define what some terms are and how they relate to manufacturing.
Manufacturing Automation: Is the use of technology and advanced machines to control the manufacturing of products. It may include the use of robotics or other equipment to aid in manufacturing.
Manufacturing Business: An organization that uses raw materials, parts, or other components to make products. To make the products they use automated systems and advanced equipment.
Cardinal Manufacturing in Strum Wisconsin is a school-based manufacturing program that operates both as a class and a business as well. The students gain real world life experiences while enrolled in the program. These experiences include problem solving and working in professional roles.
Machining and Tool & Die Making is what I have spent most of my career doing. There is something to be said for being able to turn a raw piece of material into a complex finished part. Through all my roles in the machine shop environment, I have identified a few soft skills, hard skills, and technical skills to have mastered if you want to be a great machinist.
A few years ago, I learned about the Cardinal Manufacturing business in Eleva-Strum High School in Wisconsin. I was invited to attend their workshop on how they built their program in their technical education department. It was such an inspiration to hear how engaged the students were and how they were learning solid employability skills.
CNC is an acronym for Computer Numerical Controlled. CNC is a type of machining practice. Besides CNC the other type of machining is manual machining. In CNC machining the workpiece is held in the machine and the CNC Programmer writes code so that the CNC machine can machine the workpiece. The CNC Machinist sets up and operates the CNC machine and oversees the machining process.
My first project in technical collage for tool and die making was to make 1-2-3 blocks. I milled the blocks oversize to leave stock for precision grinding. After drilling and tapping the holes in the blocks, we case hardened them. The last process was to precision grind them to size. The grinding process involved both grinding to blocks to size and to a squareness tolerance.
For much of my childhood I didn’t want to be in school, probably like most people. But now I am trying to get back into several schools as a guest speaker to show students my STEM project and how it relates to my great career that I had in manufacturing. It is important to show the students that manufacturing and engineering is an awesome career choice.
With the shortage of manufacturing workers in the United States we must start to investigate the situation closer to fill the jobs of today and tomorrow. Besides the worker compensation, benefits, work environment, and career development topics that may influence career decisions in manufacturing, we should now look closer into the following topics.
