Tom Beard Former Executive VP

15 Jul 1998

Stepping Into Solids Machining

Moving from pure surfacing to hybrid solid-and-surface modeling was much easier than this pattern shop ever thought it would be.

4 Jul 1998

It's Not Just Technology That Matters

No doubt about it, when it comes to the broad world of CAD/CAM, the CAD side always seems to get the glory. For one thing, the CAD market is much larger than CAM, and that's not going to change anytime soon.

15 May 1998

More Parts, Less Space

High-density workholding techniques allow this shop to achieve high production-like efficiencies on an inexpensive CNC bed mill.

1 May 1998

It's A Good Time To Be Small

It had been a while since I'd been to WESTEC, the annual machine tool show in Los Angeles. Last time, the aerospace industry had fallen into a major slump, and the show, which heavily caters to job shops making parts for airplanes, was more than a little depressing.

28 Apr 1998

A Sense Of Purpose

It takes just a few minutes to drive over the bridge from Detroit to Windsor, Ontario. But once you're there, it seems awfully far away.

CAD/CAM 15 Apr 1998

In Capable Hands

Putting NC programming and faster machine tools in the hands of machinists has helped this leading mold shop cut weeks out of the tool building cycle.

5 Mar 1998

Take Heart, The News Is Better At Home

While I'm perfectly happy not to give much more than a moment's thought to the Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky mess, there is one aspect of this episode that I find fascinating. At this writing (about three weeks ago as you read this), at a time when most of the country believes that there probably is something to the story, the President's approval ratings have actually gone up.

CAD/CAM 15 Feb 1998

Tying It All Together

This combination product line manufacturer and job shop is a classic example of an environment that calls for a fully integrated CAD/CAM system.

1 Feb 1998

The Kids Are Alright

We finally bought a home computer for the Beard family this Christmas, and it's been most instructive seeing our children—ages 6, 8 and 10—take to the new technology. With my own level of computer literacy being of modest proportions, I figured I'd nonetheless be the expert for a while since the kids were coming from the rather limited experience they get in school, and my wife Sue had hardly touched a keyboard in years.

1 Jan 1998