Dear Shop Doc,

We’re an extrusion equipment manufacturer shipping extrusion barrels reaching 10-12 feet in length. For rust prevention we have been applying cosmolines and oils using a long, makeshift broom caked with oil. The process takes a lot of manpower, workers and customers often complain about the smell of the oil, customers have to use mineral spirits to the remove the oil from the metal, and sometimes the parts still rust. Some of our equipment can be valued at as much as $100,000 per piece. Is there a better way to prevent rust?

Oily in Memphis, TN

Dear Oily,

We brought your question to David Yancho – vice president of Armor Protective Packaging, a manufacturer of corrosion inhibiting & rust removal products, to discuss some different options.

Oils and Cosmoline are tried and true products that certainly do the job in terms of rust prevention, but I’ve heard some accounts of the messy and labor-intensive nature of the applications. They’ve also been known to be a contaminant for dust and other particles that gravitate to them.

Water-based rust preventative (RP) liquids are the closest alternative to what you’re using now. They provide similar benefits to oils, but can be easier to apply and remove because they’re water-based. That means they’re safer for the worker as well as the environment. They still can be messy, have an odor, may be difficult to remove, and possess disposal challenges. Also, RP liquids fowl to high and low spots in the metal, resulting in less than full surface coverage.

Read full article here.

Interview by Noah Graff

Roland Hernandez

Ice sculptor Roland Hernandez is CEO and founder of Carving Ice, an ice sculpting company that provides pieces for events including weddings, parties, and corporate gatherings. Eight years ago he began using CNC routers to compliment his traditional sculpting methods.

NG: How did you get into the ice sculpting business?
RH: Right out of high school I managed to get into an apprenticeship program under a master chef at the Century Plaza Hotel in L.A. The chefs there are required there to teach you as much as they can, and I saw a gentlemen cutting ice and said, “I think I can do that.” As means to support my way through [college], I started [doing ice sculpture] as a business on the side. Six months into college I was so busy I decided just to do that.

NG: How do you use the ArtCAM software? How does today’s ice sculpting process work compared to what it used to be?
RH: We take our blocks of ice and we put them onto our deck. We’ll freeze them down to the deck so we don’t have to actually use any type of clamping system. Then, once the design is created in ArtCAM, you see what vectors and spindle feed rate and actual bits that you’re going to be using. You input it into ArtCAM and then upload the file and press start. The machine does the rest. Imagine a CNC that cuts wood or plastic or aluminum. It’s just put in the freezer.

NG: Does the sculpture you do by hand look as good as the one from the machine?
RH: Sometimes you can’t tell which is which. The amazing thing is that hands-down the CNC will beat me on any kind of logo work or anything that looks mechanical – anything that has straight edges. What it comes down to are three-dimensional pieces. The machine can’t really replace me too much when I’ve got to cut a lion and I use taps, certain muscle texture and movement within a reasonable amount of time.

Read full article here

By Lloyd Graff

On Thursday, I had the opportunity to spend several hours with Mitch Liss of Edsal Manufacturing, a major producer of steel shelving and office furniture with sales of $200 million, based in Chicago. Mitch gave Noah and I an insider’s view of purchasing politics by big box retailers and huge catalog sellers.

He said that within massive organizations like Wal-Mart or Grainger you find two distinct parties influencing purchasing decisions, the buyers and the global (strategic) sourcing groups.

The shelving buyers who work closely with the sourcing people have the responsibility of making the final call about what product makes it to the sales floor or catalog and how much is ordered. The sourcing guys are charged with scouring the world to find cheaper shelves. Their salary and bonuses are dependent on increasing the amount of dollars sourced, primarily from China.

The purchasing guys have little interest in where the product ultimately comes from, as long as it sells well. This drives a guy like Mitch Liss crazy because every rack and shelf he makes is a sitting target for the strategic sourcing dudes.

What bugs Liss is that the incentives are rigged to favor foreign placement of orders even though he usually offers an equal or lower final price to the reseller.

His biggest irritation is with Costco, who he’s been trying to sell to for eight years without success. He says he can sell a better product for less money than the Chinese currently supply, but the buyers refuse to allow him to be seriously considered head to head against the competition. Evidently, for the Costco buyers, the idea that an American firm based in Chicago can undersell the Chinese is so ridiculous that Edsal cannot even demonstrate its products side by side at Costco headquarters in Washington state. Interesting how Costco has remained blind to the fact that Edsal sells millions of dollars of products to Home Depot, Lowe’s, Menard’s, Grainger and McMaster-Carr.

I would think that an American company would at least get a fair look by a firm that sells most of its goods in this country.

Question: Do you think there should be an inspection fee or tax on every shipping container that arrives in the U.S.?

Mitchell Liss of Edsal