Blogs can create community. This Clinkenbeard Blog seeks to go beyond community and create value for all of its participants. Clinkenbeard www.Clinkenbeard.com is a worldwide leader in the rapid production of complex castings and machined parts using a wide variety of metals and plastics. From five-axis CNC machining www.clinkenbeard.com/cnc-machining/capabilities to product design, development, prototyping and manufacturing in markets ranging from aviation and aerospace to automotive, heavy trucking and more, we have Clinkenbeard experts who will address best time-to-market solutions of the day. From issues like International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) www.Clinkenbeard.com/about/certifications-accreditations to
AS9100 Certification, our professionals will offer perspectives that will help you in your business decision-making. And finally, the Clinkenbeard Blog will be a forum for local Rockford, Illinois, business, economic and political leaders and media to offer their commentary and feedback on issues ranging from aerospace and aviation expansion in Rockford to area manufacturing to economic development.

Guest bloggers. In an effort to expand the depth and breadth of the information available at the Clinkenbeard Blog, we have invited many guests from the metal casting, product design and development, rapid prototyping, rapid manufacturing and CNC industries to offer their opinions on issues of the day. Similarly, we have asked several Rockford political, economic and business leaders and media involved in aerospace, aviation, manufacturing, commerce and government to offer their insights and outlooks as well.

Please comment on any and all blog entries you’d like. If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please email Reg@Clinkenbeard.com.

Enjoy and participate all!

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Companies serious about Speed to Market require good prototype and short run suppliers to support the effort. Production suppliers have a production mindset and are geared for production; it is difficult to cross the boundaries between the prototype and production worlds. Clinkenbeard has streamlined the prototyping process, from initial contact for quotation to shipping and tracking the package to your door. We eat sleep breathe the flexibility necessary to make things happen quickly. This includes taking HOT orders which change our personal and work schedules daily, implementing engineering changes throughout our business and manufacturing processes, and finding a way to get parts to your door Monday morning when they were just finished Sunday night. Believe it or not, we were just discussing parts which will be done this Sunday night, and need to take a trip to be delivered by 7AM Monday morning 4 states away. We are often involved in projects which Clinkenbeard is the dual source – to be sure that our customer has parts one way or another. Dual sourcing parts is an expensive insurance policy; companies who engage in this type of activity are very serious about Speed to Market.

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Hurdles which prevent speed to market; purchasing requisition and fund allocation.

At Clinkenbeard we turn requests for quotation around in 24 hours or less. As we go about our daily business quoting work for customers, it is not difficult to identify hurdles which can prevent successful speed to market during this stage in the process.
(Indeed, the whole process must be streamlined to eliminate bottlenecks which stall the process of prototype part procurement. One of those potential bottlenecks we will address now.)

One common reason for delay in this process comes during the stage of obtaining “signatures” or approval for funds to purchase initial prototype hardware. As we make follow-up calls to check status on recent quotations, we speak with purchasing agents who have spent weeks to obtain purchase requisitions and approval to spend funds – only to find the process stymied at this stage in the development.

The purchasing agent then informs the supplier that the quoted delivery date must still be maintained, in spite of the two weeks spent obtaining authorization to spend funds. At this point, stress levels are high and relationships can be damaged. Contingency plans must be put in place to prevent or address these types of internal delays so that the authorization process can be expedited, just as the rest of the process is expedited to procure prototypes quickly.

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Here are two good articles about the future of rapid manufacturing.

The first one is, “An Electronic CEO Fireside Chat With Ron Gustafson, Clinkenbeard,” on Product Design & Development’s website. In this article, PD&D Editor David Mantey asks Ron Gustafson questions such, What is the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced at Clinkenbeard?, What’s the method behind the “Fasterestest” madness?, What is the future of rapid prototyping and additive manufacturing?, and more.

The other article is called, “Realizing the Rapid Manufacturing Dream,” by Adina Shorr, CEO of Objet Geometries, and appears on Next Generation Manufacturing’s website. Shorr’s article begins, “Over the past seven or so years, the world of rapid prototyping has increasingly embraced digital technologies, bringing further gains in flexibility and even greater savings in time and cost. Some of these technologies and the accompanying materials can be applied in other realms – with rapid manufacturing as one of the promising avenues under exploration.”

Where do you see the future of rapid manufacturing heading?

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Is it too early to discuss the Farnborough International Airshow 2010? Anyone making any plans for next year yet? It takes place exactly one year from now this week?

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The activity at the Rockford booth was greater than I ever imagined!

I really did not know what to expect.  And I certainly never expected the level of interest that we experienced.

Rockford first set its sights on aerospace no more than three years ago when in 2006 the Carter*Burgess (now Jacobs Engineering) targeted industry report came back and identified aerospace manufacturing and R&D industry as a potential industry to target for expansion and attraction.

In 2007 Winnebago County did a more comprehensive study of the immediate cluster of aerospace companies within the Rockford Metro Suburban Area.  This study revealed a rather large concentration of 90 aerospace and aviation companies in the immediate Rockford area.

Companies included those engaged in Power Management and distribution, R&D and prototype development, manufacturing of component parts for a diverse number of sub-assembly’s, logistics, and large amount of maintenance and repair operations.

In 2008 RAEDC began discussions with several of its largest investors in the aerospace industry to determine if developing a cluster strategy would make sense for the region.

It was due to and through these conversations that RAEDC received help from SupplyCore to determine that there was an even larger group than thought. In fact, 130 aerospace suppliers existed in the Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin area.

This aerospace group encouraged RAEDC to attend the Paris Air Show and determine if there was room for Rockford on the global aerospace stage.

I really did not know what to expect.  I never expected to come back with 33 business cards received in conversations at the booth, or in meetings with entities wanting to know more about Rockford.  I never expected the level of interest that we experienced.

I will be presenting our results to key RAEDC volunteers and local aerospace leaders, but I now expect that they will encourage RAEDC to continue our efforts.

I will also expect this will include participation at the Farnborough International Airshow next year from July 19 – 25, 2010 in Farnborough England, asking for DCEO to partner with RAEDC again, working to get more Rockford area companies to attend that air show and then inviting several new leads and prospective clients to come and visit Rockford.

Here is what I found interesting. As I looked around the show I found that the size of our cluster here in greater Rockford region, in total companies, was comparable to several other very well known US locations and several regions in countries that were presenting aerospace for attraction.

WOW!!!  We definitely have something here to crow about in the Rockford region!

I hope that Clinkenbeard and Leading Edge Hydraulics each got what they wanted out of the show.  I believe they did.

I know that while I was in the booth one of Clinkenbeard’s clients came by to introduce himself to Reg Gustafson, Project Manager for Clinkenbeard, and to thank them for quality work on a rebuild of a part for a WWII War Bird. I witnessed another potential client step up and ask about quoting a piece of work.

As I was busy outside in meetings, and in the booth so infrequently, I am sure that other such conversations occurred.

Leading Edge Hydraulics attended the Paris Air Show to research the potential of entering the aerospace market with their products.  My understanding from Russ Dennis, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Leading Edge Hydraulics, is that they came away being favorably impressed as to the potential.

In addition, we were able to publicly announce that Kaney Aerospace was the finalist for a prototype development opportunity for an Australian company, Tigerfish.  We were able to distribute information on Kaney Aerospace to at least one other entity specifically related to their composite capabilities.

Other entities whose information was distributed included: Ingenium, Balanced IT, Emery Air, Chicago Rockford International Airport, Greater Rockford Airport Authority, Northern Illinois University, Rockford College, Rock Valley College, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, and Ingersoll Machine Tool.

# # #

With Thanks to Special Guest Author

Eric Voyles, VP
RAEDC
+1-815-987-8118

http://www.rockfordil.com/

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 16, 2009

Paris – France

Rockford’s Kaney Aerospace is a finalist for the development of a prototype for Tigerfish Aviation’s Retractable Amphibious Pontoon Technology (RAPT) program.

Tigerfish Aviation Pty Ltd (Adelaide, South Australia) is developing a new class of seaplane to meet the increasing demand for water based air transport.  RAPT is a major improvement over the existing technology of the antiquated fixed float aircraft.

The potential scope of the market encompasses smaller civilian, military and regional aircraft and will enable businesses to capitalize on the growing trend to use waterways for future air transport.

Kaney Aerospace (Rockford, Illinois) is collaborating with Tigerfish and the RAEDC (Rockford Area Economic Development Council) to display the RAPT model and promote the Rockford region’s Aerospace capabilities at the Paris Air Show.

The immediate program for Rockford and Kaney Aerospace is to retrofit a RAPT into a RUAG’s re-launched Dornier 228 NG.  Tigerfish will use the prototype to conduct market demonstrations, complete testing and experimental certification, which will lead to the launching of the production program in 2012.

“The Rockford Area is a perfect fit for Tigerfish because of the breadth and depth of aerospace expertise in the region especially in R&D/engineering, prototype development and MRO activity,” says Eric Voyles, VP of National Business Development.

Kaney Aerospace and the Rockford Area Economic Development Council have been actively pursuing aerospace companies like Tigerfish to interact and compliment Rockford’s current aerospace companies such as Hamilton-Sundstrand and Woodward.

CFK Valley Stade, advanced composite specialists from Germany and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are expected to have a long-term role in the RAPT program.

ABOUT TIGERFISH
Tigerfish Aviation Pty Ltd (Tigerfish) is an aerospace research and development firm dedicated to developing core technology for “Retractable Amphibious Pontoon Technology”, referred to as RAPT.  Tigerfish plans to license the technology to aviation groups to undertake their own development and holistically impress their expertise in associated structural technologies and other transport industries.  Tigerfish has recruited a team of highly motivated professionals, comprising in-depth aerospace experience in engineering, research/development, operations and marketing.  The management team of Tigerfish comprises over fifty years of experience and provides a solid foundation of international, marketable and technical know-how.

To learn more about Tigerfish and their products, please visit www.tigerfishaviation.net.

ABOUT KANEY AEROSPACE
The Kaney Group(TM) is a group of diversified and synergistic companies that include operations in Aerospace, Agriculture, Aviation, Capital Funding, Commercial Real Estate, High Technology and Manufacturing. Its corporate headquarters are located in Rockford, Illinois with holdings in eight states in the USA

ABOUT THE RAEDC
The primary role of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council is to enhance wealth creation in the Rockford Region by marketing the area and helping employers retain and create quality jobs. The RAEDC works closely with many partners to serve as a one-stop resource for clients, to improve the competitiveness of the region and to engage the community in the work of economic development.

ABOUT ROCKFORD’S AEROSPACE CLUSTER
Roughly 90 companies in the immediate Rockford Area make aerospace-related products and have more than 6,000 employees, many engineers.  Rockford has 1.5 times the average number of engineers as the Illinois average.  There are over 130 aerospace companies in the greater Rockford Region making it the largest aerospace community in the state of Illinois and one of the largest and most diversified in the central portion of the United States.  Corporate citizens include: Hamilton-Sundstrand, Woodward, Ingenium, B/E Aerospace, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, Parker Hannifin among others.

# # #

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Jeff Kaney, CEO
Kaney Group
+1-815-986-4359                   

Eric Voyles, VP
RAEDC
+1-815-987-8118

Saxon Rudduck, M. Director
Tigerfish
+61 8 8363 1811

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5. What Results from the Paris Air Show Would You Like to See for Rockford?

Walking through the Paris Air Show today seeing all the awesome unique booths full of product models and mockups, I wonder how a company could possibly communicate a product design to visitors from 48 countries without a physical prototype available. These beautiful physical prototypes demand the attention of many attendees, I tried to take pictures of some only to find that there were too many people standing around them. The mockups which display movement to communicate function seem to be the most popular. Knowing the innumerable hours of labor and level of skill required to make these works of art, I can appreciate the wonderful result. Physical prototypes bridge the gap between languages and communicate in a way which would be difficult, and in some cases impossible due to the complexity of the product. We sometimes overlook the fact that even people who speak the same language and work in the same office have a much different vision than we intend when we try to describe something they have never seen.

What do you look for in a perfect show mock-up?

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No related posts were found, so here's a consolation prize: Clinkenbeard Blog Aims to Create Value for Professionals in Metal Casting, Rapid Prototyping and CNC Manufacturing and for Rockford, Illinois, Business, Economic and Political Leaders.

Please see release below.  Clinkenbeard will be the only Rockford company communicating from the Paris Air Show in real-time with aerospace and aviation customers and prospects and the Rockford business community.  The Rockford Area Economic and Development Council will be blogging on a local Rockford television website.

News Release

Date: June 9, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, please contact Ron Jr. (Reg) Gustafson, 815.226.0291, reg@clinkenbeard.com

Clinkenbeard Will Blog and Tweet from Paris Air Show

Key audiences will be Clinkenbeard aerospace and aviation customers and prospects, the Rockford business community, and Rockford-area and industry media; the company encourages participation by individuals and companies that comprise each of these key audiences.

(Rockford, Ill.) — Ron Jr. (Reg) Gustafson, project manager for Clinkenbeard, a Rockford, Illinois-based rapid manufacturing and prototyping company, will be communicating with customers, prospects, the Rockford business community, and the media through a blog and Twitter while he attends the Paris Air Show, June 15 through 17, 2009.

According to Gustafson, he will be using the social media tools to build and reinforce relationships with Clinkenbeard customers and prospects by providing information from the show about trends, events and products being discussed, presented, and exhibited at the show.

Gustafson indicated that he also will be communicating about news and information he learns about that could impact the Rockford business community in a positive way.

Gustafson encourages anyone to join the conversation and participate, including the trade press and the local and regional Rockford media.

“We are encouraging our customers and prospects to participate, and hope that other Rockford companies and organizations as well as the media will join the conversation,“ Gustafson said.

With respect to Clinkenbeard customer and prospects, Gustafson added that, “One of Clinkenbeard’s key metrics of success is our adherence to meeting and exceeding the time-to-market requirements of our customers. Our company slogan is ‘Fasterestest.’ We think our communicating in a real-time mode from the show is a form of our ‘Fasterestest’ way of doing business.“

Clinkenbeard’s blog can be accessed at http://clinkenbeard.info and the Twitter page can be accessed at http://www.twitter.com/Clinkenbeard

Both sites are being designed for the show and will be show-ready June 11.

Social media company D.D. Griffith Consulting will be consulting and assisting Clinkenbeard in organizing its social media communications.

For more information, please contact Ron Jr. (Reg) Gustafson, 815.226.0291, reg@clinkenbeard.com

About Clinkenbeard
Clinkenbeard is a worldwide leader in the rapid production of complex castings and machined parts using a wide variety of plastics and metals. The company’s principal markets include US defense and government, aerospace, aviation, automotive, truck, marine and agricultural.

Some of Clinkenbeard’s aerospace and aviation clients include Hamilton Sundstrand, Pratt & Whitney, and Rolls Royce.

The patented Clinkenbeard® Toolingless Process is industry renown for producing metal castings efficiently, affordably and extremely fast. The process is based on machining sand cores and molds without the expense of tooling. All machining is done using CNC, which produces superior speed and accuracy.

About the Paris Air Show
The Paris Air Show takes place every two years, and brings together global leaders of the aerospace and aviation industries. This year’s air show will take place June 15th through June 21st in Le Bourget, France, which is just north of Paris. The Paris Air Show that took place in 2007, which Clinkenbeard attended, brought together almost 2,000 exhibitors from more than 40 countries and was attended by more than 400,000 visitors, which included manufacturers, suppliers, trade representatives, public officials, media, and delegations from around the world.

# # #

Mark A. Ricotta
815.708.7254
http://www.linkedin.com/in/markricotta

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Clinkenbeard is the worldwide leader in the rapid production of complex cast and machined parts using a wide variety of plastics and metals. We couldn’t find a word in the American dictionary which accurately defined the speed at which we do business, so we developed a prototype …Fasterestest. We think it fits perfectly.

Time to market is a critical measurement for today’s OEM. It determines how efficient and effective manufacturers are in developing, implementing and producing ideas.

The Clinkenbeard® Toolingless Process is industry reknown for producing metal castings efficiently, affordably and extremely fast. The process is based on machining sand cores and molds without the expense of tooling. All machining is done using CNC, which produces superior speed and accuracy.

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