SPRING 2000
Volume 6 • Number 1
PTDC
ON THE MOVE!
As
of March 6, 2000, the Plastics Technology Deployment Center will
be co-located with its economic development partner, the Northwest
Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center (NWIRC). According to
PTDC Director Larry Partch, "This move will enable the PTDC to
work more closely with the NWIRC in providing a complete regional
solution of manufacturing assistance to our clients." The PTDC
is a center focused primarily on assistance for plastics-related
companies. With this move, PTDC clients will not only continue
to have access to the latest plastics CAE software and equipment,
but will also have access to the more broad manufacturing-based
services of the NWIRC. Some of the NWIRC services include: tooling
and machining, quality systems and process improvement, business
planning, and CAD to CAM integration.
Please
update your records with the following information.
The
new address of the PTDC is:
Plastics
Technology Deployment Center
The Uniflow Center
1525 East Lake Road
Erie, PA 16511-1088
The
new phone number is 814-452-0094, and the new fax number is 814-452-1924.
All e-mail addresses and Web site addresses will remain the same.
Back
To Top
A
FOCUS ON SOFTWARE: SOLIDWORKS
When
selecting a mechanical design automation tool for mainstream 3D
solid modeling, it is critical to evaluate the complete value
of the product being offered. One such tool in the marketplace
today is SolidWorks.
Some
of the strengths and benefits that SolidWorks users enjoy include:
- Powerful
3D modeling (parts and assemblies)
- Detailed
drawings
- Ease
of use
- Design
reuse capabilities
- Associative
applications
POWERFUL
DESIGN MODELING
Engineers need robust modeling capabilities to create accurate
part and assembly models. For solid modeling to be an effective
communication tool, the model must be a 100 percent accurate definition
of the product. SolidWorks delivers by providing a fully associative,
feature-based production modeling solution, fully capable of building
production-quality parts and assemblies. This includes final details
such as fillets, drafts, and shells.
SolidWorks is a true design tool that takes users from conceptual
design to final product release. SolidWorks accomplishes this
by not forcing a user to fully constrain designs. This functionality
provides a natural design approach in which engineers can add
more definition to the model as it is refined. What this means
to the engineer is that during the conceptual design phase, a
3D solid model can be created that has no dimensions to drive
the size. The model can be created quickly to get the overall
design intent across to others. As the design becomes refined,
the engineer can modify the model by adding in dimensions to fully
describe the shape and size for other downstream purposes (prototyping,
manufacturing, or quality control).
DETAILED
DRAWINGS
SolidWorks provides the capability of generating fully detailed
production drawings that are linked to the 3D solid model part
or assembly files. Standard view creation can be as simple as
using a Windows drag-and-drop technique. Dimensions used to create
the 3D solid model can be brought in automatically to fully capture
the design intent. Users also have the flexibility to dimension
their views as needed using all of the common drawing practices.
Isometric
views can also be shown on drawings and can even contain true
isometric dimensions. Users find the drawing functionality very
simple to use and very intuitive.
EASE
OF USE
SolidWorks is 100 percent focused on Windows-native mechanical
design. From the start, it has been architected to seamlessly
interact with other Windows desktop applications through a consistent
and easy-to-use Windows interface. As a result, not only can powerful
office applications be embedded in SolidWorks, but SolidWorks
can be embedded into office applications as well. The native Windows
user interface is continued throughout the entire product, including
part, assembly, and drawing applications.
A
patented functionality which makes SolidWorks even easier to use
is the dynamic FeatureManager. The manager allows users to graphically
manipulate elements of the design, including drag-and-drop reordering,
editing sketches and object definition, and the ability to hide,
show, and suppress objects. The user can even "roll back" the
design history using this functionality.
DESIGN
REUSE CAPABILITIES
SolidWorks provides powerful design reuse capabilities by utilizing
the Windows technique of drag-and-drop. This includes dragging
and dropping features from one part to another. Another reuse
technique is saving a feature or features that are utilized often
and placing them within a feature palette where they can later
be dropped on to an existing model without the hassle of recreating
the geometry.
Other
reuse techniques include the use of design tables and configurations.
ASSOCIATIVE
APPLICATIONS
SolidWorks has over 300 Solution Partners in industry in areas
such as analysis, manufacturing, simulation, and data management.
This associativity with other software vendors packages allows
users to control their own choice in applications.
For
More information on SolidWorks or a demonstration of the software,
please contact the PTDC or visit www.solidworks.com.
Back
To Top
PTDC
WELCOMES NEW PROJECT ENGINEER
Thomas J. Moyak joined the PTDC as a project engineer January
17, 2000. Moyak is a graduate of Penn State Erie, The Behrend
College, with an associate of science degree in Mechanical Engineering
Technology and a bachelor of science degree in Plastics Engineering
Technology. He brings six years of experience in injection molding
to the PTDC with recent emphasis on new tool and process development.
He has held various positions in industry including process engineer
at Carlisle Engineered Products in Erie, Pennsylvania, and senior
process engineer at Arkay Plastics in Alabama.
Moyak
has handled a variety of responsibilities in the areas of injection
molding process training: new mold sampling and qualifying; efficient
mold setting techniques; mold, process and machine troubleshooting;
production scheduling; and plant layout and inventory control.
He also has experience using RJG cavity pressure transducers as
a tool for qualifying new molds and for process control and monitoring
of production molds. Other areas of experience include in-mold
decorating and sonic welding of plastic parts. He is a member
of the Northwest chapter of the Society of Plastics Engineers.
Back
To Top
GLOBAL
CORPORATION CHOOSES BEHREND FOR PLASTICS TRAINING
Twenty
plastics processors employed by Nypro Inc., an employee-owned
global custom injection molding corporation headquartered in Massachusetts,
recently received a week of intensive training in the plastics
processing lab at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. Dave Baird
and Brad Johnson, lecturers in engineering at the College, worked
with Nypro officials to develop an interactive curriculum that
would meet both the participants' and the company's needs.
"This
is a golden opportunity," said Dick Hermann, corporate director
of training and organizational development for Nypro. "Penn State
Erie's injection molding lab offers one of the finest learning
environments for hands-on applications."
"Plastics
processing has many skills associated with it that are traditionally
learned in the production environment over a number of years,"
explained Hermann. "There are so many variables involved that
it takes time and experience to translate action into knowledge.
In the lab at Penn State Erie, the processors have an uninterrupted
opportunity to absorb and understand more clearly the work they
do."
The
training group included representatives from Nypro plants in Oregon,
Texas, Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, Colorado, and
from the company's headquarters in Massachusetts. By bringing
one or two employees from each plant, Nypro hopes to develop workers
who return to their respective plants and serve as resources for
their fellow employees. Because the participants come from plants
all over North America, company officials also expect to see an
increase in networking among production-level employees.
Participants
in the 18 hands-on lab sessions were enthusiastic about their
experience, too. "I never worked on some of these machines, and
I'm learning different aspects of other machines," said David
Magdaleno of Nypro El Paso. "I'm learning how to apply what I've
learned to my daily job."
Chuck
Justice of Nypro Louisville agreed, "This is a good class. I feel
strongly that it's working well for all of us." And Ryan Mace
of Nypro Oregon, on his first trip to Pennsylvania, found the
training "very informative. It will reinforce what I already know,
and it will help me when I get back to the production floor."
Finally, Michael Jordan, an employee of Nypro in Clinton, Mass.,
expressed the sentiments of the group: "We've done well, not only
learning from the instructors and from the machines, but from
each other."
Nypro,
Inc. employs 5,500 people in 24 molding locations in eleven countries,
with more than $500 million in worldwide sales.
To
learn more about Penn State Erie's plastics education program,
contact the School of Engineering and Engineering Technology at
(814) 898-7148.
Back
To Top
YOU
TAKE THE DRIVER'S SEAT
Tired
of wasting time on tedious design and engineering tasks? Like
finishing a complete set of 2D views, details, crosssections and
isometrics - one line at a time - then learning the guys in sales
would like you to make a few "minor" changes?
It's enough to give anyone a case of road rage. Which is why you
should plan to attend a free two-hour introduction to SolidWorks
99 on April 14 from 9 am to noon, jointly sponsored by Progressive
Computing Corporation, the PTDC, Penn State Erie Center for Corporate
and Adult Learning, and the Northwest Pennsylvania Industrial
Resource Center.
Unlike
your typical demo, this is a "hands-on" test drive that really
gives you a chance to take SolidWorks 99 for a spin. You'll experience
more than 150 customer-driven enhancements, all designed to help
you get more done with less effort. And when the rubber meets
the road, you'll see why this simple-to-use, native Windows application
is now the driving force in 3D CAD.
To
reserve your seat at this free seminar, all you have to do is
visit http://www.cadworld.com/seminars.htm,
choose the Erie seminar and complete the simple registration form;
or call 1-888-765-4371. The seminar will be held at the Northwest
Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center (NWIRC), Uniflow Center
Building, 1525 East Lake Road, Erie, PA 16511-1088.
|
