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Shape Up the
Future...Today
Mikko Lindström,
President |
Summer is
the time of year when many people resolve to “shape up”
physically – always a good idea. But it is also a very good
time to take a hard look at your production facilities to
see if you can also “shape up” your sheet metal fabrication
operations. Updating inefficient machines and manufacturing
methods, avoiding bottlenecks in production, instituting
diligent preventative maintenance programs, and providing
important operator training can spell the difference between
profit and loss.
New equipment
technology has always been the lifeline to growth for sheet
metal fabricators. Equipment and tooling manufacturers continue
to make tremendous strides in developing new machines and
tooling that are not only more productive, accurate, and cost
efficient, but also capable of eliminating costly secondary
operations while performing functions thought to be impossible
just a few years ago.
At
FINN-POWER, we believe that success in today’s sheet metal
fabrication industry depends not only upon an equipment
manufacturer’s ability to meet its customers’ current needs, but
also upon its vision and strength to anticipate and respond to
future changes in the marketplace.
20 Years
of Service to North America
This year
marks FINN-POWER’s 20th Anniversary of providing leading edge
technology to the North American market. Although the subsidiary
FINN-POWER International, Inc. was officially founded in 1985,
the company had sold products in North America for nearly 10
years prior to this.
While our
early days were humble with a limited product line and a small
staff, even then one could see FINN-POWER’s pioneering spirit.
FINN-POWER introduced the first hydraulic turret punch press to
the industry in 1983. And although few outside the company
realized it at the time, this innovative press made a bold
statement to the sheet metal fabrication industry: FINN-POWER
had chosen to lead with new technology and not follow the other
machine builders by producing just another mechanical turret
punch press.
Through the
years, technological leadership has become a steady pattern in
the yearly growth of FINN-POWER. We have made auto index,
Multi-Tool, programmable clamp settings, brush table, flexible
manufacturing cells & systems, and upforming common terms in the
industry.
Our product
line also expanded during this time. Since 1985, FINN-POWER
business has also “shaped up” – growing in both sales and sales
support. But the key ingredient to our success has always been
the support of our customers.
Today, we
have proven globally-acknowledged solutions for any sheet metal
fabrication need with a variety of work stages and methods. In
addition, we not only have the modules for optimal automating
process material flow, but also the application engineering
knowledge to specify the optimum in each case. The range is wide
enough so that our customers do not have to compromise
flexibility to achieve Lean Manufacturing in their fabrication
facilities.
Integrating
machinery to work together seamlessly from part to part and
operation to operation has been resolved by FINN-POWER’s Night
Train Flexible Manufacturing System. In addition to punching,
shearing and/or laser cutting, the Night Train allows the
addition of robotic press brakes or in-line automatic panel
bender to automate the component bending process. This system
allows customers to bend only the parts that are needed today
and they are able to bend parts in different sequences than what
they were punched to match their assembly needs, thus,
eliminating extra work in process while increasing throughput.
We are also
very aware of the different manufacturing needs other than FMS.
Some manufacturing requirements call for standalone machines.
Excellent examples of FINN-POWER’s flexibility and focus to
service the full spectrum of customers are C Series turret punch
presses and E Series servo-electric press brake cells.
The “new
marketplace reality” also extends to our customers – both
original equipment manufacturers and job shops. For the sheet
metal fabricator, the ongoing trend continues to be: “Make them
faster, cheaper, deliver defect-free products on time with more
features, and, of course, at less cost.” Translation: Improve
productivity, quality, and delivery…or someone else will.
Going
Global
Today, the
sheet metal fabrication industry has become a world market. Many
companies are reaching outside traditional geographic
 borders
to attract international business. But change does not have to
be a negative. Indeed, with proper planning and wise
investments, the future can be an opportunity…not merely a
challenge.
The Future
is Now
The “new
marketplace realities” match FINN-POWER’s product line
perfectly. Our modular concept adapts to a multitude of
production needs and changes. The FINN-POWER product range
offers a complete package to answer the challenge of Lean
Manufacturing. For many years, FINN-POWER has added versatility
to individual work stages by integrating them with automated
material management, and making automation as flexible as
possible. Our goal has always been to improve our customers’
productivity.
Thank You
Looking back
to our growth and development in both North and South America
during the past quarter century, we must thank our customers and
friends that made all of this possible.
I want to
take this 20th Anniversary celebration to thank our valued
customers and business partners who have helped FINN-POWER grow
from its infancy to the FINN-POWER of today. Our goal has been
to develop the most productive equipment in the industry. This
has been an evolutionary process, with each new generation of
FINN-POWER equipment adding features and benefits from the
previous generation.
Thank you for
“shaping up” with FINN-POWER. We wish you continued success
during the next 20 years and beyond.
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710
Remington Road 
Volume
15 Issue 1 -
July 2005