In trading on Wednesday, shares of Centene Corp (NYSE:CNC) entered into overbought territory, changing hands as high as $44.20 per share. We define overbought territory using the Relative Strength Index, or RSI, which is a technical analysis indicator used to measure momentum on a scale of zero to 100. A stock is considered to be overbought if the RSI reading rises above 70. In the case of Centene Corp, the RSI reading has hit 70.9 — by comparison, the RSI reading for the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is presently 69.2.

Investors could look at CNC’s 70.9 reading as a sign that the recent heavy buying is overdue to take a breather, which could bring a pullback in the stock. The chart below shows the one year performance of CNC shares:

Looking at the chart above, CNC’s low point in its 52 week range is $25.08 per share, with $44.20 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $44.14.

According to the ETF Finder at ETF Channel, CNC makes up 4.03% of the S&P SmallCap Health Care Portfolio ETF (NASDAQ:PSCH) which is trading lower by about 0.4% on the day Wednesday.

See what other ETFs contain CNC »
See what other stocks are held by PSCH »

CNC operates in the Hospital & Medical Practitioners sector, among companies like LCA-Vision Inc. (NASDAQ:LCAV) which is down about 7% today and has a current RSI reading of 75.5. Below is a three month price history chart comparing the stock performance of CNC, versus LCAV.

http://www.marketnewsvideo.com/article/201201/cnc-crosses-technical-indicator-cnc-psch-lcav-CNC01112012rsi.htm/

It is very important to assess machine hazards for machinery like dovetail machine , edge banding machine, etc. to prevent human injury & death. No matter, which industry you are in, it is very essential to maintain industrial equipment and tools like wood cutting tools, wood clamps, dovetail machine, edge banding machine , edge cutter, mortise chisel, chisel mortiser, wood CNC router, etc. in good condition. This will extend the life of the machinery and will not affect productivity or cause disruption in routine activities.

It is very important to carry maintenance procedure for industrial equipment and tools like mortise chisel, chisel mortiser, wood CNC router, etc. Maintenance process will keep the machinery working in good condition all the times and will increase its efficiency. Besides maintenance, it is very important to install machine safety guards to prevent human injury or death. Machine related hazards may appear during machinery installation, operation or maintenance.

Safety guards are designed to get rid of potential hazards of machinery. You should adopt hazard control methods, which can reduce the hazard levels to a great extent. Selection of hazard control methods should be done on the basis of hazard control hierarchy. Manufacturer of machines usually design these guards.

All important details like installation process, operation and maintenance are specified in the manufacturer’s manual. However, there may be certain hazards which may take place after the machinery is installed at plant site. Possibility is there that such hazards have not being included in the safety manual. Such problems are very common and are result of various factors like extreme process condition or interaction with nearest moving equipment.

Identify the machinery

The first thing you should do is identify machinery like dovetail machine, edge banding machine edge cutter , etc. operated in your industry. Industrial equipment can be identified based on their types, area of their placement & source of energy used for operating machines. This will let you identify machines, which will be helpful in assessment of machinery hazards, before you determine safety guards. Assessment of machinery hazards for safety

Even though, you have a safety manual with you still it is very important to assess machine hazards of various industrial tools like wood cutting tools , wood clamps, etc. and risk assessment to ensure that no hazards are left out to be assessed.

To read more about importance and details of maintenance process for wood cutting tools, wood clamps , dovetail machine, edge banding machine, edge cutter, mortise chisel, chisel mortiser and wood CNC router, you can refer to related sites on Internet.

http://www.guide2nottingham.com/blogs/140/Dovetail-Machine-and-Wood-Clamps–Assessment-of-Machine-Hazards

By educating customers on coolant best practices, Quaker helps customers manage their costs for the long term

Computer Numeric Control (CNC) machining is when the functions and motions of a machine are controlled by an automated program.  CNC is beneficial in machining and grinding operations because of its high accuracy, short production time, and greater flexibility.  It can be used for multiple types of metals, but requires a metalworking fluid that provides a high degree of lubricity.

When Bahrat Electronics Limited (BEL) — a state-owned electronics company manufacturing advanced electronic products for the Indian Armed Forces — was experiencing problems with their metalworking fluid performance, tool life, hazardous waste generation and coolant odor in their CNC machining center, they turned to Quaker Chemical experts for help.

After analyzing the situation which involved the machining of brass parts, Quaker recommended switching to QUAKERCOOL® 3890 — a metalworking fluid designed for non-ferrous, medium-to-heavy duty machining and grinding operations requiring a high degree of lubricity, cleanliness, cooling, and corrosion protection — for all CNC machining operations. The change to QUAKERCOOL® 3890 offered improvements from day one, including increased tool life, reduction in hazardous waste generation and elimination of bad odors. BEL continues to experience these positive results 24 months later, with no change out of product — providing additional cost savings in process fluid purchases.

“Since the changeover to QUAKERCOOL® 3890,” said Kubera Naik B V., Manager/ CFF at Bharat Electronics Bangalore site, “we have experienced elimination of bad odors, which had been a major problem, and increased sump life while maintaining tool life, finish, and operator friendliness.”

As additional support, Quaker’s technical experts provided on-site training related to metalworking fluids, to share best practices in coolant management and help the customer better understand the subject matter.

“We are very happy with the day-to-day service, the prompt technical support, and efforts being extended to ensure total customer satisfaction from Quaker,” comments Mr. Naik.

For more information on Quaker Chemical, and its full product line offerings, including Chemical Management Services, please visit quakerchem.com.

Quaker Chemical Corporation is a leading global provider of process chemicals, chemical specialties, services, and technical expertise to a wide range of industries — including steel, aluminum, automotive, mining, aerospace, tube and pipe, coatings and construction materials.  Quaker’s products, technical solutions, and chemical management services enhance customers’ processes, improve product quality, and lower costs.  Quaker’s headquarters is located near Philadelphia in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/01/10/4176586/delivering-long-term-value-for.html

Rentapen Inc. located in Waukesha, WI just hired a Shop Maintenance Associate and Customer Order Manager

Rentapen’s team continues to grow in order to support their mission of helping manufacturers reduce costs. Rentapen has added two new employees to their team, Vicki Treul and John Edward Murphy. Treul is the new Customer Order Manager and Murphy is the new Shop Maintenance Associate.

Treul will be responsible for 2D drawings of parts for quoting, inventory control, and creating files that will be sent to the metal cutting laser as part of Rentapen’s Just-in-Time Laser Cutting Services.

“Vicki Treul’s extensive background and skills in production management, will contribute to Rentapen’s growth,” said Susan Straley President at Rentapen Inc.

Murphy will be in charge of all the maintenance in Rentapen’s CNC machine and metal cutting lasers and other factory equipment. Murphy will be taking care of all the machines, assembly, cleaning, packaging, and assisting all the employees that work in Rentapen’s factory.

“I’m excited to join the Rentapen team and I’m happy to see the company grow,” said Murphy.

“Ed has experience in machine maintenance and along with a good work ethic, he fits right into our culture,” said Straley.

Rentapen’s CNC machine and Laser Cutting machines are used for producing Rentapen’s RAPid Tooling Components, a line of blocks, plates and clamp risers and shims used to reduce the costs of jigs and weld fixtures.

Rentapen’s larger, metal-cutting laser is used for Rentapen’s Just-in-Time Laser Cutting Services. Rentapen has a Mitsubishi 4000 Watt CO2 laser that cuts up to 1 inch steel, .5 inch stainless steel and .5 inch aluminum. The laser table will accommodate a sheet size of 5ft by 10ft.

The key benefits of Rentapen’s Just-In-Time Laser Cutting Services are a small affected heat zone, repeatability, close tolerances, and speed of cut. The cutting feed rates for Renatpen’s laser are ½ inch of aluminum is 200 inches per minute, 1 inch mild steel is 100 inches per minute and 1 inch of stainless steel is 100 inches per minute.

Rentapen’s Just-In-Time Laser Cutting Services can help manufactures reduce their inventory costs because they can order only what they need when they need it.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/1/prweb9089008.htm

CNC stand for Computer Numerical Control, and refers specifically to the computer control of machine tools. The main purpose of CNC Milling Machines is to repeatedly manufacture complex parts in metal as well as other materials, using a specially coded program. This specially coded program that is used by CNC Milling machines is written in a notation called G-code. G-codes represent specific CNC Milling functions in alphanumeric format. CNC Milling was developed in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s by the MIT Servomechanism Laboratory.

1. About CNC

- Computer Numerical Control (CNC) Milling is the most common form of CNC
- CNC mills can perform the functions of drilling and often turning
- CNC Milling machines are classified according to the number of axes that they possess
- Axes are labeled as x and y for horizontal movement, and z for vertical movement
- The evolution of CNC milling machines drastically changed the manufacturing industry
- Curves are as easy to cut as straight lines, complex 3-D structures are relatively easy to produce, and the number of machining steps that required human action is way down.

2. The Fabrication Process

With the use of CNC milling machine the fabrication process of the materials have been trimmed down to just a couple of steps. CNC Milling machines now days are driven directly from computer softwares crated by CAD software packages. With the use CNC Milling machines the assembly of parts can go from brief designs without any intermediate paper drawing works being required. In one sense, with the use of CNC milling machines industrials tasks are done must easier and much faster and the production cost of the company is also lessening out. CNC machines may be said to represent special industrial robot systems, as they are programmable to perform any kind of machining operation, within certain physical limits, like other robotic systems.

3. Buying Tips

Before buying a CNC milling machine it is a must that you should have knowledge about the CNC milling machines basic parts. A CNC milling machine is basically composed of a Safety shield that is usually a clear plastic cover that cover and protects the cutting area. The Tool bit, this part of the CNC milling machines is the one that do the cutting. Spindle Shaft, is the part that holds the tool bit. Spindle Motor, is the part of the CNC milling machine that drives the cutter. The Vertical Column, the part that holds the spindle and all of its part. The Cross Side, a moveable support where the work piece is being cut. The axis motors, which moves the cross side into different axis and the Controller box.

When purchasing your milling machine make sure to check that you have all of this part intact on your CNC milling machine, for if one of this parts is not there it will not surely work or will produce an undesirable end product. Also see to it to check out for safety features, never buy a CNC milling machine without an emergency stop button, this button automatically stops machining when it is pressed. Human, hardware or software errors could mean big losses if the CNC cannot be stopped quickly enough to correct the problem. Also check out the control panel part, it is advisable to buy one with a big control guide sticker so you can clearly see it.

Also check out the screws and tools with long overhangs and adapters, be more observant about cracks and breaks on this CNC milling tools. Make sure that the plastic shield that you are purchasing with your CNC milling machine is made up of high impact polycarbonate plastic. An insert break loose from a 35 mm diameter CNC milling cutter at a spindle speed of 45,000 rpm will be thrown out at a speed of 90 meters per second - equivalent to a bullet that is being shot out of a pistol!

http://www.articlecircle.com/technology/cnc-milling-machine-buying-tips.html

SEOUL, KOREA — In its 2011 New Year editorial, North Korea emphasizes the need to become a powerhouse of science, technology, knowledge, and economy.  Kim Jong-eun, the designated successor to Kim Jong-il, is reputed to be a computer expert.  It is said that based on CNC (Computer Numerical Control), presented as a great achievement of Kim Jong-eun, North Korea expects great progress in science and globalization.

North Korea’s open-type CNC, manufactured by Ryonha Machinery

In general, CNC is one of the most advanced disciplines in contemporary science and technology.  CNC in machine tools is often referred to as “the mother of machinery”.  It is a highly advanced, proprietary technology that only a few countries in the world such as Germany (Siemens) and Japan (Mazak, Fanuc) master. Despite this, the North Korean government openly maintains that “our CNC technology has solidly reached the world’s highest level”.  Although North Korea tends to hyperbole, it is not an exaggeration given North Korea has launched satellites, indicating North Korean CNC technology is already highly advanced.

1. Status of North Korean Machine Tools

The term, machine tools for CNC, appeared in North Korea for the first time when Kim Jong-il found it on a trip for onsite training on April 29, 1995 and titled it “Ryonha Machinery”. Later, “Ryonha Machinery” became a representative term that covers various advanced machine tools manufactured in North Korea. The reports revealing North Korea’s current capacity to process machine tools for CNC include “the development of two-four axis standard machine tools for CNC in the 1990s, five-axis center lathe in the 2000s, and high-performance eight-nine axis machine tools for CNC” and “the development of nine-axis turning center lathe as the most advanced machine tool for CNC by Ryonha Machinery”, presented by the Korean Central News Agency of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea on September 11, 2010.

This means that North Korea has achieved complete independence in developing eight or nine-axis machine tools as well as five-axis tools that are already universal among advanced countries.

As of yet, no accurate materials on the current status of precision of North Korean machine tools for CNC are available in South Korea. However, an article entitled “CNC technology” on the N. Korean newspaper Tongil Sinbo from January 2010 reports that <from the 1980s, the precision level of l/1,000mm(l?), unimaginable before, has become common and the super precise processing up to 0.l? (100nm) has become our reality.>

While a precision of up to 5nm is required for high-resolution electro-optical cameras used in satellites, given N. Korea’s two satellite launches in the 1980s mean its processing capacity for 100nm, North Korean machine tools has reached the world’s best that can compete with Germany and Japan.

This assumption can be confirmed from the fact that the USA selected the factory at Ryonha Machinery as a subject of sanctions. The USA has been aware of the power and level of North Korean technology for CNC for a long time. On October 21, 2005, the country selected the factory (Korea Ryonha Machinery Joint Venture Corporation) as a subject of sanctions so that North Korean machine tools could not be exported overseas and this sanction is still available.

2. The significance of North Korean technology for CNC

As mentioned previously, CNC technology is divided into mechanical processing and automatic control technologies. It is said that currently, North Korea applies CNC technology to machinery factories such as Pyongyang Textile Machine Factory, Guseong Machine Tool Factory, Ganggye Tractor Factory, Yongseong Machine Complex, and Taean Heavy Machine Complex.

Additionally, CNC technology for automatic control has been introduced to sweets and food manufacturing bases such as Pyongyang Goksan Factory and Pyongyang Flour Processing Factory. This has removed manual labor and many companies have realized the potential of CNC processing to increase production.  Chollima Steel Complex realized CNC application reaching 10,000 tons in press.

The significance lies in that North Korea has represented CNC technology as a symbol to break free from US economic sanctions, and as a hope for independent rehabilitation.  North Korea, the subject of US economic sanctions for several decades, has independently developed the world’s most advanced technology in defiance of such sanctions and is now seeking practical gains to contribute to the improvement of its people by introducing advanced technologies to overall industries. North Korea aims to break away from US economic sanctions and become an economically sound country, as it aims to become a “powerful country” in 2012, at the100th anniversary of Kim Il-sung. The significance of development of CNC technology is that North Korean power production is gradually stabilized.

As for machine tools, the precision level of machines is important but power shall be steadily supplied for precise processing. Documentation released by the Ministry of Unification tell that North Korea has developed ‘about 1,000 small and medium-sized power plants in 1999, 130 in 2000, 80 in 2001, 40 in 2002 and several tens in 2003. The urge to build various small and medium-sized power plants for power supply seems to have contributed to solving the power shortage, leading to stable power supply sustaining the processing of machine tools. (Of course, stable power supply does not mean that the power status has changed to provide power to all areas of its society and economy sufficiently. The fact that North Korea aims to construct a light-water reactor via uranium enrichment technology implies that it has not solved the power problem fundamentally as well as its potential demand.)

Choi Sung, Professor of Computer Science at Namseoul University

The development of CNC technology also provides an aspect of the future society promoted by North Korea. In North Korea, companies try to secure CNC as can be seen from the examples such as CNC application to super-large machine tools at Taean Heavy Machine Complex and CNC application to Vinalon-manufacture processes at 2.8 Vinalon Complex. The ultimate aim is to integrate and automate all manufacturing processes, reduce physical labor, and finally accomplish unmanned manufacturing.

Hence, North Korean technology for CNC has reached the world-class level and is applied to its light industry and agriculture. North Korea says “we will revive our economy neoterically based on the most advanced science and technology rather than patching up insufficiency.” How North Korean economy will change via the advanced science and technology and what roles North Korean CNC technology will play in the process deserve our attention.

http://www.koreaittimes.com/story/19301/north-korean-precision-manufacturing-develops-computer-numerical-control-cnc

Serdar Plastik in Turkey opened for business in 1973 and created its mold manufacturing department in 1984. Since then it has grown to employ 375 people, has three plants, covering 24,000 sq. meters in total, and is soon to open a fourth. The company specializes in the manufacture of precise plastic parts and components for major manufacturers in a wide range of industries including domestic appliances, heating systems, automotive, medical, electronic, telecommunications, defense and aerospace. It provides a service from product design and manufacturing feasibility to molding and assembly, so its moldmaking workshop is an important and integral element of the manufacturing cycle.

The company has been using high-speed machining (HSM) centers since 1996, so it is well experienced in these machining techniques. Ceyhun ÇINAR, CAM Engineer for Serdar Plastik says, “ WorkNC takes the guess work out of CNC programming and it is the closest thing to ‘single button’ CAM. It has several automatic toolpath types to fit our every need such as Global Roughing, Global Finishing, Optimized Finishing, ContourFinishing, Curve Machining and Hole Boring. The system is automatic, we just have to enter a few basic parameters and WorkNC does the rest.”.

All WorkNC’s remachining operations are from dynamic stock models. These update as cutting progresses so that the system knows exactly what material has been removed and exactly what is remaining. The advantage for the user is that tool loads are controlled producing smoother and more fluid machining processes, better surface finishes and a longer tool life. High-speed machining requires careful control of the tool trajectory to avoid sudden shock loading of the cutter.

The molds cut by Serdar Plastik illustrate the power of WorkNC and the time and quality benefits intelligent high-speed machining can produce. Ceyhun ÇINAR explains, “ WorkNC has a lightning fast graphic toolpath editor. We had to manufacture a mold for a filter which has 20,000 hexagonal shapes separated by 1mm channels in 52 HRC 1.2083 Stavax material. We produced the CAM program very easily by programming just one hexagon using WorkNC’s engraving toolpath and then, using the toolpath editor, replicated all the other 19,999 toolpaths, enabling us to machine the mold 15% faster than our competitors.” Because Serdar Plastik produces one off components and mold tools each part it manufactures is unique, which could result in a very heavy workload for its CAM programming office. Ceyhun ÇINAR says, “ We stick to using around six of WorkNC’s toolpaths to do all our work. We particularly like the automatic programming in the software which helps us to avoid errors and produce the part right first time on our four high speed machining centers.”

The company is examining the possibility of implementing 5-axis machining so that it can manufacture more of each tool in one operation and also produce more complex shapes to meet the growing sophistication of its customer’s designs, helping to reduce costs and provide a better service. Ceyhun ÇINAR adds, “ We are considering the purchase of WorkNC for 5-axis machining which will give us a significant commercial advantage over our competitors.” Sescoi’s Auto 5 module automatically changes 3 and 3+2 axis moves into 5-axis continuous paths, so implementing this will enable Serdar Plastik to continue its automated approach to CAM programming for the next phase of its expansion plans.

http://www10.mcadcafe.com/nbc/articles/1/1046781/WorkNC-delivers-automatic-CNC-programming-Serdar-Plastik-Turkey-SESCOI?interstitial_displayed=Yes

Most U.S. shops take for granted the quality and reliability of their electric power, though some regions have inescapable power fluctuations and outages. Operating CNC machine tools in an area like this spotlights how well a machine control handles a power hiccup – can the CNC recover quickly or does it forget what planet it’s on? Jerry Gilara, Director of Continuous Improvement, and his maintenance team at Helac Corporation in Enumclaw, WA, knew the answer for an older workhorse vertical turning center the company relied on. Built in 1998, the MAG VTC – critical to the company’s production – experienced significant downtime with every power hiccup. “This is a rock-solid, very capable machine, but its older CNC and DC drives/motors were an Achilles heel,” Gilara explains. “We’ve always been pleased with the machine, so we had MAG retrofit a new Fanuc CNC and AC digital axis drives/motors and spindle. The retrofit transformed the machine, making it utterly reliable and giving us other advantages because of the widespread use of Fanuc controls in our shop.”

Helac’s main product line is helical hydraulic rotary actuators, a clever device that translates linear piston movement into rotary motion. Extremely compact, the Helac actuator produces high torque with high load bearing capacity, making it ideal as a positioner or steering component for mobile construction equipment, forklifts, aerial platforms, utility vehicles, agricultural equipment, marine applications, etc. The actuators provide swing, steering, head rotation, articulation and similar capabilities, with drift-free, brakeless positioning, and protection from overload conditions. The device is covered by many patents and has been adapted and sized for numerous applications.

.Gilara says a significant percentage of Helac’s parts pass across the MAG VTC, a 36″, fixed-height, 2-axis machine. The machine does heavy metal removal on the tube-shaped housings used for many actuator models, utilizing a 3-pallet pool of queued work to stay in production during much of the plant’s 80+ hour workweek. Several hundred different part numbers are involved, made of DOM tubing and alloy steel, weighing 60 lb to 500 lb. The tube style parts have welded steel flanges on each end and some have off-center plates on the sides. “We mount these on an angle plate that has half-rounds to locate off the OD of the tube,” Gilara explains. “We bore the part completely in one shot from the top, with tolerances of 0.001″. Then we face two parallel surfaces so everything is concentric. We do all the machining from one end, using a 250 lb boring bar with a CAT 60 taper, which is a primary reason we purchased this machine. We have a backup machine for this work, but that machine is what caused us to purchase the MAG unit. When our primary machine is down, we’re quite unhappy, because parts aren’t moving through production.”

With power quality often in question due to wind conditions in this region of Washington, the machine’s control often lost its memory during brief power outages. “Every time the power hiccupped, the control would lose memory, even with an outage of just a minute, and it could take a day or two to reload all the programs,” Gilara explains. “If it happened on second shift when no maintenance people were available, the machine might sit idle until morning before someone could work on it. The CNC hardware and DC drives had become liabilities, too.”

Helac discussed a retrofit of the CNC and drives/motors with MAG in 2009, and the new hardware – a Fanuc 0iTD CNC, AC spindle, servo drives and motors – was installed in 2010. MAG uses pre-engineered, modular retrofit packages with pre-built panels. This modular approach allows economical retrofit of just the CNC, or the CNC with servos, spindle drive and motors – at different times, if needed, to spread out the budgeting.

“Our power quality issues have become non-issues since the retrofit,” Gilara says. “We went through an entire winter without a problem. And, the similarity of the Fanuc control to others in our shop has given us advantages in programming and training. We can now post process to a Fanuc file, like the rest of the machines in our plant, and operators familiar with other machines in our plant can migrate to this machine with less training. The faster data handling of the new control also yields improvements in finish. Given this machine’s workhorse capability, accuracy and repeatability, the retrofit has proved a cost-effective investment.”

MAG offers pre-engineered retrofit kits for many models of its legacy brand VTLs, HBMs, lathes, HMCs, VTCs and 5-axis machines, utilizing Fanuc, Fagor and Siemens control solutions.

http://www.onlineamd.com/aerospace-manufacturing-MAG-vtc-servos-amd-010512.aspx