One of my favorite fall activities is apple picking with friends. I enjoy picking the fruit off the trees and placing it in my basket while trying hard not to sink my teeth into it right then and there. The end of summer harvest includes much more than apples, though; corn, squash, peppers, potatoes, asparagus, blueberries, pumpkins, tomatoes and many other fruits and vegetables are ripe and ready to be enjoyed whether they were grown in hundred-acre fields or in your own backyard. Next time you are enjoying fresh produce, pause a moment and be thankful for the sunshine, the rain, the fruitful soil and latches. Yes, without the simple arrangement of fences, a gate and a gate latch the fruits and vegetables that we love would be readily available to intruders such as deer, rabbits and woodchucks, not to mention a sneaky neighbor. [Continue Reading Article]

Broaching is one of those quick, painless and easy fabricating processes that work so well, no other methods have effectively replaced it since its invention. For those of you not well versed in the metal forming industry, broaching is a way of carving through metals to form holes that may be deep or shallow, complex or simple, internal or external—all within a few seconds. It was first developed hundreds of years ago to carve door keyholes and to cut keyways into different machinery parts. During the world wars, it was an integral part of the rifle making process, and today, broaching fabricates gears, pulleys and driveshafts as well as form internal and external threading on fasteners like nuts, bolts and screws. [Continue Reading Article]

What do cell phones, mattresses, satellites, pens, seat belts and clocks all have in common? I’ll give you a hint—they all use simple yet ingenious devices that have been integral parts of products and machinery for hundreds of years. Any ideas yet? Okay one more clue—you’ve played with them many a time as a child, either jumping on them as they boing up and down, or watching them descend a staircase in a very slinky manor. They’re springs—those coils of metal cords that store mechanical energy and are easily able to return to their original shape after twisting, bending, stretching and squeezing. [Continue Reading Article]

In the simplest of terms, fasteners are connective mechanisms used to hold 2 objects securely together. Sound familiar? It should, because I’m talking about screws, those simple little pieces of metal (or sometimes plastic) that keep our world in place. Your house’s construction is full of them, as is your stove, bed frame, car, computer desk, and on and on. They are similar to nails in design and function, but have one main defining characteristic—the threading. Those spiral-shaped raised ridges that wrap around the shaft of the screw at an angle keep them in place. Most screws are considered threaded fasteners and must be rotated in order to move in or out of a hole, while nails that have a smooth shaft may be easily pulled out of place. [Continue Reading Article]

Unfortunately, dishonesty, sealing and thievery are a large part of developed civilization and are impossible to eliminate. Unless each person in a community owns an equal amount of possessions and are all completely satisfied with what their belongings, robberies and theft remain a part of life no matter where you are. But to counteract these acts of selfishness and greed, human ingenuity and inventiveness developed a highly successful method of security—locks. Not only do they provide individuals with safety and protection against burglaries, locks provide a comforting daily ritual, creating peace of mind that comes with knowing your belongings are safe. [Continue Reading Article]

From plastic gears for the smallest wind-up toy to two ton cast iron gears, the capabilities of gear manufacturers amaze me. I mean, being able to machine and cut gears from only a half inch through up to twenty feet in diameter is a pretty incredible range. Plus, being able to provide this kind of gear production all under one roof, turning out completely in-house customized and even emergency jobs – some gear manufacturers can do it all! [Continue Reading Article]

From micro springs used in such devices as pacemakers to gigantic ones functioning within a NASA shuttle, we are surrounded by springs our entire lives. Our very own HyTech Spring and Machine Corporation, a master designer and manufacturer of miniature springs, precision springs and custom springs, emphasizes: “There are few products built today that don't rely on a spring.” So let’s take a look at the four main types of springs. [Continue Reading Article]

With all the 2009 Academy Awards’ glitz, glamour and questionable Hugh Jackman musical medley numbers (forget Beyonce; I thought Anne Hathaway stole the show – and being remembered from the opening of the Oscars is no small feat), who would have thought to notice the stainless steel cable holding up the shimmering backdrop of the stage that night? But what else could have supported the 92,000 Swarovski crystals configured in a 100-foot wide by 60-foot tall display weighing three tons? [Continue Reading Article]

Yes, hose reels are important for keeping your lawn organized and hazard-free, as well as for helping those flowers stay colorful and that grass remain green. Using garden hose reels, either wall-mounted, lawn-mounted or on a wheeled cart, makes sure no one trips, falls and scrapes their knees or runs over the hose with the mower; it avoids the inevitable tangles of hoses left on the ground, and it provides easy and smooth unwinding and rewinding for convenient delivery of water to where it is needed. Hose reel construction relies on the same concept as a sewer’s spool. Just as the sewing thread is wound around a small cylinder with rimmed ends that can fit in the palm of your hand, so the hose is spooled around a much larger cylinder. How much we are dependent on the simplest of inventions, even in this advanced era, always amazes me. Without these foundational ideas and mechanisms, we wouldn’t be able to, in the case of hose reels, fight fires in mere moments or convey vital drinking water or fuel with ease. [Continue Reading Article]

A hinge in its basic definition is a connector offering an axis of rotation for controlled motion between two parts. Such a simple piece of hardware yet so critical for numerous aspects of daily life, and innovations continue to be made in hinging devices. Before the invention of hinges people had to enter their mudbrick homes through a hole in the roof or possibly, if they were strong enough and had the means to, create a kind of “door” using massive rocks or large portions stone or wood... [Continue Reading Article]

New businesses need a logo that speaks, that is easily recognizable, that has style. Good nameplates are an extension of a good logo. Manufacturers often try to emulate the nameplate design of the most recognizable brands in their respective industry, often at a great expense: quality design... [Continue Reading Article]

Multi-Jackbolt Tensioners are bolt tightening devices that have been around for over a decade. Although the concept is relatively simple, these tensioners have many benefits that are not commonly known. They have proven to be economical in terms of cost and in terms of equipment reliability, which will be the focus of this paper... [Continue Reading Article]