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What Are Drag Chains?

Drag chains are simple guides that are used to surround and guide different types of cables and hoses. They help to minimize the amount or wear and tear on the hose or cable that they protect while helping ease the degree of tangle that sometimes occurs due to extended lengths of hose. Drag chains can be adjusted to accommodate horizontal, vertical, rotary and three dimensional movements.

Early examples of drag chains emerged during the 1950s. They were constructed of metal, typically steel. Different types of configurations made it possible for the drag chain to be incorporated into pneumatic and hydraulic hose designs. This increased the efficiency of the hoses used for a variety of different automated machinery used in manufacturing facilities.

Different types of drag chains used today include:

  • Open
  • Closed
  • Low noise
  • Cleanroom compliant
  • Multi-axis movement
  • High load resistant
  • Chemical, water and temperature resistant

Different designs of drag chains might allow the protected hose or cable to be bent in one direction without impacting the function of the hose. One example would be a hose that is used to direct a steady flow of air for cleaning purposes that can easily be bent in order to direct the nozzle into tight spaces where dirt and other debris might collect. The purpose of the chain prevents the hose from cracking or becoming weakened by the bending action. This ensures that the air flow remains consistent. Additionally the chain protects the operator from an uncontrollable burst of air due to a collapsed hose.

Drag chains can be used to protect hoses and cables in a wide variety of different settings. For example drag conveyor chains might be used in automated car washes and in production facilities such as oil rigs. Other types of tools commonly used in construction use hoses and cables that are protected by drag chains. Examples of these include cranes and forklifts. Since drag chains can be used with a variety of different hoses able to carry a flow of liquids, gases, electrical currents or data, there is really no application where a drag chain will not be helpful.

Bay Industrial Group specializes in solving complex manufacturing problems. The expert automation designers, project managers, fabricators and welders at Bay Industrial Group are highly trained and experienced to work with a wide variety of industries in order to locate and create solutions to problems in their manufacturing processes. For more information please contact Bay Industrial Group today.

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How is Blow Molding Used in Manufacturing?

Blow molding is a manufacturing process used to form hollow plastic parts. The process of blow molding begins with the melting of plastic and forming it into a parison which is a piece of plastic with a hole in one end. The parison is clamped into a mold and compressed air is blown into it. The air pressure inside the parison pushes the plastic out to match the mold. After the plastic has been allowed to cool and harden, the mold opens up and the plastic part is ejected.

The two main variations of blow molding are continuous and intermittent. In continuous blow molding the parison is extruded continuously and the individual parts are cut off. In intermittent blow molding, an accumulator gathers the melted plastic. When the previous mold has cooled and enough plastic has accumulated, a rod is used to push the melted plastic to form the parison.

The production of large quantities of hollow glass and plastic objects utilizes injection blow molding. In injection blow molding the polymer is injected onto a core pin. The core pin is then rotated to a blow molding station where it is inflated and cooled. This process is typically used to make small, single serve bottles. This process produces an injection molded neck for accuracy but only suits small capacity bottles because it is difficult to control the base center during blowing.

In the injection stretch blow molding process the plastic is molded into a preform using the injection molding process. These preforms contain threads on one end and are typically used as the necks on bottles. The preforms are packaged and after cooling they are fed into a reheat stretch blow molding machine. The preforms are heated then blown using metal blow molds. This process yields extremely high volumes with very little restriction on bottle design.

Plastic jars and other plastic containers typically have an excess of material from the molding process. A spinning knife is often used to trim around plastic containers and the excess plastic can then be used to create new moldings.

Bay Industrial Group specializes in solving complex manufacturing problems. The expert automation designers, project managers, fabricators and welders at Bay Industrial Group are highly trained and experienced to work with a wide variety of industries in order to locate and create solutions to problems in the manufacturing process. For more information please contact Bay Industrial Group today.

Custom Welding in Washington DC
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What is Metal Fabrication?

Metal fabrication involves the construction of machines and structures from various raw materials. The metal fabrication process typically involves drawings with precise measurements, the fabrication stage and finally the installation of the final project. Larger fabrication shops are able to offer increased value to their customers by including welding, cutting, forming and machining in one shop. This eliminates the need for extra personnel and the use of multiple vendors for different services.

Typical fabrication projects handled by fabrication shops include loose parts, structural frames for buildings and heavy equipment and hand railings and stairs for buildings. Raw materials used in metal fabrication include:

  • Plate metal
  • Formed and expanded metal
  • Welding wire and welding rods
  • Hardware
  • Castings
  • Fittings

These raw materials must be cut to the proper size. The most common way to cut the raw material is by shearing, but other tools might be used such as band saws, cutting torches, plasma and laser cutting tables and water jet cutters. The fabrication of structural steel by plasma and laser cutting utilizes robots to move the cutting head in three dimensions around the materials being cut.

The main focus of steel fabrication is welding. Formed and machined parts are typically assembled and then tack welded into place. They are then rechecked for accuracy and the welding is completed. Special precautions are sometimes necessary to prevent warping of the weldment due to the intense heat involved with the process. Experienced welders can prevent and remove significant warping with heat that is selectively applied in a slow, linear sweep.

Most fabrication shops have a specialty process that they develop or invest in based on their expertise and their individual customer’s needs. Common fabrication specialties include:

  • Brazing
  • Casting
  • Chipping
  • Drawing
  • Extrusion
  • Forging
  • Heat treatment
  • Hydroforming
  • Oven soldering
  • Plastic fabrication
  • Powder metallurgy
  • Powder coating
  • Punching
  • Shearing
  • Spinning
  • English wheeling
  • Welding
  • Electrical
  • Hydraulics
  • Prototyping/machine design/technical drawing
  • Sub contract manufacturing

Bay Industrial Group specializes in creating solutions to solve the many complex manufacturing challenges faced by manufacturing companies today. Bay Industrial Group’s team of experienced project managers, fabricators and automation designers work hand in hand to find and create the perfect solution for a variety of different industries. Bay Industrial Group’s expert staff works out of a state of the art 22,000 square foot facility. The welding and fabrication shop area covers 15,000 square feet and allows for welding, fabrication, assembly, set-up and testing of large equipment and systems.

For more information about Bay Industrial Group’s welding and fabrication capabilities please contact them today.

Custom Conveyor Belt in Washington DC
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What are Table Top Converyors Used For?

Table tops conveyors are commonly used in both manufacturing and processing applications in a variety of different industries. Table top conveyors are specially designed to transport various sizes of jars, cartons, cans, bottles and cases with maximum efficiency and with a minimum amount of pressure. Different types of table top conveyors are used for moving different types of products and different belt types and designs are utilized in order to meet almost every manufacturing need.

Bay Industrial Group’s fully adaptable table top conveyors are built to meet a variety of different manufacturing needs. Custom built table top conveyors are designed for many different applications and processing requirements including:

  • Product filling
  • Weighing
  • Labeling
  • Production inspection

Bay Industrial Group’s custom designed table top conveyors can be designed to transport any size package or part in applications that require multiple curves and height changes. Bay Industrial Group offers custom modular designs allowing most conveyor components to plug and play for simple installation as well as cost effective layout changes. In addition, Bay Industrial Group offers a comprehensive collection of chain styles and materials to choose from.

Table top conveyors built by Bay Industrial Group feature:

  • Heavy duty construction
  • Modular design
  • Complete assembly prior to shipment
  • Frames
  • Wear strips
  • Rail brackets
  • Rails
  • Motors
  • Guards

Bay Industrial Group has worked with a wide variety of industries including:

  • Personal care products
  • Beverage
  • Box making
  • Baked goods
  • Pharmaceutical
  • Food
  • Produce
  • Heavy machinery
  • Tobacco

Table top conveyors built by Bay Industrial Group are able to handle a variety of different applications including:

  • Tray handling
  • Bottle conveyors
  • Accumulation tables
  • Bulk handling
  • Filling
  • Taping and labeling

Areas of specialty include:

  • Electrical controls
  • Servo laners
  • Pneumatic diverters
  • Denesters
  • Pick and place
  • Flap openers
  • Ninety degree high speed tray transfer
  • Robotics
  • Vision inspection

Designing a custom table top conveyor system to meet your manufacturing business’s individual needs requires expert engineers. Bay Industrial Group’s experienced engineering team has the capability to create and implement a unique layout that will provide the very best solution for your business. After Bay Industrial Group creates a custom designed solution, all of the machines and components are fully tested and de-bugged before they are presented to the customer. This minimizes downtime and ensures that your customized solution will work right and help make your manufacturing operation as efficient as possible.

For more information about Bay Industrial Group and their custom designed table top conveyor systems, please contact them today.

 

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Bay Industrial Group Launches Product Information Portal

Baltimore, MD (PRWEB)PR Web Logo

Bay Industrial Group announced this week the launch of their website’s new product information portal. The product information portal will provide their clients with valuable information about the different products offered by Bay Industrial Group.

“We are very pleased by our new product information portal,” said Jim Brown, owner of Bay Industrial group. “We feel that the portal does an excellent job providing our clients with additional information about our products, services and capabilities.” The new product information portal is user friendly and provides visitors to their website with a wealth of information about several of the products offered by Bay Industrial Group.

Bay Industrial Group specializes in the creation and implementation of practical solutions to solve a variety of different manufacturing problems. Bay Industrial Group works directly with industrial manufacturing businesses to help them locate specific problems within their manufacturing process. Once a problem has been identified, Bay Industrial Group’s designers can custom build a unique solution to fix the individual problem. The experienced staff at Bay Industrial Group then fully tests and de-bugs the solution before it is even presented to the customer for approval. By taking this off-line approach, Bay Industrial Group is able to minimize downtime and disruptions to the customer’s manufacturing process. Bay Industrial Group’s expert designers, project managers and engineers have over twenty years of experience working with a variety of different industries.

Bay Industrial Group’s fully-equipped, 22,000 square foot facility in Baltimore, Maryland provides the perfect environment for designing, building and testing solutions. Bay Industrial Group offers a variety of different services including custom design, welding and fabrication and industrial automation. Bay Industrial Group provides custom built light duty overhead cranes, conveying systems as well as platforms and mezzanines. In addition, Bay Industrial Group utilizes a number of different distributor products in order to add value to pre-engineered equipment. This unique approach of utilizing proven technology allows Bay Industrial Group to provide unique, custom built, reliable solutions in a much shorter timeframe.

Bay Industrial Group understands that a manufacturing business is only as good as the individual components that make it function. When processes and machines don’t work properly, manufacturing costs go up and valuable time is lost. Benefits of using Bay Industrial Group include increased productivity, lower overall manufacturing costs, streamlined processes with less handling, faster line changes, reduction in accidents, improved workforce retention, improved quality control and more satisfied customers.

About Bay Industrial Group
Bay Industrial Group specializes in solving the complex challenges faced by the industrial manufacturing businesses of today. Whether custom designed by their experienced designers or built to print, Bay Industrial Group works directly with their customers through the entire process, from concept design to completion. For more information about Bay Industrial Group and to explore their new product information portal, please visit their website at http://www.bayindustrialgroup.com.

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Who Are Bay Industrial Group’s Distributors?

Manufacturers face a wide range of problems on a daily basis. Therefore it is extremely important that the equipment that they use every single day is running as efficiently as possible. After all, a manufacturing facility is only as good as the components that make it function. This includes the machines, the processes and the people that make them work together. When any of these components are not working efficiently, the manufacturing business will lose both time and money.

Bay Industrial Group has extensive experience creating solutions to solve a wide variety of manufacturing problems. They create custom built solutions that help manufacturing businesses in all industries run smoother and more efficiently. The experienced staff and fully equipped manufacturing facility at Bay Industrial Group allows them to prototype concepts and fully test and de-bug solutions prior to presenting them to their customers. This extra effort ensures that the customer’s manufacturing facility experiences very little downtime or disruptions in their manufacturing process. This unique approach helps to lower costs, increase productivity, improve quality control and provide Bay Industrial Group’s customers with a much better return on their investment.

By adding pre-engineered equipment to their customer’s individual projects, Bay Industrial Group is able to utilize proven technology and create reliable solutions to meet any manufacturing need. Distributor products and pre-engineered equipment can be added to conveyors, cranes, work stations, platforms, castors and much, much more.

Bay Industrial Group carries a wide variety of distributor products and pre-engineered equipment including:

Conveyor Systems

  • ACSI
  • Richards-Wilcox
  • Gregory Adams
  • Rapid Industries

Work Station/Rail Systems/Balancers

  • Knight
  • Stanley Cobotics
  • Unified
  • Spanco

Custom Conveyors by Bay Industrial Group

  • Drag Chain
  • Slat Conveyors
  • Mattop
  • Tabe Top
  • Belt Conveyors
  • Roller (Light/Medium/Heavy)

Custom Equipment by Bay Industrial Group

  • Vertical Accumulators
  • Laners/Diverters
  • Tray Stackers
  • Pallet Stackers and De-Stackers
  • Pick & Place
  • Chain Transfers
  • Turntables
  • Manipulators

Hoists

  • Demag
  • Harrington
  • CM

Ladders and Platforms

  • Ballymore
  • Custom Work Platforms, Stairs, Ladders and Handrails by Bay Industrial Group
  • Custom Mezzanines by Bay Industrial Group

Lift Tables/stackers/Dock Equipment

  • Knight
  • ECOA
  • Presto
  • Wesco
  • Vestil

Racks & Shelving

  • Bulldog
  • Nashville Wire
  • Unex
  • Lyon
  • Mallard
  • Scotland
  • Modern Equipment Co. (MECO)

Work Stations/Tables/Shelving/Carts

  • Proline
  • Parent
  • Purcel
  • Tennsco
  • Little Giant
  • Justrite
  • Durham

Storage Systems/Storage Bins

  • Molded Fiberglass Tray Company
  • Quantum Storage Systems
  • Akro Mills Lewis Bins

Casters

  • Colson
  • Hamilton
  • Fairbanks

For more information on Bay Industrial Group’s distributors, or for information on their unique custom built solutions, please contact them today.

Welding & Fabrication in Washington DC
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What is an Automation System?

Automation depends on machines to execute functions that were typically performed manually in the past. Automation systems include feedback and sensory programs that completely eliminate the need for a human operator. An automation system is an independent machine system that is able to perform a task without assistance from humans.

Automation systems have been integrated into a wide variety of industries and many individuals depend greatly on these systems in their daily life. Automated systems help us manage our finances, our phone calls and our computers. Automated systems are responsible for an assortment of different functions. Depending on the exact function that it performs, one of several different tools might be responsible for an automated system including:

  • An artificial neural network
  • A distributed control system
  • A human machine interface
  • A supervisory control and data acquisition
  • A programmable logic controller

An artificial neural network is a mathematical or computational model whose rhythms mimic those of biological neurons. The structure of the network is able to change based upon the internal or external exchange of information throughout the network itself. Artificial neural networks are typically used to identify patterns in data as well as to classify relationships.

A distributed control system has separate controls throughout the entire system.

“Distributed Control System

A distributed control system is one in which there are separate controls throughout the system. The controls are not centrally located, but tend to be spread out depending on which region of the system needs monitoring—each control is connected to the others in a communication network. These kinds of systems are typically used in manufacturing processes, especially when the action or production is continuous. The controllers can be specified for a given process, and manipulated to enhance or monitor machine performance. Traffic lights are usually controlled by distributed control systems, and they can also be applied in oil refining and central station power generation.

Human Machine Interface

Commonly referred to as a user interface, a human machine interface system depends on human interaction with the system in order to function. A user will provide input, and the system in turn will produce output that coincides with the user’s intent. In order for this to work, users must have access to the system and a means by which to manipulate it. ATMs, for example, are designed so users can easily dictate what the system is supposed to do while enabling it to easily respond and provide the appropriate results. Buttons that read withdrawal or make a deposit provide the user with any easy way to trigger a chain of commands within the internal system. The desired result, either the intake of a deposit or the ejection of cash, can then be achieved.

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition

A supervisory control and data acquisition system (SCADA) is a larger, industrial control network that is often comprised of smaller sub-systems, including human machine interface systems connected to remote terminal units, which work to translate sensor signals into comprehensible data. These systems can work together to control an entire manufacturing site, or even an entire region by connecting several different manufacturing plants. SCADA systems bear a high resemblance to distributed control systems, and at times it may be difficult to differentiate between the two. The key difference lies in what they ultimately do—SCADA systems do not control each process in real time, rather they coordinate processes. Generally speaking, however, the two systems are highly similar and are often used in identical applications.

Programmable Logic Controllers

Programmable logic controllers are real time systems, meaning there is a set deadline and timeframe in which the desired result must be achieved. The PLC system is essentially a computer that controls manufacturing machines in an industrial production line, so it has multiple capabilities, such as varied temperature ranges and input and output settings, as well as the ability to weather dust and other unfavorable conditions. Programmable logic controllers can be used to program a variety of day-to-day applications, such as amusement park rides.”

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Manufacturing & Industrial Automation Systems from Bay Industrial Group

Bay Industrial Group provides a variety of industrial manufacturing and automation services. The presentations below showcase the automation and design services available, as well as the distributor products. Located in Baltimore, Maryland, Bay Industrial’s team of engineers, designers, and project managers can customize manufacturing systems for your business.

Automation Systems

 

Custom Industrial System Design

 

Distributor Poducts

 

To learn more about Bay Industrial Group’s automation systems, industrial design concepts, and distributor products, contact us today. We’d love to hear from you!

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What are Welding and Fabrication?

In industry, the term fabrication refers to the building of structures, machines or other equipment by stamping, cutting, shaping, joining and assembling components from raw materials. These raw materials are usually metals. Typically, a fabrication operation also involves welding. A professional fabrication and welding business can perform many complex activities including:

  • Cutting
  • Burning
  • Bending
  • Wheeling
  • Shearing
  • Folding
  • Forming
  • Punching
  • Milling
  • Tapping
  • Turning
  • Welding
  • Soldering

Welding is usually a major part of metal fabrication. In fact most formed parts and assemblies will be tack welded together prior to being checked for accuracy and fit. Welding is a fabrication method that is essentially about the joining together of metals or thermoplastics by causing coalescence. Coalescence is usually achieved by melting the parts and adding a filler material. This filler material becomes the weld pool and when cooled the weld pool becomes an extremely sturdy joint referred to as the weld. The process of welding is different than brazing or soldering which does not actually cause melting of the initial components but rather the melting of a material between the components in order to form a bond between them.

In addition to the typical gas flame that comes to mind for most people, welding can be accomplished with a variety of different forms of energy including lasers, electric arc, electron beams, friction and ultrasound. Welding is a skilled operation that requires professional expertise and several different safety precautions. Inexperienced welders can easily fall victim to burns, shocks, eye damage and injury from fumes.

There are many different types of welding. Forge welding was first used in Blacksmith shops. Today, shielded metal arc welding is the most common form of welding used. Other commonly used types of welding involve semi and fully automated processes such as gas metal arc welding and flux-cored arc welding. As technology advances so do the welding systems used. Newer welding systems include laser beam welding and electron beam welding.

When it comes to industrial machines, there are many possible configurations and build-out options that require welding or fabrication. Bay Industrial Group’s experienced team of project managers, fabricators, welders and automation designers work directly with businesses in a variety of different industries to help them locate problems and define solutions to help their businesses run more efficiently. For more information on how Bay Industrial Group can assist your business with all of its welding and fabrication needs, please contact them today.

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What are Industrial Robots?

Industrial RobotAn industrial robot is an automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose manipulator that is programmable in three or more axes. Today, industrial robots are used for a variety of different manufacturing applications including:

  • Welding
  • Painting
  • Assembly
  • Packaging
  • Product inspection and testing

Industrial robots are used in manufacturing because of their high endurance, speed and precision. For example, an industrial robot that is about the size of a person can quickly and easily carry a load that is over one hundred pounds. Industrial robots can perform this function over and over again for twenty four hours a day, every day, without failure. Even though they can be reprogrammable, industrial robots are usually programmed once and then repeat the same task for many years.

Typically the term industrial robot refers to a robot arm that is used in a factory environment for a variety of different manufacturing applications. Industrial robots are classified according to a variety of different criteria such as type of movement, application, architecture and brand.  The type of movement is governed by the placement and type of joints and linkages. Industrial robots with different types of movement include:

  • Cartesian Robots
    Cartesian robots can perform three translations using linear slides.
  • SCARA Robots
    SCARA robots can perform three translations as well as a rotation around a vertical axis.
  • 6 Axis Robots
    6 axis robots can fully position their tool in a given position and orientation.
  • Redundant Robots
    Redundant robots are able to position their tool in a given position under different postures.
  • Dual Arm Robots
    Dual arm robots are composed of two arms that are able to work together on a given work piece.

There are three main components that make up the anatomy of an industrial robot; the manipulator, the EOAT and the controller. The manipulator is the long jointed arm and wrist of a robot. It allows the robot to extend, turn and reach. The EOAT or End of Arm Tooling is attached to the robots wrist and manipulates the specific parts of the robot depending on the application that the robot was designed for.  The controller acts as the brain of the robot and provides it’s much needed application support. The controller runs the intricate computations needed to manipulate its EOAT in order to perform its particular functions.

Bay Industrial Group offers manufacturers solutions that solve a variety of complex manufacturing challenges. For more information please contact Bay Industrial Group today.