Dear Readers,
Well, economic conditions may not be
optimal; but we have great hope for
2009. If anyone can help turn this
economy around, it is the brain
trust of innovators in this country,
and we hope you count yourself among
them.
Be sure to read
Mike's
column this month, as it
generated significant interest on
the website for Product Design and
Development magazine. You may also
be interested in our recent
brush
with fame with the program
"Prototype This!"
As always, we'd love to hear from
you. So, if you have any questions,
comments or suggestions please let
us know.
Warm regards,
Donna Rainone |
 The
Last of the True Believers
|
 I
have been thinking a lot lately
about the multitude of trends that
have hit the world of business over
the last few decades.
I remember, as do, no doubt, many of
you; Management By Objectives,
Theory Y, Theory of Constraints,
TQM, and Quality Function
Deployment. We were in awe of the
Deming method, and just learning
about the wonders of JIT, Toyota and
Lean.
Then along came Six Sigma. It
started small like all such "social
movements in business." No one
could anticipate the impact, or the
unintended consequences of Jack
Welch's wholesale embrace of Six
Sigma, not only on GE, but on every
aspect of American business. But as
I wrote in my last column, beware
the unintended consequences of a
social action, because one will
almost inevitably bite you on the
rump.
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Custom
Prototyping
|
 "This
looks like a great idea, but how the
heck are we going to test it?"
We hear this time and time again
from our clients, who are used to
long lead times and high costs to
build custom parts. Fortunately, we
at PCDworks have the machinery and
know-how to make custom parts in
hours or days, not weeks or months.
A large portion of this custom part
manufacturing is performed using
PCDworks' CNC controlled equipment.
This machinery includes a custom
built CNC router, a 10 HP
Milltronics CNC mill (for large
parts), and a 4 axis CNC Tage mill
(for small and intricate parts).
With these tools alone, we are able
to create complex 3D parts in a wide
range of materials and sizes.
To further streamline this process,
the entire campus and all
computer-controlled equipment are
networked together, allowing a 3-D
model to be exported from desktop
modeling software and into a CNC
mill for machining within minutes. Learn
more or
contact Brook.
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PCDworks'
Brush with Fame! |
It was a near miss in '08. PCDworks
was almost part of an exciting new
Discovery Channel program called
"Prototype This!" If you ever caught
the show, you know it involved
designing and building highly
unusual and some would say
impossible prototype products in a
very short time frame.
Sound like a perfect fit for
PCDworks? So did we! When we
contacted show host Mike North, he
was intrigued by the work we do here
in East Texas, and thought it might
be fun to work with us to build
something cool or even blow
something up.
Unfortunately, "Prototype This!" was
not been renewed by the Discovery
Channel. And while we're sad to have
missed out on our 15 minutes of fame
-- we're very grateful to have some
new friends who understand the value
of "getting physical fast!"
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About PCDworks |
Founded by Mike and Donna Rainone in
1997, PCDworks is a full-service
technology development company
specializing in breakthrough product
innovation for a broad range of
consumer, medical and military
clients. Located on a 25-acre wooded
campus outside Tyler, Texas,
PCDworks houses testing labs,
engineering shops, sleeping
accommodations and meeting
facilities. Client services include
technology problem solving, product
ideation, research, engineering,
prototype manufacturing and product
testing. The company is closely
networked with research and
production facilities in the region,
including UT Tyler and East Texas
Medical Center.
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Want
a Lively and Thought-Provoking
Speaker?
Start your new year out right.
Book a lively and
thought-provoking speaker
who can challenge, motivate and
inspire your management or
engineering team.
Mike Rainone is a highly
regarded expert on emerging
technologies and breakthrough
product creation, and a sought
after speaker for companies
looking to light a fire under
their research and development
efforts.
Whether it's a hands-on look at
emerging technologies and their
applications, or a lesson in
rapid and effective product
development, Mike offers a
unique perspective designed to
both inform and challenge his
audience.
Choose from a
list of topics, or
contact Mike to create your
own agenda for a session that is
guaranteed to be inspirational
and though provoking. |
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Be a Guest Contributor
Do you have some interesting
technology news to share? We welcome
guest contributions to our
newsletter, so if you come across
breakthrough technology or weird
science, send an email to
mike@technologywonk.com. We'll
make sure to attribute it to you. |
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