Sad for sure IMO. Highly educated people many times have no idea how to make things!

Years ago, my advisor taught "you can't automate something that you can't do well by hand."

Sometimes those educated people can do things really well by hand and still can't automate it, and sometimes the machines simply refuse to cooperate.

It happens often with custom-made machinery, and the problem can certain be worse when those machines are made in other countries. I've seen it.

So people are locking some Craftsmen away thinking they'll be collectible?

I have some old Craftsmen when it was made in the US and I use the piss out of those tools. Why have them if you aren't going to use them?

You can't take a great product and turn it into junk, take an iconic brand and damage it irreparably, then suddenly expect people forget all that and believe in it again.

quote:

"The Craftsman factory’s first-of-its-kind system was supposed to make tools so efficiently that costs would be on par with China..."

And just as shitty?

As it turns out they couldn't even pull that off.

I have quite a few Craftsman tools from long ago that belonged to my father and his. They still work well. Sad to see an iconic tool company go bad.

quote:

Originally posted by patw:
I have quite a few Craftsman tools from long ago

I've got a few.
This drill is about as old as me, and it's a horse. Runs like a champ. Heck, I took it to work last week to get a job done that the company's drill wouldn't do.

I have tons of Craftsman tools, problem is most of them are SAE. Running out of things to use them on.

The point of the article seems to imply they tried to run before they could crawl. I suppose it's possible the terms of the Craftsman investment demanded a cost/benefit only deemed possible via automation. So it was either majority automation, or nothing at all. Well, "nothing" won and a bunch of, I assume, investor dollars were burned. Gotta use it or lose it.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Vgex,

There are quality tools out there, but you have to hunt them down. When in ancient times a stop in Sears would get you what you need. I have been increasing my tool collection with Knipex. And I just bought a full Fix-It-Stick set to carry on my Pan America. None of these types of tools is cheap, but its $$$ well spent.

Sounds to me like they tried to automate a few too many processes. I always tell my customers to get the basic stuff working, and then pick the low hanging fruit first, and go from there.

A friend of mine designed small machines that automated work-centers. One small piece at a time.

He took a job to design the process of sorting and pin winding lead sinkers, the kind used for fishing. He built two of the machines. On the second machine he let the customer beat him down on the price too far, and ended up going out of business. Those 2 machines cost $100k to build, but he lost his ass on them in time and materials. The customers company eventually shut down and sold the machines. The company that bought them called me asking for documentation a few years ago. As far as I know, they're still being used. Combined they can crank out about 8000 sinkers/24hr... That machine replaced a warehouse full of women in Brazil working 16 hours per day, 5 days a week.

Sounds like the Craftsman equipment bit off a lot more than they could chew.

based on the provided story, it sounds like they were thinking like democrats - if it sounds good is must be reality. good lord. thank god those executives weren't working for NASA or an engineering design firm.

I think this is where AI would be useful. Of course, you’d need to model the factory in virtual reality first.

I’m thinking what doomed the project was deadlines and the need to turn a profit asap.

Sounds like the NON-TECHNICAL senior management told the engineers to "automate everything, no excuses" and the engineers tried to automate things they knew they shouldn't, but were forced to anyway.

Don't blame "educated" engineers, blame the people with no relevant education or experience.

I am seeing this now in my company. NON-TECHNICAL SUPPLY CHAIN people, largely women (pun intended), are dictating not only what to do but HOW to do it, when they have zero knowledge or experience in automation. They want us to use anything i4.0 but like anyone who has only a hammer - all problems look like nails.

They are wasting money but at the same time glorifying themselves for the pointless stuff they make us do, ignoring the fact that much of it doesn't work and has been turned off and replaced with people doing what they always have.

The idea that a company is doing something wonderful by bringing back manufacturing to the USA and then making stuff with a fully automated factory is just shameful.
What we need are manufacturers who give skilled jobs to American workers who can make a living not far from their home, and be proud of their work.

Sixty years ago I bought my first car, it needed a little work. Sears Robuck had a deal on a 99 piece tool set with tool box. I still have all the 1/4"and 1/2" sockets and drive sets and couple of screw drivers. Nothing like the China crap branded Craftsman today.

From the article:

quote:

The high cost of American labor makes automation critical for plants to turn a profit.

Craftsman is a brand whose primary customer base is the 'shade-tree mechanic'/skilled DIY guy. In order to hit the price points req'd to sell to their primary customer, the labor costs of American Workers would have to be minimized by necessity. If they can't hit those price targets they would/will need to continue manufacturing offshore, preferably in Taiwan, and NOT China! Otherwise, for those that can afford them, there are Made in USA tools, made with a high 'American Worker' labor content, such as Snap-on, Mac, Matco, etc., but that will never be Craftsman!

When we got married 43 yes ago , my bride gave me a set of Craftsman tools for a wedding gift . I didn't really have any tools of my own so this was just what I needed . . Over the years I have added to the set . Mostly older Craftsman from Ebay or Estate sales , etc.

quote:

Originally posted by wrightd:
based on the provided story, it sounds like they were thinking like democrats

How many times do we have to go over this?

How many times do I have to say that interjection of politics into apolitical threads is entirely unwelcome in this forum? I have said this countless times. There is no excuse for a member who has been here 15 years and has thousands of posts to pull this shit.

I'll tell you what, guys- since I have to keep saying this- on average two or three times a month, I'm going to start handing out disciplinary action. Since I cannot get some of you guys to think before you post, and you drop this tired old shit into threads for no reason, and you simply will not hear what I m telling you, I'm going to start handing out suspensions.

wrightd, there is no excuse for this stuff.

quote:

Originally posted by Lefty Sig:
Sounds like the NON-TECHNICAL senior management told the engineers to "automate everything, no excuses" and the engineers tried to automate things they knew they shouldn't, but were forced to anyway.

Don't blame "educated" engineers, blame the people with no relevant education or experience.

I am seeing this now in my company. NON-TECHNICAL SUPPLY CHAIN people, largely women (pun intended), are dictating not only what to do but HOW to do it, when they have zero knowledge or experience in automation.

Do you believe it's about people management more than technical skills when it comes to being in charge?

In my opinion, management doesn't have to do what the employees do but management has to have a firm grasp of reality and remove hurdles employees encounter when they do their job.