Saving money while maintaining freedom of design presents a challenge for every manufacturer using machined extruded parts. Every industry that uses the extrusion process as an integral part of their design can benefit from the expertise Alexandria Industries offers. Fastening extrusions together without unnecessary machining or fabricating will reduce costs and increase flexibility in the design process. There are several ways to mate extrusions without machining by designing an attachment method into the extrusion profile. These profile design options allow you to fully realize the benefits of the aluminum extrusion process. Instead of machining a bevel for welding or a recess for sheet metal, these feature can be extruded into

The ability for engineers to utilize a near-net shape process coupled with a list of superior physical characteristics, offers unsurpassed advantages through the aluminum extrusion process. Aluminum has numerous design advantages, in terms of physical and chemical characteristics as well as providing beneficial tooling advantages and reduced lead-times. Process Typical Tooling Tooling Lead-Time Aluminum Extrusion $1,000 – $4,500 10-14 days Vinyl Extrusion Up to $2,500 21 – 24 days Injection Molding $20,000 and up 42 – 56 days including offshore Die Casting Up to $35,000 56 – 84 days Roll Forming Up to $35,000 70 – 84 days Stampings (short run)

In today’s fast-paced, first-to-market environment, product design engineers will want to explore the benefits afforded through the aluminum extrusion prototyping process during the design stage. It allows you to set high performance expectations for your components and the value they bring to the end product. From a functional perspective, it is important to ask what key purpose the component will serve. How will the part fit, function and appear, in its end application. Independently finding these answers can be an intimidating task if you are unfamiliar with the aluminum extrusion process and its prototyping advantages. Aluminum extrusion suppliers with a dedicated

Gaining a competitive advantage in an increasingly demanding marketplace can be as simple as reducing supplier lead times, while minimizing inventory liabilities associated with large batch orders. Most domestic manufacturing operations will define lead-time as, “the time from when a manufacturing order is transmitted until the order is received by the customer.” Defining lead-time in this manner provides no metric to supplier performance and has less relevance in a world where order fulfillment management is critical to OEM success. Alexandria Industries has a history that included implementing a domestically developed, internationally known manufacturing philosophy—Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM). QRM relentlessly pursues the

A universal misconception of aluminum is that it is not strong enough to use in load-bearing structural applications. Perhaps that stems from the known fact of an aluminum can and its crushability. In all actuality, aluminum is probably a “victim of its own strength” in this respect, as its high strength-to-weight ratio is partly what allows manufacturers of aluminum cans to use extremely thin-gauged walls while ensuring product integrity. It is often said that, compared with alternative materials and forming methods, aluminum extrusions offer parts and product engineers unparalleled design latitude, while achieving their critical strength requirements. For starters, almost all

Understanding the value aluminum delivers to the environment is important for all businesses. China is the world’s largest consumer of aluminum, while the U.S. is the fourth largest producer of the primary metal. Aluminum is the most commonly recycled metal in the world. More than one-third of all the aluminum currently produced globally originates from recycled metal. Recycled aluminum ingot requires only about five percent of the energy necessary to produce primary aluminum ingot. Using a product that can easily be recycled in your business…just makes good sense. Aluminum Aluminum is made from two sources: primary metal, produced from ore; and secondary metal, produced

Whether your business uses aluminum as an integral material to produce a final product or not, the time invested in understanding what’s available is important to all of us. Extruded aluminum is used to manufacture innovative products and equipment that harness alternative energy sources. Aluminum is a green material due to its inherent attributes and is an environmentally responsible solution. The key aluminum qualities that designers and engineers want in a sustainable product include: Continuous viability Durability throughout a long life cycle Corrosion resistant Structural strength – elastic modulus/stiffness 100% recyclable. Aluminum components can be repeatedly recycled back into similar products

With today’s aggressive sourcing strategies creating an extremely competitive, high quality and low cost sourcing environment, we believe that businesses no longer compete; it becomes the supply chains that compete. Shift your thinking about how vendors and supply chains can affect everyday sourcing challenges. Consider seeking out a high-value, low-cost sourcing strategy when selecting a supplier. Company A or Company B Take for instance Company A, which offers vertically integrated services and capabilities resulting in a single-source relationship with its customer base. Now consider Company B, which is limited to certain services and capabilities and will need to outsource multiple operations

Alexandria Industries is excited to introduce the ExtremEtch process to the aluminum extrusion marketplace, while providing greater, unique advantages to its customers’ product lines. This specialized technology and process, patented in 2007, has been further developed by Alexandria Industries and continues to advance through process studies and strategic process investments. ExtremEtch is significantly different and a very cost effective aluminum etching process compared to other chemical etching processes currently used throughout the industry. Whether your product is currently MIL SPEC Type III Hard Coat Anodized or clear, black sulfuric anodized, this process is compliant to both environments. ExtremEtch will produce significant

In today’s economy, the last thing you need is a financially unstable aluminum extruder with inferior material, late deliveries, or no response to your specific needs. To ensure your manufacturing supplier provides solutions you need to develop your products, ask about the following criteria. Certified aluminum extrusion materials Business stability, reputation and experience Company growth Continued reinvestment in company Committed relationships Engineering design assistance Quality systems and documented processes Quick quote turnaround Vertical integration Low carbon material options Inventory turnover for increased customer profitability Minimized inventory liability Progressive automation strategies Strong strategic planning processes Data and process driven Values alignment Employer of

INTRODUCTION Geometric Dimensioning & Tolerancing (GD&T) methods were originally developed during the 1940s and officially published in 1966 by the American National Standards Institute.  Today the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) undertakes the responsibility of developing a standard for GD&T. Society’s current revision of the standard is known as ASME Y14.5-2009.  The standard was originally developed to deal with confusion that had been occurring as companies struggled with using traditional plus and minus tolerance methods to define part geometry and effectively communicate the limits of that geometry to manufacturers. Within the definition of GD&T, the term “geometric” refers to various