Incidentally, this is my last post journey reflection, so let's get started.
Makino is essentially a company which deals with precision engineering. A Japanese company, Makino is a manufacturer of machine centers and a leader in metal cutting and manufacturing technology. Some things which they help to make would be like the metal casing around the iPhone.
It's vision is pretty unique.
"Defining solutions, enriching partnership"
They aim to create knowledge and provide innovative solutions through nurturing and inspiring employees.
Their approach in interaction and partnership is even reflected in its logo.
The 2 ovals represent 2 parts. One oval represents the customer while the other oval represents the company itself.
This shows how much attention is focused on partnership and interaction to promote a successful business.
2 key ares which Makino specializes in is molding as well as milling.
Molding basically refers to hardmilling extremely accurate die and molds out of extremely hard materials.
This video basically showcases, what metal molding is about. It is about the shaping of metal into specific structures for daily usage. This is pretty common in most products we see today such as television sets or vehicles which involve metal inside them.
Another learning point was the definition of precision. Precision is extremely important in this field, to the scale of microns to be precise.
This even extends to other areas such as the maintenance of temperature. If temperature increases, object expands and the length and size of something might increase on its own. This could affect the molding process drastically.
I used to think that precision is something more closely associated with biology since it handles micro-organisms and precious care must be taken when handling. It turns out that precision is an extremely important value. After all, without precision, we won't have architecturally balanced or design savvy products.
As I pointed out earlier, the iPhone's metal casing is made by Makino's machines which cut the metal. The iPhone's metal casing not only functions as a protective layer, it is also a layer which functions as an antennae. This isn't something as simple as it looks. Even though the iPhone might look simplistic, much more complicated things are going behind the works. And in a way, this very much parallels what precision engineering is about. It is about making something so precise and accurate till the point one cannot imagine the object or product being anything less.
An area of research that we could work on would be how precise the machines can go. With advances in technology from optics and lasers, perhaps we can find a way to develop a machine with a precision up to the nano scale. This will definitely open up a new market in terms of products which deal with the nano scale.
In conclusion (actually in summary for all 4 trips), I must say that I have learnt numerous things. Be it in the scientific area of the different kinds of engineering or in the other areas of work ethics, these trips have really been eye-opening. I would like to thank Mrs. Eileen Tan as well as the Hwa Chong staff for making these trips possible, the various factory managers and engineers for taking time off their busy schedule to host us students, the various companies and the EDB (Economic Development Board) for supporting and organizing these industrial visits.
Resources
- http://www.makino.com/machines/V33i
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