When people are busy they claim that there is no time to conduct research or educate themselves further. This is true in all industries, but in metalworking the upside to taking advantage of a temporary lull can be substantial. This industry as a whole is slow. In the US, this industry as a whole is also behind. There are advancements in tools, processes and equipment that have never even been explored by most US shops.

And now, because of the economic slowdown, there are more human resources available to you. Leverage this - for training, application testing, tool testing and exploring resources that are available to you. Machine suppliers will be willing to help you find better ways to make your part, your tooling partners can help you conduct tests that can extend tool life and improve your productivity and finish, automation providers can help you evaluate opportunities to cut labor out of your processes. Now is the time to sharpen your saw and evolve. In the process you will discover new possibilities and new markets that you can pursue. Don’t sit on your hands waiting for the world to change. Unless you are going out of business, you will get busy again. The question is are you doing anything to get better at what you do and improve the knowledge of your workforce so you can make it happen sooner.