Meeting Of The Minds, Still Not Working and A Nursing Pillow.

 Our Location today is Windsor, Ontario.

Click on the pictures to enlarge.

After confirming an Appointment with the Manufactures of our Plasma Transfer Arc last week it finally happened today. There were Four Representatives of the Kennametal Corporation in different locations around the US, meeting with Five of us in Windsor. The list of Problems we are experiencing with the PTA continues to grow, so it became a Question and Suggestion Session.

I explained that all these problems were not just affecting my ability to do the job properly, it was affecting the Quality of the product and my ability to complete them in a timely fashion.

At first Mile thought that it was my incompetence that was the problem, but when Vic started relating what he had experienced while relieving me, Mile showed more concern. When the Kennametal Representatives said we were using it correctly and it was in dire need of servicing. With this being the only PTA of its kind in Canada there was no way around the issue. Vinnie and Tamara had notes of their own that they got answers for. The only thing that I have to change on my own is the way I grind the Electrodes. Mile authorized a Technician coming to service and check the programming, but the date has not yet been set. I have made it known that I will be off after Medical Treatment.

After I started heating the Feedscrew on the PTA, Mile wanted to know how I sharpened the Electrodes so I demonstrated my technique for him. Considering that I have been sharpening them since 1977, it is second nature. Mile said “It looks like a Machine did it”. When I showed him the drawer with Twelve Identically Ground Electrodes, he said “I didn’t need a Machine to do it”, as suggested by the Kennametal Representatives.

I finally got started welding the Unit in the PTA at noon. I was able to talk with Kathy while monitoring the process and suggested I might be late, but I was looking to be done early.

I mentioned yesterday that this Screw had a Flight Design that made a Mixer like no other any of the Machinists had seen before. There were Four Flights that Overlapped each other and they had varying thicknesses throughout, giving each between Two to Three Zones each.

The first Three Flights went down perfectly but the first Twelve Inches of the Last Flight was a Disaster. After Grinding and Rewelding the PTA was making me pay for the nicer Flights earlier. Vic, Vinnie and Mile watched as I showed them what was happening. Finally by 4:30 the decision to put it in the Sandbox for the night was made.

When I stopped at Wendy’s to pick up supper using a Coupon, one of the Managers noticed my Distress. When I explained my Hip/Leg Pain, she made a suggestion. She is also a Personal Health Care Worker and they use Pillows designed for Nursing Babies, to help seniors with Hip Problems. It might be worth a try to alleviate my Nighttime Pain, so I can sleep.

A few more Summer-Like Days are heading our way, before the Fall Weather sets in.

Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment, unless it personally attacks someone for their opinion, or is Spam.

Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

Words of Inspiration

You can’t cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water.

Rabindranath Tagore, Bengali Social Reformer.