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Marlin Steel

Marlin Steel Adds New Automation Tools

BALTIMORE—Custom steel wire form manufacturer Marlin Steel recently announced that it has introduced a new piece of manufacturing automation to its factory floor: an Ultimat UMW-100 wire and strip forming and welding machine. According to a release from Marlin Steel, the machine represents the single largest investment in factory automation that the company has made since 2014, when it acquired its IDEAL MFDC welder.

Like the IDEAL welder, the Ultimat UMW-100 uses medium-frequency direct current (MFDC) welding to bond metals quickly and efficiently while minimizing burrs. MFDC welders rectify the incoming 50/60 Hz mains/line power, invert it to 1,000 Hz, and weld at that medium frequency, drawing less line power, using a more precise-to-control weld pulse and less splatter at the weld site. The Ultimat machine also does wire forming operations, allowing it to create square, clean-cut wire ends for frames, straight from the wire coil, and then butt-welding the ends.

This wire forming and welding device will expand Marlin’s wire forming capabilities for markets such as the medical, automotive, and pharmaceutical markets—industries where burrs and sharps are a significant concern for worker safety.

Marlin already has team members taking classes on the operation of this new machine. Its investment in new equipment and training comes at a time when investments in American factories are down.

"To stay on top, American manufacturers need to have the best people, the best processes, and the best tools,” said Drew Greenblatt, CEO of Marlin Steel, in a statement. “We’re investing in our team and our tools so we can deliver better wire baskets and rack products faster. This is how American companies like ours will stay on top in a global market."

Greenblatt said that factory automation, such as Marlin’s new wire forming and welding machine, provides American manufacturers with a significant competitive advantage over foreign companies that rely mostly on unskilled manual labor to create commodity metal forms. With these tools, Marlin can produce higher-quality work that consistently meets tight performance tolerances necessary for the most demanding jobs, he said.