Mid-Fab Developments

Our Hero of the Hot Weather

Mid-Fab Developments — 23/07/2018

It is incredible that a country like the UK, with such unpredicable weather, seems competley unable to handle extremes of any nature. We complain about leaves on the line; the beast from the east and now, the current heatwave. So now everyone is watching their weather apps hoping the weather will continue through the summer holidays.

Speaking of holidays, the annual rush to the beaches and Costas has already begun here and the conversation in the office revolves around holidays planned and experienced while those who remain are rushing around covering for the holidaymakers.

So we are taking the opportunity to talk about the forgotton hero in the hot weather: his name is Martin and he is our welder. Martin and his colleagues in our welding department operate a wide variety of equipment which , combined with their skill and experience, allows us to deliver incredibly high standards demanded by our customers.

We believe our quality and adaptibility are our key differntiators. So we make sure our welders are the best, delivering MIG, TIG and Spot welding for mild steel and pulsed MIG for aluminium over a wide range of thicknesses.

For more information check our our website www.midfabdevelopments.co.uk or email us on sales@midfabdevelopments.co.uk.

In the meantime you can see Martin in Action

What our customers think ... A Case Study

Mid-Fab Developments — 18/04/2019

We pride ourselves on building a strong business relationship with our customers and like to work alongside them, giving advice and problem solving from the design stage up until the finished product. We strive to supply quality work .

Mid-Fab Developments have been supplying a range of sheet metal fabrication services across the Wharton product range for over 15 years. David explains, “Mid-Fab are our main sheet metalwork fabricators and provide the majority of our sheet metalwork services.”

"Mid-Fab are always very accommodating and are excellent at meeting our schedule requirements. They are a great company to work with. They are very flexible - their flexibility is one of their major pluses, providing us with short runs if we require it."

If you would like to know more about this project and Wharton Electronicsplease visit our website.

Should you have any sheet metalwork requirements, please contact us by email, sales@midfabdevelopments.co.uk.

Mid Fab and the Economic Outlook

Mid-Fab Developments — 26/04/2018

Unusually for me, I have been reading through the EEF / BDO Manufacturing Outlook Q1 2018. I am certainly no economist and dont have access to the statistics and information resources available to BDO and the EEF, but it made for interesting reading and made me think how we, at Mid Fab, compare with the report.

There is a danger within any industry that we become over reliant on too few customers. So, over the past few months, we have been working hard to increase our customer database. We have exhibited at shows, developed our networking links, revitalised our website and boosted our social media activity. This has certainly delivered more enquiries and we are confident that orders will follow.

This leads us to another issue. That of finding the right people. The Manufacturing Outlook report talks of a slight moderation in business recruitment over the period, especially in the Metals and Metal Products sector. However, our challenge appears to be different. We are trying hard to recruit skilled engineering staff but with little success so far. We have interviewed and trialled several applicants, but none have worked out so far. This leads me to believe that the softening in BDOs report is caused not by a lack of hiring desire by engineering employers but more, a lack of quality skilled staff on the market.

Certainly, we see many positive opportunities for us in the future. Investment in marketing has delivered higher enquiry levels. We are confident this will deliver higher sales levels. This is really positive but leaves us with new challenges. Finding the right staff, improving efficiency, driving further quality through the business and the challenges of Brexit are all ahead of us. But we believe these are the challenges of success and long may that continue.

This article is in response to the EEF BDO- Manufacturing Outlook 2018 Q1.

Southern Manufacturing Show

Mid-Fab Developments — 16/01/2018

Come and visit us at the Southern Manufacturing show between 6th - 8th February.

We will be at Stand P170, showcasing our products and meeting with like-minded manufacturers and customers.

If any other MIMfamily members are there swing by and say hello.

MIE Trak Pro

Mid-Fab Developments — 31/08/2017

We are delighted that, after a long period of deliberation and training, we are about to implement an upgrade to our MIE Trak Pro MRP system.

MIE Trak Pro is the software solution we use to drive our manufacturing process. As an engineering business, we appreciate the modules that help us manage our production cycles and optimize our work whether it be simple, repetitive, mixed or custom.

We use the system to deliver a fast and efficient service to our customers by enabling us to track their orders from the point of sale to delivery by managing the order processing and tracking; quotes and invoicing and stock management and quality processes.

The new system also allows us to integrate our CAD/CAM software and accounting software to enable a smoother process from start to finish.

Using MIE Trak Pro we can track all the business in the production process and optimise manufacturing for efficiency and customer delivery so we can deliver more high quality products to all our customers and do so on time

April Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 30/04/2018

Read our latest newsletter https://mailchi.mp/7408edbcc249/april-newsletter-from-mid-fab-developments-ltd#engineering

Mid-Fab Development's May Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 23/05/2019

Our latest Newsletter is now available to read. Also catch up with our latest blog articles on our website.

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 21/11/2019

To keep up to date with what is happening at Mid-Fab Developments, please subscribe to our montly newsletter.

https://mailchi.mp/6fc020f11629/newslettersign-up

August Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 23/08/2018

Check out our August Newsletter to see what is going on at Mid-Fab Developments Ltd https://mailchi.mp/a4fd28cfcb95/august-newsletter-from-mid-fab-developments-ltd#MIM

A Review of SolidWorks

Mid-Fab Developments — 30/10/2018

We introduced SolidWorks at Mid-Fab with the prospect of improving our sheet metal capabilities. The software we replaced doesn’t even come close compared to the ease of use and accuracy of SolidWorks.

Changing over to SolidWorks has meant that we are able to receive a wide variety of drawings and 3D models from customers and easily convert them into a SolidWorks model; we are then able to change and modify the part to aid the manufacturing process or to create any changes the customer requires. It has also helped us work with our customers, as we can easily make suggestions and show changes to their product, which can benefit and be more cost effective for them.

We can also create 3D sheet metal parts based on customer drawings. SolidWorks has provided the versatility and ease of use which is paramount when trying to achieve accurately modelled parts, based on the drawing we have received.

Once the part is created within SolidWorks, we can easily transfer the finished design into our punch or bending software, which can then be sent out into the shop for manufacturing.

Another important feature that SolidWorks provides is the ability to create multiple parts which then can be put together into an assembly. We are able to view the complete assembled product to ensure everything fits together as expected. Changes to these parts can then be implemented as needed. This has benefited our organisation by saving time and materials, reducing the need for manual calculations and reducing the time spent reverse-engineering some parts that we receive.

From here, we can create a comprehensive drawing with a wide variety of tools to show every detail needed for manufacturing.

SolidWorks has helped us streamline the service we can provide to our customers. We couldn’t ask for a better software package.

We're Dedicated to Quality

Mid-Fab Developments — 31/08/2017

Mid-Fab Developments Ltd are pleased to announce that we are now accredited to the latest ISO 9001:2015 standard.

We decided 4 years ago to obtain the ISO 9001:2008 accreditation which is the international standard for quality management systems where we have demonstrated we have consistently provided quality products and services, meeting customer and regulatory requirements . This has led to us securing contracts with the NHS and other customers by obtaining the accreditation.

The old 2008 standard is being superseded by ISO 9001:2015 which is more comprehensive and includes enhanced product realization techniques. Which will improve our product development from design to delivery. We have demonstrated that we meet all the requirements of the new standard and remain dedicated to continually improving the quality of our products and services.

November Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 21/11/2019

Our latest newsletter is now available to read.

https://mailchi.mp/2e73b2a1bb8c/november-newsletter-from-mid-fab-developments

How Mid-Fab Makes a Difference in Manufacturing

Mid-Fab Developments — 26/01/2021

Mid-Fab Developments Ltd pride themselves on manufacturing high-quality products through precision sheet metal engineering.

One of the main factors in diversifying and evolving as a business is the training and development of their staff. The staff then develop skills and knowledge in the different parts of the manufacturing process. This in turn means Mid-Fab are able to produce high-quality products using the latest technology.

Mid-Fab has invested in training their staff in the Solidworks Cad/Cam software, which allows the team to work alongside Clients from initial design to the final product, giving advice on cost-saving, efficiency measures and troubleshooting design ideas to help create the right product. With the software, the team are able to produce or import 3D designs so that the product can be visualised and amended to suit specific Client’s needs.

The staff are trained in-house, by senior team members with decades of experience and have some external courses to help develop skills on the different machinery and production processes to allow the business to flow efficiently.

Support is given to learn to use the large machines such as the CNC punch press with the team being able to programme the machine to repeatedly reproduce identical products for large quantity runs.

The CNC Press brakes allow the products to be bent at precise angles and training has been provided to use software with the machine which allows them to look at the product bends in 3D to reduce any errors.

Experience has led to Mid-Fab Developments deburring their products; this can be achieved manually or on their punch press machine. This can reduce injuries when assembling their products or gives the required finish to edges.

Training and support is given on using the fastener insertion machines, giving the team the opportunity to learn about the wide range of fasteners that are available and their uses on the end product.

The team in the fabrication department have undergone training in the use of Tig, Mig and spot welding and other processes to help deliver a pleasing final product for their clients.

In order to be able to offer full-service fabrication, Mid-Fab has a silk screen printing facility being able to add any logos, labels to products. The team required training and skill to be able to reproduce the finishing touches to products.

Made Futures was created to encourage people to get jobs in manufacturing, in support of those who have lost their jobs over the course of the 2020 pandemic. There's still time to sign up and be part of the exhibition by filling in the form here.

Our Top Tips on How to Survive a Trade Show

Mid-Fab Developments — 13/03/2018

Traditionally, we have never been very keen on trade shows. They always seem expensive and drag people away from the office for days on end, it all seems pretty counter-productive. So, we debated long and hard when our marketing team suggested taking a stand at the Southern Manufacturing show at Farnborough in February.

However, we have recently invested exhibition material, brochures etc. And we have recently had success following a website upgrade; our social media activity and newsletter activity. So we finally decided to give it a go. We agreed a budget, took a small stand at the show and spent some time designing the stand; arranging brochures and case studies; building a pre-event communications plan and devised a scheme to ensure we captured all enquiries received.

The opening day dawned and the opening found us suited, booted and wondering what we had let ourselves in for. We need not have worried. The event was busy and so were we. During the show, we met more than sixty companies, new to us; we doubled the size of our marketing database and are now working our way through an enquiry flow we could only have dreamed of previously.

Icing on the cake, we have just received our first order from a company we met at the show. Not a huge order but we can see others following and our sales funnel is pretty-full. So, although we havent done the final analysis we certainly judge the exercise as a pleasing success.

So, our first tradeshow has been very positive. We have reviewed the event and how we can improve next time. As a result, here are our top tips on trade show survival and, more importantly, making them pay.

Trade Show Survival. Our Top Tips

1. Plan the event. Give yourself plenty of time.

2. Set clear objectives. How many meetings; how many leads; etc.

3. Set a realistic budget including travel, accommodation, brochures etc

4. Watch your branding. Make sure it reflects everything you have on your stand including your people.

5. Keep clear records and contact forms concerning who you met; their interests and how to follow up.

6. Have something eye-catching on your stand

7. Be sure to review the event and evaluate success against your objectives

September Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 24/09/2019

Catch up with what we are up to in our September Newsletter.

https://mailchi.mp/4818363c7d54/september-news-from-mid-fab-developments-ltd

March Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 15/03/2018

Catch up with what is happening at Mid-Fab Developments by reading our latest newsletter.

October Newsletter

Mid-Fab Developments — 30/10/2018

Catch-up with our October newsletter and find out about our SolidWorks review and what Nigel, our MD, has been up to. https://t.co/un72JcNS3d