January's extrusion technology column is dedicated to the unsung hero of the extrusion plant; the EXTRUSION TECHNICIAN, for without him, 'was not anything made that was made'.

Extrusion technicians are skilled tradesmen, they can be likened to the machinist who operates CNC mills and EDM machines. Even today's commodity products require the use of programmable laser micrometers and microprocessor line control. It is the extrusion technician who interfaces with this complex equipment on a daily basis, providing your plant with optimum quality and minimum downtime.

If your extrusion line is only operating with 50% up time? Before investing in a new line, consider investing in a quality extrusion technician.

Struggling with poor product quality? Consider investing in a quality extrusion technician, who has the skill to "dial in" the extrusion process more accurately. A quality extrusion technician also possesses the skills to make use of quality determining equipment, such as programmable on-line measurement systems.

Losing all your good extrusion technicians to supervisory / admin. positions? Make sure your extrusion plant has a career path equal in standing to the administrative and supervisory career ladder.

Extrusion technicians can indeed make or brake the Extrusion Plant. Consider for example the cost of extrusion line down time? The capital depreciation cost alone is about $20 per hour per $100,000. Then there is the cost of unproductive labor, say $ 25 per hour. So the cost of down time for a $250, 000 extrusion line is about $70 per hour. This does not include the cost of lost sales. So the financial justification for investing in quality extrusion technicians is an easy one.

The Extrusion Technician - There can be no success without him.

Mark Carter, Polymer Extrusion Engineer, Fremont CA