Entries by Richard Walton

Material Optomization and Selection

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Microcreping is difficult.  It is unlike other processes and has a long learning curve.  The best place to start is understanding how important material selection is to the outcome.  See our best thinking on this subject.  Substrate Design and Selection A seemingly insignificant variation in the base web can potentially have a huge impact on […]

A Sense of Urgency (Part 2)

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In case you need reminding — we write often about speed.  Speed to market, fail fast, Agile development. We are continually amazed how some organizations seem to want to drag out the whole process.  Delays getting samples, delays testing. Lots of meetings and conversations. The old phrase – time is money – could not be […]

The Decline of our Industrial Base

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Thirty-five years ago, when Micrex became an independent company, there were ten tool and die makers nearby. Now there is one. You can argue that the skills are obsolete, and the future belongs to technologies like AI, but the reality is that maintaining these skills and our industrial base is critical to our nation. Custom […]

Simplicity vs, Complexity

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“For every complex problem, there is a solution that is clear, simple, and wrong.” – H. L. Mencken The operation of a Micrex®/Microcreper™ is complex. I wish it were not that way. Success only came when we embraced the difficulty and committed to being technologists rather than machinery manufactures. The way Micrex deals with the […]

Best Practices for Roll Goods Trials

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The product development process starts with a trial, and at Micrex, every new product we develop also started this way. We’d like to share what we’ve learned about the trial process to help ensure that your next trial a success. (Updated May 2, 2022) Roll Goods Trials – Best Practices