• Fresh updates for older vessels

    Published On: January 1, 2017Categories: In the Shop, Interiors & Upholstery, Projects, Resources

    Aqua-hued fabrics comein many patterns andoffer customers creativeoptions freshen up dated upholstery and other interior fabrications. Most interior fabrication projects occur on fixer-uppers. The vessel might be vintage or it might be less than ten years old. While I always welcome the challenge of doing a better design than the original, there is [...]

  • Modern technology can prevent targeted cyberattacks

    Published On: January 1, 2017Categories: In the Shop, Management, Resources

    Modern, targeted cyberattacks can take any organization by surprise. And these targeted cyberattacks are increasingly widespread. CBS Money Watch reported in June 2015 that more than 80 percent of U.S. companies have been successfully hacked, according to a Duke University/CFO Magazine Global Business Outlook Survey. According to the CBS report, “Successful attacks by hackers involved [...]

  • Constructing snow flies for the Alaskan climate

    Published On: January 1, 2017Categories: How-To Articles, In the Shop, Projects, Resources

    Lady Marie is cocooned for the winter. The installation of the snow fly, from arrival to departure, took 29 minutes. Our winters in Fairbanks, Alaska, can be cold or very cold with lots of snow or little snow; it all depends. One condition we don’t see often is wind. In my 26 years [...]

  • The art of choosing a digital marketing partner

    Published On: September 1, 2016Categories: In the Shop, Resources

    Asking the right questions before choosing a digital marketing partner can save you time and money. There was a time when digital marketing could casually be left to employees who were interested in dabbling in online options. Now, however, digital marketing has grown up. Every business needs a plan that genuinely integrates traditional marketing efforts [...]

  • Credit: Almost a four-letter word

    Published On: September 1, 2015Categories: Features, In the Shop, Management, Resources

    Fabricators take a dim view of extending credit to customers... sort of. On the surface, it sure seems like a slam-dunk decision for a marine fabrication shop to not extend credit. “Let’s see, when you write off thousands and thousands of dollars—maybe even $100,000 over the 30-year life of the company—you start to think about [...]

  • What ‘slow season’?

    Published On: September 1, 2015Categories: Features, In the Shop, Management, Resources

    Indoor work, alternative income streams help fabricators get through the off-season. Boating in many locations is seasonal, but the need for income is constant. How do marine fabricators handle that conundrum? A variety of strategies offer ways that canvas shops can use to get ready for seasonal slow-downs in business. ‘The Great Shrink-wrap Race’ “We [...]

  • Shop Talk: Shyn Fabrication LLC

    Published On: September 1, 2015Categories: In the Shop, Resources

    How did you get started? My mother put me in every art class imaginable. In high school I learned correspondence pattern design on my own, which led to a degree in fashion design. I worked for a costume designer and also did custom clothing sewing jobs from home. After six months on a 30-foot live-aboard [...]

  • Machine head

    Published On: July 1, 2015Categories: Features, In the Shop, Resources

    Faith Roberts' Banner Canvas is a virtual museum of the history of industrial canvas sewing. By Jim Tarbox A first-time visitor to Faith Roberts’ Banner Canvas shop in Ham Lake, Minn. (just north of Minneapolis), might be excused for taking an initial look around and being amazed at the array of equipment and supplies. But [...]

  • Shop safety checklist

    Published On: July 1, 2015Categories: In the Shop, Management, News, Resources

    Shop operators should consider these items: Automated external defibrillator Proper workspace ventilation for paints, solvents and other chemicals Respiratory protection Eye protection Gloves Operating fire extinguishers Shop evacuation plan and procedures Find more on shop safety with "Better safe than sorry" in our July 2015 issue of Marine Fabricator. More shop-safety information is available online [...]

  • First-Aid Checklist

    Published On: July 1, 2015Categories: In the Shop, Management, Resources

    OSHA standard 1910.151 (b) mandates an employer have “adequate first aid supplies...readily available,” although specific first-aid supplies are not listed. OSHA does not have a minimum requirement, but references ANSI Z308.1-2003 Minimum Requirements for Workplace First Aid Kits. According to the ANSI document, a basic workplace first-aid kit should include*: At least one absorbent compress, [...]