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Blog posts tagged with 'steel bending'

New Estimator Has Joined the Albina Team

The last few years have been sensational for Albina Co., Inc. We have seen a great deal of change in our industry and have been fortunate to recognize growth in our capabilities, capacity and in both our shop and office team members. We are excited to introduce the newest member of our Estimating / Project Management team, Joseph (Joe) Daniels. Joe is joining Aaron Hughes, Mark King, Brad Lund, Stuart Hasman and Brian Smith in Albina's Sales department. Joe has many years of experience in the steel and fabrication industry and has worked in Albina's shop, as an Ironworker, since July 2014. Joe has developed an outstanding reputation at Albina and will be a welcomed addition to our outstanding sales and estimating team. Joe possesses a comprehensive work ethic and will service Albina's customers just as you have grown accustomed to from the other members of our team. We are confident Joe's commitment to quality and integrity will make him a valuable resource as our company and your business continue to grow. You can contact Joe or any of our other existing sales staff with your estimating and technical needs at 503-692-6010. Joe's email is jdaniels@albinaco.com. Thank you for your continued support.

Joe Daniels joins Albina Co., Inc. Estimating Team
Joe Daniels
The "Springfield Flame" Graces the Cover of the West Coast Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine!
The "Springfield Flame" Graces the Cover of the West Coast Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine!

Check out the cover spot and three page feature article on Albina Co., Inc. in the June/July West Coast Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine. Pages 24-26! Portland artist Devin Laurence Field produced the laser-­cut stainless steel flame sculpture and Albina Co., Inc. bent 18" STD A53B ERW 10 lens x 40 ft down to a 42 ft radius for the sculpture.

A2Z Manufacturing Curved Steel Artwork "Springfield Flame"

We had such a great time working with Linda and Kim to highlight and showcase all of the amazing curved steel projects we have done in Oregon, Washington, and California. Some projects featured in the article include:

Portland International Airport Curved Steel Canopy
Portland International Airport Canopy

Daly Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum  Curved Steel Roof
Dale Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum- Seattle, WA.

The Spheres Curved Steel Roof Supports
"The Spheres" Seattle, WA.
Happy Father's Day

I'm proud of my hard work. Working hard won't always lead to the exact things we desire. There are many things I've wanted that I haven't always gotten. But, I have a great satisfaction in the blessings from my mother and father, who instilled a great work ethic in me both personally and professionally. -Tamron Hall

Father's Day is upon us! Father's Day is particularly important to me as I lost my father, Bill, over 8 years ago, and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about him or get a reminder of him while at work. It can be a phone call from someone in the industry who used to work with him, it can be an old quote I see come across my desk with his name on it, it can be my daily rounds through the shop where I can still see him problem solving with a machine operator on a particularly challenging job. Whatever it may be, I always remind myself that I am a representative of the Smith Family and the steel bending business that my grandfather and father helped to build. Jaime and I have been building on their values for many, many years now and feel great about where we have been able to take the business. All three generations have worked in both the shop and office during our careers. A fourth generation spends their summers pulling weeds, washing windows and doing database entry in their spare time. We have four generations of family who believe in the steel industry and believe in the value of hard work. I have no idea if my son and daughter will be interested in taking over the family business some day, but if they do, I am confident that they will work hard, be honest and carry on the traditions we have lived by for the last 80 years! I am a proud business owner and a proud Father. Happy Father's Day to all you Father's out there!

Bill & Brian Smith-2001
Utah District Courthouse Spiral Staircase Graces Cover of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine in June!
Utah District Courthouse Spiral Staircase Graces Cover of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine in June!

Check out the cover spot and three page feature article on Albina Co., Inc. in the June Rocky Mountain Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine. Pages 18-20! We had such a great time working with Linda and Kim to highlight and showcase all of the amazing curved steel projects we have done in Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. Some projects featured in the article include:

Sun Valley Music Pavillion in Sun Valley, ID. 220,000# of pipe rolled ranging from 10" Sch80 to 10" XXH
Sun Valley Music Pavillion in Sun Valley, ID. 220,000# of pipe rolled ranging from 10" Sch80 to 10" XXH

Curved Steel Signage at Entrance to Yellow Stone National Park Attraction "Buffalo Bill Cody Stampede Park"
Custom Signage at Entrance to Yellow Stone National Park Attraction "Buffalo Bill Cody Stampede Park"

Ellie Caulkins Opera House Denver, CO. 210 lengths 1-1/2" x 1-1/2" x 3/16" angle rolled to numerous compound radii
Ellie Caulkins Opera House Denver, CO. 210 lengths 1-1/2" x 1-1/2" x 3/16" angle rolled to numerous compound radii
Vancouver Waterfront Project/Grant Pier (Featuring Our Curved Steel Handrails) Wins 2019 Earnest Wiemann Award!
Vancouver Waterfront Project/Grant Pier (Featuring Our Curved Steel Handrails) Wins 2019 Earnest Wiemann Award!

The Vancouver Waterfront Project and Grant Pier Fabricator A2 Fabrication Earns 2019 Earnest Wiemann Gold Top Job Contest Award! 
Albina bent 2½" SCH40 T304 S/S, 1¼" SCH40 T304 S/S, 2½" SCH40 A53B ERW and 1¼" SCH80 A53B ERW for the curved steel handrails. We cut and bent the steel per the drawings and protected the finish of material during production and for shipping by wrapping the curved steel in foam and cardboard to keep parts from rubbing against each other. We bend handrails for commercial, recreational, transportation and residential applications. Handrail Kits Are Available: Bent and trimmed per drawing, mid-rails trimmed and coped, assemblies supplied as individual parts or fabricated complete. Call us for your next handrail project!

Curved Steel Handrail on the Vancouver Waterfront Walkway 2019 Ernest Wiemann Award
Grant Pier

Curved Steel Handrail on the Vancouver Waterfront Walkway 2019 Ernest Wiemann Award
Curved Steel Handrail

Curved Steel Handrail on the Vancouver Waterfront Walkway 2019 Ernest Wiemann Award
Feature Article & Cover Shot in May SW Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine
Feature Article & Cover Shot in May SW Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine

Check out the two-page feature article on Albina Co., Inc. in the May Southwest Edition of A2Z Manufacturing Magazine. We had such a great time working with Linda and Kim putting the article together.

The article highlights several projects that we have participated in specifically in the states of Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico. Our company history, philosophy and future goals are also touched on in the piece.

A2Z Manufacturing Cover Shot Curved Steel at Sloan Park Home of Cubs Spring Training
50,000# of Bent Steel Provided by Albina Co., Inc. for Sloan Park- Home of the Chicago Cubs Spring Training Facility
NOW HIRING: ESTIMATOR/PROJECT MANAGER

Candidate must have extensive steel fabrication and estimating (bidding) experience (a minimum 5 years’ experience). It would be ideal if the candidate has actual shop fabrication or bending experience as well. Candidate must be well connected in the bending and fabrication industry and have a strong reputation for customer service. High-level ability to use Geometry, Trigonometry, AutoCAD and computer based Excel spreadsheets.

Duties include: Read & interpret shop drawings to come up with bending and fabrication estimates. This candidate is responsible for all levels of the bid process as well as post-bid project management. Work with a team of estimators and project managers to initiate improvements in our current bid process and develop new standards / rules for estimating bending and fabrication.

Compensation DOE. 
This is NOT an entry-level position.

Please email or fax your resume Attn: HR Director: dwilson@albinaco.com or 503-692-6020 (fax)

Meet Brian and Jaime Smith-"Making Magic Happen"

We just returned from the happiest place on Earth (Disney World) and while we should be rested after 9 days of vacation, we are exhausted!!! Disney, just like everything else in our lives, involved strategic planning almost six months in advance just to ensure we could have a hot meal and ride the most popular rides. And even with all that planning and preparation, Jaime and I found ourselves constantly evaluating the efficiencies of the parks, the bottlenecks we faced, and how we thought Disney could improve the experience of park-goers. Don't get me wrong, we had great family time, and Disney is one of the most successful companies around, but I think the lesson we took away from the trip is that even if we think we have things all figured out and are doing things the way we think you want them done, we can't rest on our laurels and we need to be constantly evaluating how we can make your experience in doing business with us an enjoyable (and dare I say "magical") one.

On our trip, we were constantly on a roller coaster, jumping from one ride to the next, never a dull moment. That is the same feeling we have about how the spring is shaping up here at Albina Co. We have so many great and interesting projects going on right now! We are rockin' & rollin' on so many different types of material! So many industries...agricultural, structural, aerospace, mining, food processing, and so much more! Below are just a few projects we shipped out recently!

Albina Co., Inc. Celebrating 80 Years in the Steel Bending Industry!

Albina Co., Inc., located outside Portland, Oregon, has been providing customers with innovative, quality curved steel services and products since 1939. A family owned and operated, third generation business, run by Brian Smith, specializes in structural steel, tube and pipe bending, plate rolling and fabrication. Albina produces virtually any metal component that needs to bend or curve without the use of pre-formed fittings. Albina has provided curved steel for many high-profile buildings, stadiums and structures in the United States and Canada. Albina was the steel bender of choice on the recently completed Amazon Spheres in Seattle,Washington.

Albina is an industry leader in research and development and in 2018, purchased an MCP30 by Davi, the first type of bending machine in the United States with a “iRoll” smart camera system, allowing operators to view the part being bent compared to a radius template on the control screen.  The machine has the ability to “learn and remember” how different materials bend, where the rolls need to be positioned, and how much spring back is associated with a bend / material.

Brian and Jaime Smith by the Davi Machine
Brian and Jaime Smith by the Davi Machine

Albina also purchased a Bend-Tech Dragon A400 Plasma Cutter, a commercial grade CNC tube cutting ,engraving, and marking machine with the world’s most powerful CAD/CAM software. Other new equipment included new welders, jib cranes, induction heating coils, an electric forklift and 40 sets of tooling.

Albina was an instrumental player in the development of the first ever Design Guide of its kind in the United States offering information on the fabrication, design and detailing of curved members. Design Guide 33 “Curved Member Design” was released in October 2018 by the AISC Bender/Roller committee and is an invaluable resource for the industry!

Front Cover of Design Guide 33: "Curved Member Design"http://www.aisc.org/curvedsteel

Albina not only has one of the newest, most technologically advanced machines on the market, Albina also has one of the oldest, custom made bending machines ever created! In honor of the 80th Anniversary, Albina created a museum on site, called “The Smith-sonian”, honoring the family name and housing one of the first ever pieces of equipment that Albina owned and used to bend materials. Brian’s grandfather built the“Model-T” bending machine in the early 1940’s utilizing the transmission and differential from a “Model-T” Ford. This machine was used until the 1990’s to bend various materials such as pipe, tube, and square and rectangular hollow structural steel. “The Smith-sonian” is ready for visitors. Cheers to 80 Years!

The Smith-sonian Is Open for Visitors!
Meet Brian and Jaime Smith-Happy New Year!

With every New Year comes excitement about the anticipation of what is to come, but also a bit of caution as to what may lie ahead. That is why we took two New Year's pictures this year as a family! We must stick to what we know to keep our family and business strong, but we must also have the fortitude to take a leap when a project or challenge comes our way. The uncertain economic and social times we live in pose challenges each and every day, but I am confident in the companies we partner with, the people we work with, and the projects we invest in. Maintaining a strong steel industry, just like raising a strong family, is a collaborative effort. All hands on deck! Lets work together to get through these uncertain times and come out stronger on the other end!

And with every New Year comes reflection about the year prior. 2018 was one for the record books as we worked on many exciting curved steel projects. Albina was fortunate to team up with some great fabricators on a massive project in California this last year.  The project (to be named at a later date) consisted of 100’s of trucks, thousands of pieces and millions of pounds of bent steel.  This was the largest project Albina has processed to date and we look forward to working on more projects that have this level of complexity and excitement in 2019, the 80th Anniversary of our company!! Cheers to 80 Years! 

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