J.I.T. Material Delivery / In House Graining / Laser Precision / Bending / Welding / Finishing / Fitting Hardware / Shipping

J.I.T. Material Delivery
Our entire purpose for "Just in Time" (J.I.T.) material delivery is to reduce our inventory, which in turn reduces our cost and ultimately our customer's costs. The software used to control in-house operations is called ProfitKey's Rapid Response Manufacturing, a world class integrated Manufacturing Resource Planning system. The system enables Dawson Metal and Dawson Doors to finitely schedule resources, manage capacity, control jobs and deliver quality products on time.
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In House Graining

Dawson receives material to be grained as a mill 2B finish. #4 satin, #6 satin and non-directional graining is performed in-house assuring quality control. Sanding belts are regularly changed to maintain finish uniformity. Stroke sanders grain the sheets before fabrication assuring all areas of the door and frame are consistent. After fabrication, additional graining may be needed to repair blemishes during production. In process and final inspection are performed throughout fabrication to assure total quality.
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4000-Watt Laser Precision
Dawson Doors has used laser technology for over five years to produce close tolerance metal entrance systems. Laser precision allows Dawson to satisfy any design requirement. With the Trumpf Trumatic L6030 4000 watt laser, Dawson Doors has more than doubled capacity of both size and speed. Dawson's L6030 is the largest industrial laser in the North Eastern U.S. utilizing two interchangeable beds, each over 7' x 20'. This laser enables Dawson to cut Stainless Steel or Bronze up to 1/2" thick while maintaining a .003" tolerance..
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Bending
In the process of manufacturing a door and frame, we have the capability of using two different types of bends to custom fit your specifications: coin bending and air bending. Dawson chooses to coin bend material for several reasons: Although more expensive, coin bending gives the material a crisp, tight bend radius. Coin bending helps separate us from other entrance manufacturers because it adds to the aesthetics of the Dawson product. Dawson operates a total of nine brake stations. The 300- and 400-ton brakes operate two full shifts (and third shift as needed based on work load).
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Welding
Mig and Tig welding is performed to tight specifications at Dawson. We maintain 33 welding stations, including capacitor discharge stud welding; a technique that eliminates any markings on the reverse side of the surface. A special emphasize is put on the tig welding procedures and the experience of tig welding personnel. All of our welders are AWS certified.
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Finishing
Grinding and buffing is critical to product finish. Dawson's skilled craftsmen perfect weld surfaces, spot weld marks and other blemishes, until all required surfaces are flawless. All grinding and buffing takes place within Dawson for better quality control and higher customer satisfaction. By far, the dirtiest operation, buffing, uses a special compound for a #7 and #8 finish. These highly polished "mirrored" finishes are very attractive and used in many retail establishments.
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Fitting Hardware
Dawson Doors, will custom fit any type or design of hardware into your door and frame. The procedure will start at the 4000-Watt Laser where the hole locations are cut to exact specifications. Once the doors and frames are ready, the final custom hardware pieces will be hand milled and fit to perfection. Drilling, tapping and fitting are the most time consuming operation at Dawson. No product leaves Dawson without total quality control inspection as outlined in our 9001-2000 ISO Certification.
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Crating / Packaging / Shipping
At Dawson Doors, only the finest quality shipping products are used to best fit your order. Our first step is to custom fit your door and/or frame into a white pine and wafer board crate. Next, we hand pad the door/frame and cover it in a poly fiber bag (for international crating, we have to capability of air- tight sealing this bag). After the door is placed into the bag, we use only the finest furniture wrap to secure the door/frame tightly against your custom built box.
The final step is to nail closed the custom crate using screw nails, assuring that it will not fail. Please check with the factory to verify exact crating and packaging as every project is unique.

Projects are typically shipped by common carrier unless special requirements are made at time of quote. Custom shipping methods can be accommodated; please call us.
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J.I.T. Material Delivery / In House Graining / Laser Precision / Bending / Welding / Finishing / Fitting Hardware / Shipping