March 20, 2018
On March 8th, President Donald Trump signed two proclamations levying tariffs on imported aluminum and steel. White House officials say the tariffs are an essential matter of domestic and economic security, an argument that critics have rejected. The 25 percent tariff on steel and 10 percent charge on aluminum follow a pledge from Trump to revisit global trade deals, NAFTA in particular. The tariffs will take effect on March 23rd, 2018.
Atlas mass customizes flat sheet material into precision fabricated solutions. The steel and aluminum parts that Atlas produces will be significantly impacted by tariffs. Material pricing is highly volatile at present and prices have already been on the rise. Regardless of the actual results of the tariffs, mills and service centers that supply our material have implemented immediate and dramatic pricing increases on flat sheet products.
While we want to make sure that the tariffs are real and permanent, we also want to alert you to potential price increases created by these actions.
• Orders shipped in March will not be affected
• All open blanket orders will be reviewed for pricing
• New quotes will be honored for 7 days
• Orders placed and not delivered within 30 days may be subject to price increases prior to shipment
The media is full of information regarding the Section 232 tariffs and it is our intent to be transparent and current with pricing. For any questions or concerns, please email mark.engel@atlasmfg.com.
Articles relating to the steel and aluminum tariffs:
http://www.amm.com/Article/3794914/Section-232-exemption-process-rules-released.html
https://www.commerce.gov/news/press-releases/2018/03/us-department-commerce-announces-steel-and-aluminum-tariff-exclusion
March 9, 2018
Sponsoring teams is one of the many ways Atlas gives back to the community. We are excited to be sponsoring the 2018 Roseville FireBears Robotics Team, marking it our fifth year of partnership with FireBears. We help to provide Roseville Area High School students with real world experience by creating fabricated sheet metal parts for their CAD models and designs. The FireBears Robotics team focuses on using Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and makes it a goal to show the importance of engineering and science to the community.
This experience is as close to real world engineering as high school students can receive. The FIRST Robotics Competition requires students to design, build and program industrial-size robots to play a challenging field game, and are challenged to raise funds to support their efforts. Students gain experience by solving problems with multiple solutions and are inspired to make the world a better place by applying their education to robotics. In 2017, over 3000 teams from around the world participated in the FIRST Championship.
We want the students to be able to see the fabrication process from start to finish. Not only do we work with students and mentors from the CAD team to discuss the robot design, we also suggest ways to improve the design and schedule the fabrication. A tour of our factory is also offered to the students, so they can learn how the parts are fabricated based on their CAD models.
The Roseville FireBears are embarking on their 10th competition season in 2018. The team consists of 46 students, grades 9 -12, and 12 adult mentors with industry experience in programming, electronics, fabrication, CAD, marketing and more. In the fall, students practice and prepare for the upcoming 6.5 week-long build season which begins the first Saturday of the new year. As a result of the Atlas and FireBears partnership, the team has seen increased success in competition since 2014. In 2016, the FireBears won their first trip to the World Championship and have won two Imagery awards and an Industrial Design award. Learn more about the 2018 FireBears here!
Good luck to the Roseville FireBears Robotics Team on their upcoming competitions this season!
UPDATE
The 2018 FireBears have made history! For the first time, the Roseville FireBears have made it to the Minnesota State High School League Championships on May 19th. The event will be held at Mariucci Arena at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. In addition, the FireBears won a trip to the World Championships in Detroit on April 25 – 28th! We are proud to have sponsored these young men and women in their historic journey – Congratulations!
