A Reverence for Tools
There is a tactile connection between machinists and their tools. As an equally old hand with a long memory, I found Frank’s observations about the importance of tools compelling. He writes about the subject with a passion once common, but now less so. Nonetheless, I’m pretty sure many of you will relate to the sentiment associated with this article’s topic.
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A colleague sent me an article he had published in the alumni magazine of his alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania. Frank Burke has a long pedigree in the manufacturing industry and today uses his experience to articulate the importance of our industry on behalf of clients he represents that dwell in the “business.”
As an equally old hand with a long memory, I found Frank’s observations about the importance of tools compelling. He writes about the subject with a passion once common, but now less so. Nonetheless, I’m pretty sure many of you will relate to the sentiment associated with this article’s topic.
Tools of the trade is an aphorism that is still relevant. For almost 3 million years, mankind has made and used tools to accomplish work that otherwise couldn't be done.
In all their various forms, tools are even more critical today than ever before. Productivity has always been a goal for employing tools, and we have never been more productive. However, it can be argued that as we move further up the technological ladder, there seems to be a loss of personal connection with tools that helped us begin the climb.
Frank’s article, “The Tools of Man,” does a nice job of reminding us of the tools that helped us get to where we are today. The tools of the craftsman are personal things. They represent ties that bind.
Click here to read the article. Please let me know what you think by sending me an email.
