Tool talk

Ergonomics has been a buzzword among hand tool manufacturers for more than two decades. Recent tool enhancements demonstrate that tool designers are backing up their talk with truly innovative, user-friendly hand tools.

by Richard Vurva

Just because many hand tools on the market today are made from lightweight materials or feature cushioned grips and contoured handles, don't think they're not as tough as the tools your old man used to use. While it's true that hand tool manufacturers are concerned about designing tools that are more user-friendly than they were in the old days, they're also stronger and built to last longer than ever before.

A primary reason today's tools simultaneously offer durability and comfort is because tool makers are paying closer attention to the desires of professional tool users.

What do the pros want from a hand tool? They demand tools that meet the highest standards of performance and simultaneously reduce the risk of injury.

To meet those demands, hand tool manufacturers like American Tool Companies rely on end-user specialists to keep in close contact with tradespeople to find out what they expect from their tools.

End-user specialists operating from American Tool's new Design Center in Beatrice, Neb., go onto jobsites and interact with tradespeople to determine their needs, says Tom Chervenak, American Tool's director of engineering - hand tools.  

"They come back to us or our marketing people and identify ideas that would make a good end-user experience using a tool.  We use that input to develop our tool," he says.

After producing a sample tool that engineers believe satisfies end-user desires, the company goes back into the field to verify the design.

"My design engineers will go with the end-user specialists and interact with tradespeople to get first-hand feedback. So, we're really involving the user in a much greater degree than was done in the past," Chervenak says.

Using the latest computer technologies, rapid-prototyping and rapid-tooling technologies, American Tool can take a design idea, create a physical model and build a working sample that tool users can put to the test in real-life job situations. The company may produce a short production run of 25 to 100 tools and place them in the hands of tradespeople for four to six weeks before making final design adjustments. As a result, the average cycle time from new tool development to production at American Tool has gone from two years to as little as eight months.

Other hand tool manufacturers pay equally close attention to what manufacturers call "the voice of the customer."

"We always focus on the user. We're interested in exactly what users are doing with the tools and making it as easy as possible to use the tools," says Richard Wright, chairman of Wright Tool Company. He says a recent design change to open-end/combination wrenches makes it less likely that users will experience scraped knuckles when trying to loosen a stubborn fastener.

"We've changed the profile of the jaw to put a little more metal in the base of it.  It's stiffer and doesn't have as much tendency to spread," says Wright. Plus, precision-broached serrations keep the wrench seated on the fastener, further increasing torque and reducing slippage. The result is 50 percent more strength compared with traditional open-end wrenches.

"The open-end wrench is not a heavy-duty wrench, but our idea is to give the user as much flexibility in the use of the tool so when he needs to pull hard, the wrench will work hard," he says.

Ergonomics continues to be a driving force in new tool design.  More and more hand tool manufacturers either have industrial designers on staff trained in ergonomics or partner with ergonomics departments from leading universities such as the University of Connecticut, the University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

"Our approach to ergonomics is a comprehensive, ground-up approach. It's more than just cosmetic," says Jim O'Hara, marketing manager of S-K Hand Tool Corp. "If you're not making the user's job easier by either reducing the force they need to perform a task or increasing the amount of force applied with the same amount of effort, you're not addressing an ergonomic issue."

O'Hara says the company's new line of Facom pliers, designed with input from ergonomic consultants and end-users, uses a spatulated handle that spreads handle contact across the palm of the hand to reduce pressure and strain.

"It also utilizes a new pivot design which forces the pivot closer into the cutting area. This results in a greater transfer of applied force from the user's hand to the cutting or gripping zone," he says.

From design screen to tool box
What kind of new innovations can hand tool users expect in the coming months? Manufacturers are reluctant to reveal new product designs before they're ready to hit the market, but they are continually testing new manufacturing processes and materials to enhance tomorrow's tools.

"One of the key drivers in hand tool evolution is the utilization of new manufacturing processes and the use of new materials.  These developments are being driven by the desire to enhance hand tool performance to enable the tool user to be more productive in their daily routine," says S-K's O'Hara.

For example, O'Hara says S-K uses a cold forming process rather than traditional hot forging in its new pliers to produce a stronger, more consistent tool. Its screwdrivers are manufactured using silicon steel and a hexagon blade pattern, resulting in 30 percent greater strength than traditional screwdrivers, and grips on its tools resist even the most aggressive work site chemicals.

"These advancements are driving great interest in new products, which are the lifeblood of the tool industry," he says.

Chervenak says American Tool is working on design enhancements in several areas where traditional tools have not changed in 50 years. He says the new designs will be similar in scope to when American Tool introduced the revolutionary Quick Grip Bar Clamp, which makes it possible to use the tool with one hand instead of two.

"We're looking at breakthroughs like that on other tools that have not been changed for 50 to 100 years," Chervenak says.

Metal injection molding and laser treating metal instead of normal heat treating processes are examples of the types of technologies tool manufacturers are researching that could change the way they manufacture tools in the not-too-distant future.

"There are some technologies coming out now that could revolutionize the way tools are made," he says.

This article appeared in the January 2003 issue of Progressive Distributor. Copyright 2003.

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