It’s the middle of the night. You and your family are sleeping peacefully when suddenly a beeping sound starts making its way into your dreams. If you’ve got young children, soon they’re making their way into your bedroom, confused by the insistent chirping. Or your dog may either go “on alert” or be looking for somewhere to hide. Bottom line: you can say goodbye to your good night’s sleep! As battery suppliers, we like to help you avoid this scenario, and changing your smoke detector batteries every six months when the time changes is the best way to do that! Read More
Our Blog
Battery Packs and Wholesale Batteries: Powering Life in the Digital Age
In the “digital age,” batteries are all around us. They are found in everything from our remote controls and battery backups to a whole host of electronic devices in our homes and places of business. As important as batteries are, however, most people don’t really know how these power storage units work. This post provides an overview of batteries, battery packs, and wholesale batteries. Understanding Batteries Batteries are free-standing sources of a type of electricity called direct current (DC). With DC power, the voltage remains constant. This is different from the alternating current (AC) power that we have in our Read More
Automation and Craftsmanship: Advanced Tools for Building Cable Harnesses and Battery Packs
In a prior post, we explained that while we use the most advanced tools and systems for building cable harnesses and battery packs, we’re proud to say that our employees at Rapport still embrace the concept of craftsmanship and the goal of being artisans in their area of expertise. Most of them have been with us for many years, continually learning more about the needs and requirements of our customers, the materials we use, and the processes we have developed for turning individual components into high-quality finished products. In order to do that most efficiently and effectively, we leverage both Read More
Automation and Craftsmanship: Why Crimping Cable and Other Manual Skills Matter
We live in an age of rapidly increasing automation. Tasks that we once thought would always be done by hand are now being completed by specialized tools, systems, and robots in a fraction of the time and with incredible accuracy. For that reason, it may seem that craftsmanship is something that is no longer needed, especially in a manufacturing or production environment where a task like crimping cable for use in a cable assembly can be partially or fully automated. Fortunately for individuals who take pride in the physical skills they have developed on the job, there is still a Read More
From Battery Packs to Wiring Harnesses: Building Quality Into the Product
When people talk about producing “high-quality” products, there is often a perception that this simply involves conducting tests at the end of a manufacturing process to ensure that the products coming off the assembly line have achieved or exceeded any applicable standards for their functionality, appearance, etc. However, at Rapport we’ve found that in order to produce everything from battery packs to wiring harnesses that are of the highest caliber, we must build quality into our products at every step. Quality Assurance vs. Quality Control in Battery Pack and Wiring Harness Production In discussing the quality of battery packs, wiring Read More
Why it Makes Sense to Work with an American Manufacturer of Wiring Harnesses
In order to minimize expenses and maximize profits, many companies resort to “offshoring.” Offshoring is when a business, like a wiring harness manufacturer, moves some or all of its operations overseas, to locations where labor and other expenses are much lower than they are in the U.S. This is to the company’s advantage, but of course it hurts American workers by decreasing their job opportunities. In some cases, these companies will later do what is called “reshoring,” or in other words, they bring their operations back to our country. However, according to studies cited by Forbes, U.S. manufacturers are not Read More
The Importance of Quality Equipment for Electrical Wire Stripping and Battery Pack Production
One of the first machines Rapport bought when we started in the cable/wire harness assemblies business in 1993 was an Artos CS-1 electrical wire cutting and stripping machine that was built in 1935. While we haven’t used it in over a decade, you can still see it at our office. We’ve kept it as a reminder of how far our industry has come and how much our company has evolved. The machine is still functional. It operates with an electric motor. Through a series of cams and adjustments to the various arms, the cut lengths of the wire can be Read More
Just-in-Time Manufacturing: Used on Everything from Wiring Harnesses to Battery Packs
Just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing is a strategy focused on aligning the receiving of raw materials with manufacturing production schedules. The goal is to ensure that wiring harness and battery pack assembly teams have what they need, when they need it, but without materials or end product remaining in storage for extended periods. More Efficient Production of Wiring Harnesses and Battery Packs at Rapport At Rapport, in most cases we manufacture to a JIT delivery plan. Components are purchased once the customer places their order, and the manufacturing process takes place after all components are received. Then, we ship to the customer Read More
The Importance of “First Articles” in the Manufacture of a Custom Wiring Harness or Cable Assembly
In manufacturing, a “first article” is an initial piece produced so that a customer can confirm that the assembly has been built precisely to their written specifications. In the development of a custom wiring harness or cable assembly, for example, coming to an agreement on whether the finished product adheres to the specifications provided before a production run is initiated is critically important. Doing so ensures that the customer’s investment in the parts will be money well-spent and helps prevent the need for significant rework. Bringing Extensive Expertise to Bear on Custom Wiring Harness First Articles In order to ensure Read More
Our CEO Reflects on Rapport’s 40 Years as an Innovator and Leader
As Rapport hits a major milestone of 40 years as a leading provider of wiring harnesses and wholesale batteries, employees have been talking about the company’s origin and how it got to where it is today. Someone who has been involved from the very start is company President and CEO Kent Lehman. He recently shared some memories about the early years and observations on how the company has evolved. Bluebirds and the Blue Wirecutter in the Hall Rapport was founded by Kent’s mom, Sherry, in 1979. As the company grew, Kent’s dad, Dale, got involved. The couple worked hard Read More