Gov. Pawlenty visits Minn. molder

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty recently gave a keynote speech at a half-day conference hosted by Vista Technologies LLC, a Vadnais Heights, Minn.-based rapid prototyper, rapid tooler and injection molder. According to a news release from the company, Pawlenty "noted that the public perception of manufacturing is 20 to 30 years out of date, and praised Minnesota manufacturers for adopting niche and value-added systems to counteract decline in the sector." The event introduced attendees to the new methods and technologies used to manufacture low-volume production parts including additive fabrication, milling and aluminum tooling. Attendees included engineers and purchasers from companies including Medtronic, Lockheed Martin, St. Jude, Toro, 3M and Boston Scientific.