All Features
Stefano Puntoni, Bart De Langhe
Most businesses rightly see data as a source for making better decisions. But the conventional data-driven approach often falls short because of common errors made by the decision-makers. Many leaders rely excessively on existing data that might not always address the issue at hand, or they pass…
James Chan
Work instructions and standard operating procedures (SOPs) are job aids that ensure business processes are carried out correctly. Whether for new employee training, working with new equipment, or standardizing current procedures, these job aids help create a safer and more productive workplace.…
AMETEK
Endurance racing is one of the oldest and toughest pastimes in motorsports. It is a true test of performance. Not only is a driver’s stamina on display, but vehicle durability as well.
Based in Indianapolis, Wayne Taylor Racing With Andretti (WTRAndretti) is a world-renowned global motorsports…
Veronica Muzquiz Edwards
Health connects each one of us to one another. No matter where we are in the world, who we are, or what we do, the state of our health is a key determinant in our quality of life. Simply put, it’s our most valuable asset.
Individual health crises can be disastrously grim, and if not addressed…
Masateru Ito
For organizations responsible for aircraft operation and maintenance, inspecting critical aircraft-engine components is a routine preventive maintenance procedure. These procedures help to ensure the proper operation of the aircraft for flight safety. There are many components inside the engine…
NIST
To combat global warming, companies are building direct air capture (DAC) facilities worldwide to remove carbon from the atmosphere. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a new method for testing the materials used in these plants to capture carbon. The agency…
Mike Figliuolo
One of the most exciting things you can do as a young tank platoon leader is participate in a tank gunnery exercise. Essentially it’s going to a shooting range with some really big cannons mounted on a 68-ton chassis. One particularly hot summer in Colorado, I went to my second gunnery.
About six…
Jim Steventon
Integrated quality, when done correctly, plays a vital and pivotal role in enhancing any business, especially manufacturing operations. But, in fear of sounding like the archetypal head of quality, I say it shouldn’t be seen solely as something you do in manufacturing operations. In fact,…
Mike Figliuolo
I just rewatched The Green Hornet, and it was awesome. As I finished the movie, I wondered what made him a great leader (or not) and how those lessons might apply to the business world. I know. I’m weird like that.
The good news is I’ve unlocked the secret of great leadership, Green Hornet-style.…
Sara Harrison
As a newly hired assistant professor of organizational behavior and sociology at the Yale School of Management, Walter (Woody) Powell observed a strange phenomenon through his office window. It was 1979. Bold colors and patterns were in style, and his students came to campus dressed in jeans and…
Mitutoyo Corp.
Choosing the right microscope for your application is no small feat. It’s a decision that requires a deep understanding of the task at hand and the tools available to you. From magnification to resolution, and from ease of use to customization options, there are several aspects to consider when…
Daniel Marzullo
When was the last time you asked your clients for genuine feedback on working together, beyond just revisions on projects and deliverables?
Over the years, I’ve found it incredibly beneficial to do quarterly check-ins with every client to get a sense of how things are going.
Not only does this…
Rachel Gordon
‘I’ll have you eating out of the palm of my hand” is an unlikely utterance you’ll hear from a robot. Why? Most of them don’t have palms.
If you have kept up with the protean field, gripping and grasping more like humans has been an ongoing, Herculean effort. Now, a new robotic hand design…
Mike Figliuolo
My platoon was out in the field on training exercises. We had been out there for about two weeks, so we all smelled kind of “ripe” at that point. One of the more senior officers in my battalion came to my unit’s area to see how things were going. This “gentleman” personified the term—he was an “…
Gabriel Popkin
They’re called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, a group of thousands of compounds that contain a chemical bond between fluorine and carbon. That bond has proved to be one of the most stable and unbreakable known to chemistry—a fact baked into the common nickname “forever chemicals,”…
James Chan
Preventive maintenance (PM) is an approach to asset and facilities management that relies heavily on planning, coordination, and collaboration. These features are essential to performing preventive maintenance activities such as routine inspections, preemptive equipment maintenance, and parts…
Mike Figliuolo
As leaders, we like being decisive and making quick decisions. We know our businesses well and are willing to act. Doing so without true contrarian input can be dangerous, though.
You can make better decisions simply by identifying and relying on your own personal Mr. Spock. Yes, I’ve been…
Q.Big 3D
Additive manufacturing of oversized plastic components offers enormous advantages for mold-free small- and medium-size production runs. The key to this is Q.BIG 3D’s VFGF (variable fused granulate fabrication) process.
Reiser Simulation and Training, in Berg near Starnberg, Germany, commissioned…
James Chan
Preventive maintenance (PM) is a proactive maintenance strategy built on calendar-based maintenance tasks, regular inspection, and preemptive repair of physical assets. Physical assets may refer to equipment, production machinery, and operational facilities. Preventive maintenance tasks are…
Katie Gilbert
Researchers at Stanford Graduate School of Business have pushed past the limitations of A/B testing into another area of experimentation focused on “multi-armed bandits.” Mohsen Bayati, a professor of operations, information, and technology who has been exploring these problems for the past 15…
ISO
From small family-run companies to tech giants, the business world is changing at an unrelenting pace. Amid a constantly evolving economic landscape and sometimes dizzying technological advances, one thing remains constant: the need to maintain the highest level of quality that endures over time.…
Michael Sharp
American manufacturing is associated with high-quality standards that are meant to ensure both the reliability and longevity of the products produced. Manufacturers across all industries are looking for technological solutions and enhancements to continue to meet these high-bar standards and to…
Elizabeth Norwood
In manufacturing, selecting the right cleaning fluids is a critical determinant of product quality, reliability, and environmental impact. As industries increasingly prioritize sustainability, the transition to environmentally friendly cleaning fluids is imperative. This article delves into…
Gleb Tsipursky
In the evolving landscape of work, the push for federal employees to return to office spaces has sparked a complex dialogue about productivity, workplace culture, and the very nature of work itself. The forced shift back to office environments under the Biden administration—under pressure from…
William A. Levinson
The famous football coach Vince Lombardi purportedly said, “Winning isn’t everything; it’s the only thing.” (According to Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, in a 1962 interview Lombardi said, “Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.”)
In light of numerous corporate disasters related to…
