All Features
Troy Harrison
A recent company meeting revealed what management called a “handoff problem.” The sales team would close deals, then toss them over the wall to the service team, which would promptly fumble the relationship because they didn’t understand what had been promised or why the customer bought in the…
Maartje van Krieken
Your market is shifting, your competitor just pulled ahead, and the one person who could execute the next move has resigned. You can’t get more data fast enough, yet the window to act is closing. In today’s volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) world, this is the moment that defines…
Global Shop Solutions
Small to midsize manufacturers are facing mounting pressure from unpredictable supply chain disruptions. From fluctuating customer demand to reshoring operations and diversifying suppliers, maintaining efficiency and protecting cash flow have never been more critical.
Global instability, shifting…
Walter Nowocin
Software selection, implementation, and ongoing maintenance are critical stages in the life cycle of biomedical software systems such as asset and calibration management platforms. Yet few industry resources provide detailed, practical guidance for managing these processes effectively.
One notable…
Annie Wilson, Professor Ryan Hamilton
Nano Tools for Leaders, a collaboration between Wharton Executive Education and Wharton’s Center for Leadership and Change Management, are fast, effective tools that you can learn and start using in less than 15 minutes, with the potential to significantly affect your success and the engagement and…
Judy Fainor
What if your quality system could detect and initiate corrective actions for equipment deviations before they affect product quality?
It’s a compelling vision—and one that’s becoming increasingly achievable through AI-enabled automation. But let’s be clear: We’re not there yet. What we do have is…
Mike Regan
In July 2024, CrowdStrike rolled out a software update that crashed more than 8 million Windows systems worldwide. The faulty release disrupted hospitals, grounded flights, halted banking operations, and affected government services. Comparable to a major cyberattack, the incident caused more than…
William A. Levinson
A vital concept from the chemical process industry, management of change (MOC) relates primarily to safety. It means that whenever we change a factor in a cause-and-effect diagram (e.g., machine, material, manpower, method, measurement, environment, or any other factor), we create risks of…
Carl Lewis
Manufacturers are making more types of products than ever before. According to Deloitte’s Consumer Products Industry Outlook, 95% of consumer product executives report that launching new products is a top priority this year, and 67% are allocating more resources to developing truly novel offerings…
Sachin Waikar
Take two aspirin and call me in the morning: If only prescribing medications were as simple as that.
In reality, the prescription process involves many players and steps. Details must be accurately spelled out, interpreted, and double-checked to ensure patients get the correct drug and dosage.
“…
Creaform
C hallenges abound for today’s manufacturers. Labor shortages and rising labor costs require innovative solutions to maintain productivity with fewer staff. Inflation continues to exert pressure on raw material costs, squeezing margins. Manufacturers are also racing against tight production…
Susan Robertson
Productivity looks good on paper. It’s measurable, visible, and in many organizations, it’s worshipped. But here’s the problem: Productivity isn’t the same as progress.
Many cultures confuse motion with momentum. Leaders celebrate packed calendars, rapid responses, and efficiency hacks, but often…
Paul Hanaphy
The dental industry is seeing a surge in 3D printing, with the technology enabling a growing number of dentists to rapidly create custom implants in clinics around the world.
When it comes to customizing implants like dental crowns, bridges, guides, and aligners, 3D printing is faster, more…
FOBA
In medical technology, safety is paramount. Every step in the manufacturing process must meet the highest standards, from patient protection to regulatory compliance. Because direct part marking plays a key role in ensuring traceability and unique device identification (UDI) conformity, it’s…
NIST
A rapidly growing category of drugs called protein-based biotherapeutics can be used to treat cancers and genetic and autoimmune disorders. These drugs, which usually take the form of large protein molecules, are manufactured by growing living cells that are genetically engineered to produce the…
Creaform
The Bott Group designs vehicle and operating equipment as well as workplace systems. From its headquarters in Gaildorf, Germany, and two production sites in Bude, England, and Tárnazsadány, Hungary, Bott Group designs and manufactures work environments for mobile and stationary manual work…
William A. Levinson
I recently needed to have a hot water expansion tank installed in my house. The first plumber who came to mind is widely advertised on local radio. The company’s online reviews suggest that they do good work, but one added that they are expensive—and it’s probably because they have radio ads…
Nimax
Pharmaceutical serialization practices are on the rise and have progressively become a worldwide standard as a result of stringent regulations in various of markets, including the United States, European Union, China, and Argentina. Recent estimations found that by 2022 serialization practices had…
Ariana Tantillo
A new security screener that people can simply walk past may soon be coming to an airport near you. Last year, U.S. airports nationwide began adopting HEXWAVE, a commercialized system based on microwave imaging technology developed at MIT Lincoln Laboratory. HEXWAVE addresses a new Transportation…
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and JuggerBot 3D, an industrial 3D-printer equipment manufacturer, have launched their second research and development collaboration through the Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) Technical Collaboration Program.
The two…
Akhilesh Gulati
Complacency won’t show up on a control chart. But its damage is real. Can AI and systems thinking help us detect it and respond before trust is lost?
As customer expectations evolve, one question remains: Are customers still at the core of your company’s operations?
Back in 1999, a simple but…
Sabine Terrasi
The precise recording of passenger numbers is essential for transport companies—it helps optimize timetables, make better use of capacities, and organize local public transport more efficiently.
A modern solution for this is camera-based passenger-counting. Intelligent image processing systems…
ISO
The digital revolution has transformed healthcare along with virtually every other industry. From telemedicine to digital health data, providers now have access to innovative solutions that have the potential to make healthcare more accessible and effective for all.
In some instances, this is done…
John Tschohl
Why do customers patronize one company over another? Many of you might say that the quality and price of the products or services are key factors. But while those things might play into a purchasing decision, they aren’t the most important consideration.
So, what is? Customer service. How you and…
Mike Figliuolo
Most days we walk through life unaware of the conversations occurring around us. And then there are those times you overhear a conversation that stops you dead in your tracks. You have to hit rewind in your brain and ask, “Did they actually just say that?”
Ever have one of those moments? Clearly,…