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During a recent interview with a big Los Angeles-area newspaper, a reporter asked me, “Is America now in permanent decline?” My answer was, “No.” Our country is not in permanent decline. But I’m concerned that our leadership is.
Actually, our leadership in Washington is failing miserably, and…
Anyone who has seen pictures of the giant, red-hot cauldrons in which steel is made—fed by vast amounts of carbon, and belching flame and smoke—would not be surprised to learn that steelmaking is one of the world’s leading industrial sources of greenhouse gases. But remarkably, a new process…
As best as I can recall, I’ve never coined a phrase with any staying power. Until now. And, my phrase has been purposely captured on a T-shirt, by someone other than a close relative. It’s not quite like having my words recorded indelibly in marble and situated in the Parthenon, but I’ll take it…
(Verisurf: Anaheim, CA) -- ATS International B.V. and Verisurf Software Inc. have signed a technology partnership agreement to integrate Verisurf Software with ATS CM4D software to automate product-quality validation solutions and further developments in this field.
ATS International B.V. and…
(Brunson: Kansas City, MO) -- Brunson Instrument Co. has launched the Brunson EasyConnect instrument mounting system, the newest addition to its line of instrument stand accessories.
Using the Brunson EasyConnect, a metrology technician can instantly connect and disconnect a laser tracker,…
(API: Rockville, MD) -- Automated Precision Inc. (API) has reached a long-term agreement with software provider New River Kinematics. As a result of this agreement, API trackers, such as the Radian, will continue to work with NRK’s SpatialAnalyzer software.
API’s laser trackers are designed to…
(Creaform: Lévis, Quebec, Canada) -- Creaform, a leader in portable 3D measurement solutions and 3D engineering services, has launched the MetraSCAN-R series of robot-mounted optical CMM 3D scanners for automated inspection on and off the production line. The devices were premiered last week at the…
(Delcam: Birmingham, UK) -- The 2013 release of Delcam’s inspection and reverse-engineering software, PowerINSPECT, offers unique dual-device inspection options that allow measurement with two portable devices at the same time. PowerINSPECT is believed to be the only inspection software that…
(Hexagon: North Kingstown, RI) -- Hexagon Metrology released its preliminary agenda for HxGN LIVE, which builds on this year’s theme, Great Stories Start Here. The annual conference will be held June 3–6, 2013, at the MGM Grand Resort in Las Vegas. Hexagon Metrology will host the largest gathering…
(FARO: Lake Mary, FL) -- FARO Technologies Inc., a trusted source for 3D measurement and imaging technology, will be a corporate sponsor of the upcoming traveling exhibition, SuperScan: Digitizing the World. Commencing in early 2014, the exhibit will incorporate 3D imaging technologies and software…
Remember your Latin? In the Aeneid Virgil used the phrase notus calor to describe what Hephaestus felt when he embraced his wife, Aphrodite. Think you know what it is now?
It means “familiar warmth.” Not passion. Not animal lust, as one might suspect when describing the embrace of a goddess. But…
“What if I were to tell you that one of the most important keys to your organization’s success can be found in a very unlikely place—a place many of you may consider to be complicated, inaccessible, and perhaps even downright boring? What if I were to tell you that this key to success is already…
Editor’s note: This continues Jack Dunigan’s series about unsung heroes in the workplace, and the 16 traits they all share.
“You can buy a person’s hands but you can’t buy his heart. The heart is where enthusiasm and loyalty are.” —Anonymous
You can’t build a team without team players. Experience…
How do you communicate with 5,000 employees across 17 countries in a simple yet effective and compelling way? This was a question that Jovina Ang had to answer back in 2010, when she joined Microsoft Services Asia as marketing communications director.
It was around that time that the organization…
It’s no secret that Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspectors hone in on a medical device company’s corrective and preventive action (CAPA) program during an inspection. But a leading CAPA consultant says many companies may have overreacted and made things unnecessarily difficult for…
Karen Martin’s The Outstanding Organization (McGraw-Hill, 2012) is a 2013 winner of the Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award.
Martin provides well-researched, practical advice on how to become aware of the self-inflicted chaos within your organization that cracks the foundation for…
ECM Global Measurement Solutions (ECM) of Topsfield, Massachusetts is working with ProTom International (ProTom) of Flower Mound, Texas, to install a state-of-the-art proton therapy treatment center in Flint, Michigan, for McLaren Healthcare. This is the first in a series of proton therapy centers…
Henry Ford’s My Life and Work is the bible of Aldous Huxley’s dystopian Brave New World, which is an excellent example of hiding something in plain view. The people in Huxley's story essentially worship Henry Ford, with the sign of the T (Model T) replacing the Christian cross, and years recorded…
We live in an age of increased specialization: physicians who treat just one ailment, scholars who study just one period, network administrators who know just one operating system. However, researchers at MIT’s Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems (LIDS) have shown that, in a number of…
Editor’s note: This article continues the series exploring structured innovation using the TRIZ methodology, a problem-solving, analysis, and forecasting tool derived from studying patterns of invention found in global patent data.
T
he monthly innovation meeting commenced with Joyce, one of the…
April’s factory collapse in Bangladesh, which killed more than 700 people, has renewed public debate over working conditions in the developing world: How can dangerous and debilitating factory work be improved?
For more than a decade, MIT political scientist Richard Locke has studied that…
Imagine for a moment that a friend followed you with a webcam and recorded every moment of your typical work day. What could you learn from so much data? Probably not much, unless you matched each video frame with a related task. Once you did, however, you could pinpoint areas for improvement by…
One of my favorite insights comes from Harvard’s David Garvin: “Learning will always remain something of an art, but even the best artists can improve their technique.” I like it because it quite subtly highlights two different yet intertwined activities, learning and training.
Most companies…
Editor’s note: This continues Jack Dunigan’s series about unsung heroes in the workplace, and the 16 traits they all share.
You’ve encountered them, those insecure types who have a point to prove, weight to throw around, and a chip on a shoulder they are just hoping someone will knock off.…
Editor’s note: Denise Robitaille is a member of the U.S. TAG to ISO/TC 176, the committee responsible for updating the ISO 9000 family of standards. She will be reporting on the revision progress to ISO 9001, which will be completed in 2015. Read other articles in the series here.
By now most…
