All Features
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…
David Isaacson
For today’s manufacturers, quality is no longer just a box to check; it has evolved into a strategic pillar central to company success. Once a tactical process focused on meeting regulatory standards, it now plays a leading role in a company’s profitability, brand reputation, employee safety and…
Creaform
Since its founding in 1974, Intercontrôle has been a leader in France’s nuclear energy sector, ensuring the safety of reactor components through automated nondestructive testing (NDT).
As part of the Framatome group, the company develops its own inspection equipment, oversees logistics and…
NIST
To support the creation of software that is secure against cyber-breaches and free of malicious code, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is working with industry partners through a consortium focused on improving software security.
The Software…
Silke von Gemmingen
Precise material analysis plays a central role in many industries, from the pharmaceutical and food industries to construction materials, biotechnology, and environmental sciences. Whether for quality assurance or for predicting material behavior, the precise characterization of particles is…
Jones Loflin
As a keynote speaker and author dedicated to helping leaders make the best choices with their time, I’ve found that some of my greatest leadership insights come from the backyard. Gardening has taught me so much—not just about cultivating fruit but about cultivating people.
One of the clearest…
Bruce Hamilton
With Labor Day coming around, here’s an article to celebrate the folks who usually get blamed for the quality problems.
Not surprisingly, when people first learn about lean’s seven wastes, the one they find most relatable is defects. They might not immediately grasp the concept of overproduction…
Mike Figliuolo
Want to build your team? Get rid of the people who are on it. I don’t mean go about firing people in a flurry. Become what I call a “net exporter of talent.”
You need to develop your people to the point that they’re ready for new challenges. Build their skills. Make them more valuable to the…
Harish Jose
I’m exploring one of the most fascinating aspects of Heinz von Foerster’s work: his complete rejection of philosophical labels and -isms. Von Foerster, the Austrian-American physicist and cybernetician, in his later years didn’t want to be pinned down by any single philosophical position. This wasn…
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…
Stephanie Ojeda
Global-scale events have tested the bounds of supply chain systems. The coronavirus, for example, made it clear how critical an efficient supply chain is for continuity and survival. It’s a real-world example of how important it is to have an enterprisewide system that uses a quality management…
Joe Curcillo
Let’s start with the argument every aspiring leader loves to have, even if they don’t say it out loud: Specialist or generalist? Depth or breadth? That’s the fork in the road every ambitious leader eventually hits. And the farther up the ladder you go, the more that question lingers.
You’ve…
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…
Bruce Hamilton
I took a walk-jog this morning, something I’ve been doing pretty regularly since early June. Some days are better than others, and today started out sluggish. But as I turned the corner of my street, my neighbor drove by, rolled down his window, and gave me a friendly wave.
Almost like getting a…
Brookhaven National Laboratory
Ateam of scientists across several U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories has unraveled how light and a previously unknown form of certain nickel-based catalysts together unlock and preserve reactivity. This research, described in the journal Nature Communications, could potentially…
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…
Donald J. Wheeler
The engineer came into the statistician’s office and asked, “How can I compare a couple of averages? I have 50 values from each machine and want to compare the machines.”
The statistician answered, “That’s easy. We can use a two-sample t-test.”
“How would that work?” asked the engineer.
“We…
Creaform
Known for building rugged telehandler equipment that delivers reliable performance in the most demanding environments, Xtreme Manufacturing places a strong emphasis on quality in every stage of production.
To uphold its commitment to quality when inspecting large weldments, Xtreme needed a…
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…
Sam Schaffter
My grandfather was a carpenter, so growing up I often heard the adage, “Be sure to measure twice so you only have to cut once.” The saying is also attributed to tailors—you have to make sure your measurements are correct before you cut the fabric.
Little did I know that years later the saying…
Robyn Coward
In life sciences, every decision carries weight—and speed to market is an ever-present consideration. Scientific innovation is moving faster than ever, yet regulatory demands are growing more complex, and supply chain fragility has become the new normal. Within this volatile landscape, the role of…
Jennifer King
Although patient safety is paramount in healthcare settings, about 1 in 10 patients is harmed in healthcare, and more than 3 million deaths occur due to unsafe care, says the World Health Organization (WHO). The reality is hospitals and healthcare facilities face numerous challenges in managing…
Etienne Nichols
Good supplier management is one of the most important methods of building a safe and effective medical device. A single device may be made up of dozens of parts and components coming from several different suppliers, and many medical device companies outsource the manufacturing of their device to a…