All Features
Harry Hertz
I enjoy solving puzzles! I start each morning by doing at least two New York Times puzzles, Wordle, and Connections. My wife and sons and their spouses do the same, although not necessarily as part of their early-morning routine (except on weekends). We have a texting thread where we each report…
Aymen Saidane
As the manufacturing world pushes toward the goal of zero-defect production, part inspection is critical. Sheet metal’s thinness, coupled with its susceptibility to warping, demands precision inspection—even the most minor deviations have significant implications down the line. This underscores the…
Steve Thompson
If you’ve ever enjoyed the experience of an audit or inspection, then you know it’s about as much fun as having your wisdom teeth extracted. As painful as audits and inspections may be, they are necessary to bring needed medical products to market and monitor them to protect consumers and patients…
Poornima Apte
When Alexander O’Brien sent in his application for graduate school at MIT’s Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, he had a germ of a research idea already brewing. So when he received a phone call from Professor Mingda Li, he shared it: The student from Arkansas wanted to explore the…
Mike Figliuolo
Have you ever met someone who was fired from their job? I’ll bet you $50 they said, “Yeah, I never saw it coming.” For some reason, getting canned always comes as a shock to people. They’re clueless as to how bad they’re doing and how close to the door they are.
Makes you wonder: Are you close to…
Ron Soonieus
Driven by geopolitical uncertainty, trade risks, and new technologies such as generative AI, the most profound business transformation in 50 years is underway. Alongside these factors, pressures from regulators and stakeholders are mounting around the reporting, transparency, and accountability of…
Tim Heston
At Metalworks Inc.’s main plant in Lincoln, Nebraska, co-founders Rob Ernesti and Doug Swanson walked past a new punch/laser system being tested, complete with part removal and stacking automation. It’s one piece of a value stream dedicated to a family of parts. They next walked by a row of small…
ISO
Healthcare administrators find themselves at the fore of a demanding and transformative field, where the pursuit of excellence in patient care is nonnegotiable. In a health industry landscape facing evolving regulations, escalating costs, and an increasing emphasis on patient outcomes, the need for…
Anne Trafton
Flat screen TVs that incorporate quantum dots are now commercially available. But it has been more difficult to create arrays of their elongated cousins, quantum rods, for commercial devices. Quantum rods can control both the polarization and color of light to generate 3D images for virtual-reality…
Donald J. Wheeler
In last month’s column, we looked at how process-hyphen-control algorithms work with a process that is subject to occasional upsets. This column will consider how they work with a well-behaved process.
Last month we saw that process adjustments can reduce variation when they are reacting to real…
Julie van der Hoop
We’re all familiar with photos of Ford’s production lines in 1920. But would we recognize them today? As part of a broader trend referred to as “Industry 4.0,” systems in many factories have modernized considerably in recent years. This digitization of the manufacturing sector aims to apply…
Bryan Christiansen
Deciding whether to repair or replace an asset can be difficult. That’s why maintenance and reliability managers perform an analysis to determine whether it’s more economical to repair a failing asset or replace it with a new one. This process helps minimize total costs while ensuring that your…
Adam Zewe
Imagine grasping a heavy object, like a pipe wrench, with one hand. You would likely grab the wrench using your entire fingers, not just your fingertips. Sensory receptors in your skin, which run along the entire length of each finger, would send information to your brain about the tool you are…
Douglas C. Fair, Scott A. Hindle
Today’s manufacturing systems have become more automated, data-driven, and sophisticated than ever before. Visit any modern shop floor and you’ll find a plethora of IT systems, HMIs, PLC data streams, machine controllers, engineering support, and other digital initiatives, all vying to improve…
Matt Fieldman
When I first started at MAGNET (part of the Ohio MEP) in 2015, I walked into my new office and saw a white paper sitting on my desk. In it, our former board chair Felix Brueck outlined how we could adapt the German apprenticeship model of workforce development to Northeast Ohio and reap real…
John Davis
Over the past decade, one of the biggest advances in enterprise resource planning (ERP) has been the ability to communicate and integrate with machines and external software programs to lower costs and increase efficiency. For example, BOM Compare software can reduce engineering costs and get jobs…
Mike Figliuolo
I’m going to take over the world! It’s really fun to say that. It’s even more fun to take action toward that goal.
Our world has gotten smaller. Way smaller. Globalization is an unstoppable trend. But as they say, the trend is your friend, so why not take advantage of it? I don’t care how big or…
Ron Cowen
A single atom-thick sheet of carbon known as graphene has remarkable properties on its own. But things can get even more interesting when you stack up multiple sheets.
When two or more overlying sheets of graphene are slightly misaligned—twisted at certain angles relative to each other—they take…
Mark Rosenthal
This all happened nearly three decades ago. Since then, the company has been through a series of mergers and acquisitions. Thus, the only thing I can be certain of is that things are different today—at least I hope so.
It was Tuesday afternoon of a traditional five-day kaizen event. Monday morning…
Matthew Greenwood
It’s no secret the automotive sector is racing to find ways of tapping the potential of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) to design and build the next generation of vehicles. This technology has promise, from redefining manufacturing processes to helping carmakers design smarter, safer,…
Kandice Taylor
Middle school is the perfect time to plant the seed for a child to grow a lifelong love of science. That’s why I love being a middle school teacher.
My students are definitely still kids, but they’re at a developmental period in their lives where they’re growing and coming into their own. They’re…
Melissa Stewart
Companies are always looking for ways to bring in fresh ideas and new perspectives. And in an ever-evolving digital world, you can’t blame them. Young talents possess the latest technological skills and insights, which can be incredibly useful in adapting to the times. However, there’s one thing…
Gleb Tsipursky
Atlassian, one of the world’s most successful remote-first companies, has unlocked the secrets to mastering distributed work. I recently spoke with Atlassian’s Annie Dean, head of its aptly named “Team Anywhere” program, to get her insider’s perspective on the keys to thriving in the distributed…
Sabine Terrasi
Robots do monotonous workflows and less pleasant, repetitive tasks with brilliance. Combined with image processing, they become “seeing” and reliable supporters of humans. They’re used in quality assurance to check components, help with assembling and positioning components, detect errors and…
Wael William Diab
Artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere—and that’s something to marvel at. AI is powering everything from advanced web searches to social media recommendations and video game design. But it could do infinitely more.
AI has the potential to revolutionize our societies and economies. Discussions…
