Lasers on the Cutting Edge November 1, 2017 In the last seven to eight years, solid-state lasers have come to dominate laser welding and cutting,” said Tom Bailey, product specialist for Trumpf Inc. (Farmington, CT). While Trumpf still produces CO2 lasers, for most applications solid-state lasers literally outshine them.
Huawei Urging Suppliers to Use Cloud Technology to Match Its New Quality Standards November 7, 2017 With user costs rising and automation still not at the optimum level in China, the best option for pulling small and medium enterprises along on the smart manufacturing journey is cloud technology, Huawei Technologies’ He Fred said here today at a conference titled Manufacturing in the Age of Experience.
How to set off on the smart manufacturing journey August 1, 2017 Conrad Leiva, vice president for product strategy and alliance at iBASEt and chair of the smart manufacturing working group at MESA International, speaks with Smart Manufacturing magazine Editor in Chief Brett Brune.
Northrop using AM to efficiently make coldplates, cable clamps, more August 10, 2017 How do manufacturers love additive manufacturing (AM)? Bianca Lankford, a mechanical engineer at Northrop Grumman, can count the ways: antennas, brackets, clamps, coldplates, ducts, plenums and test fixtures.
Zooming ahead in data-management tool adoption August 15, 2017 Manufacturers of many stripes can save money just by making better use of data emanating from the factory floor. But for those in aerospace and defense—Airbus Helicopters is a prime example—the potential payoffs are legion.
More US funds needed to address workforce skills gap August 17, 2017 A strong manufacturing ecosystem that includes manufacturing engineering education is critical to ensuring the future vitality and innovation of manufacturing initiatives in the US. So it was welcome news to learn that the DOD is developing a new manufacturing engineering education (MEE) grant program, authorized by Congress with initial funding of $10 million for fiscal 2017.
Mazak iSMART Factory Initiative Spreads to Japan Plant July 13, 2017 Mazak Corp. (Florence, KY) continues its steady advance toward the complete factory digitization of all its manufacturing operations with the recent transformation of its Oguchi, Japan, facility into yet another Mazak iSMART Factory.
Siemens Partners with Singapore to Establish Digitalization Hub July 13, 2017 To address the growing opportunities in urbanization and in Asia, Siemens will be setting up a Digitalization Hub in Singapore. At this Hub, Siemens will develop innovations for the Internet of Things (IoT) and Industrie 4.0 in collaboration with its customers in Southeast Asia.
Laser Genius Elevates Productivity to New Heights July 21, 2017 Like its products, technology demands for thyssenkrupp Elevator Corp. are “going up.” A business unit of ThyssenKrupp Elevator AG, the company oversees all business operations in the US, Canada, and Central and South America, and says it is the largest producer of elevators in the Americas, with 13,500 employees, more than 200 branches and service locations, and sales of $2.7 billion.
In praise of apprenticeships and robotics ‘roadmaps’ July 12, 2017 All the hand-wringing around robotics and jobs in the US really needs to stop. It’s astounding that manufacturers here are still fighting this battle.