Doughnut maker sprinkles traceability over operations March 19, 2020 Smart technology can turn a food and beverage producer into a predictor rather than a reactor. When it comes to safety, today’s connected metal detectors allow immediate and remote access while enabling suppliers to review and compare operational data.
Keep the human element in mind when choosing robots March 19, 2020 As advanced automation and digitization permeate the industrial landscape, tech-savvy companies are striving to create value-added products that foster growth for customers.
Digitalization of Connected Care April 13, 2020 A cultural shift is occurring within the healthcare industry, radically transforming the way we view medical needs. Technology is driving this alteration as a transformative enabler to meeting the patient’s healthcare priorities through pioneering technological methods.
Universal Robots Launches ActiNav Bin Picking Kit for Machine Tending April 9, 2020 Universal Robots (UR) has launched ActiNav, a new UR+ application kit for companies of all sizes that simplifies the integration of autonomous bin picking of parts and accurate placement in machines using UR cobots
The Challenge of Implementing New Technology March 27, 2020 Many organizations struggle with applying new technology in their manufacturing operations. SME conducted the Manufacturing Technology Harmonization Study to understand how companies approach this challenge of integrating smart manufacturing, big data, and both new and old capital equipment in a cost-effective and practical implementation.
What supply chain players are learning from the pandemic March 31, 2020 In the U.S., we are not seeing any specific localized disruption yet, although I’m watching New Jersey where it could be on the cusp. There are a lot of manufacturing facilities there in pharmaceuticals and chemicals, and therefore that’s an area I think we should be paying attention to.
Putting Machinery on a Strong Fitness Plan Starts with Real-Time Monitoring August 16, 2019 Having a plan for maintaining and improving the performance and reliability of every machine on a shop floor is vital to manufacturing operations. Reliable machines make short-notice production runs possible. And the more flexible manufacturers are, the more new customers they’ll attract.
Manufacturing and AI: Promises and Pitfalls June 30, 2019 We all know the buzzwords circulating around digital data and the factory. You have heard them—Industry 4.0, smart factories, data analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI). The question we all have is how will this impact workers in the long term? What do these terms really mean? Nevertheless, both traditional software suppliers and makers of advanced manufacturing equipment are offering digital solutions.
How to Go About Harmonizing New Tech August 5, 2019 Before harmonizing new technology onto the manufacturing floor, critical steps include determining the business problems to be solved and securing buy-in from all stakeholders, industry leaders said recently during an AeroDef conference panel talk on manufacturing production harmonization.
Time to Push for Step and Other Open Standards August 9, 2019 In the age of Industry 4.0 and the digital thread, computer-aided design (CAD) data exchange should be open and seamless because it happens daily in a multi-tiered supplier ecosystem and so much interoperability depends on it. But we are not there yet.