Management

Parker Steel Co., Maumee, Ohio, appointed James "Jamie" Kaufman sales manager of the company’s Maumee-based sales operation.

Kyocera Corp., Kyoto, Japan, announced that it has concluded a basic agreement to acquire the majority of shares of a company to be established from the company split of Ryobi Ltd.’s power tool business.

Heule Tool Corp., Cincinnati, announced that Lynn Bissell joined the company as sales & marketing coordinator.

Summit Partners of Boston and Menlo Park, Calif., has bought a majority investment in the privately held Harvey Performance Company, Rowley, Mass. Harvey makes specialized cutting tools for precision machining applications for the manufacturing and metalworking industries, including aerospace and defense, medical, automotive, industrial motors and telecommunications sectors. It consists of two brands, Harvey Tool based in Rowley, and Helical Solutions in Gorham, Maine.

A survey designed to assess manufacturers’ preparedness for Industry 4.0 changes polled 537 manufacturing executives across eight industry segments. The vast majority of manufacturers surveyed have recognized the need for industrial transformation, with most already taking action. Those that have done so say they are already seeing benefits as a result.

Most employers have effective programs for accommodating workers with disabilities, but they often overlook recruiting and training practices that could expand employment opportunities, according to a national survey.

Mitutoyo America Corp., Aurora, Ill., provided Digimatic calipers and micrometers to students pursuing degrees in the engineering technology program at Northern Illinois University.

"Both are used to achieve a smooth surface and precision dimensions on metal parts," writes MC's Joshua Jablons. "Both are usually performed at the end of the manufacturing process to remove a very small amount of material or finesse the finish on a part. The difference between honing and lapping begins to be revealed if we look at where on a part each process is performed: While honing is used where parts need a precise inside diameter, lapping is performed on an outside flat surface. And when we look at what each process is, the distinctions between the two are plain to see."

A new report from Kaspersky Lab found that in the first half of the year, the manufacturing industry was the most susceptible to cyberthreats – with the industrial control systems (ICS) computers of manufacturing companies accounting for almost one third of all attacks.

In the EU-funded project SelSus, Fraunhofer scientists are collaborating in a consortium with partners from research and industry to develop maintenance technology capable of forecasting machine downtimes in production before they occur. This allows plant managers to rectify faults before the machine breaks down. The system even corrects some defects automatically.