Manufacturing Engineering

Machine tool manufacturer SMTCL-Americas will hold a "March Machine Madness" open house event on March 20, 2014 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at its  City of Industry, Calif. technical center at 17038 E. Gale Ave. Various experts will host seminars on robotics and automation, 5-axis machining, titanium machining, new developments in CAD software and innovations in tooling.

The National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS), Fairfax, Va., announced that it awarded a record number of credentials last year to individuals seeking to enter into or advance in jobs in the metalworking industry. In 2013, NIMS issued 13,888 industry-recognized credentials, representing a 58.8 percent increase from 2012.

Owners of 3-year-old vehicles (2011 model year) report more problems than did owners of 3-year-old vehicles last year, according to the 2014 U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study^SM (VDS) released by market information services firm J.D. Power and Associates, Westlake Village, Calif.

Manufacturing software provider CGTech has announced 22 North American VERICUT Users Exchange (VUE) events scheduled in 2014, with the first to be held on March 10th in Irvine, Calif., near the company headquarters.

Seco Tools, Troy, Mich., was recognized for participating in the John Deere Cost Reduction Opportunities Process (JD CROP), part of Deere & Company's Achieving Excellence program. The toolmaker received the honor for the quality of its cost-reduction ideas and for demonstrating its commitment to continuous improvement, according to Seco.

For the fifth consecutive season, igus is a sponsor for Botball, an educational robotics program produced by the KISS Institute for Practical Robotics. The Botball Educational Robotics Program provides STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) skills that are immediately applicable in college and demanding industries.

Okuma America Corp holds the 2013 Technology Showcase event on Dec. 10-12, 2013, in Charlotte N.C. The event gives attendees the opportunity to witness the latest technology via hands-on demonstrations, and allows them to learn how this new technology can be applied to their specific manufacturing challenges.

E. Zoller GmbH & Co. KG, Pleidelsheim, Germany, has partnered with Machining Cloud GmbH, Stans, Switzerland, on the new Machining Cloud Intelligent Manufacturing application, a platform that offers applications, resources, services and information from a centralized database. Machining Cloud can advise parts manufacturers regarding best practices specific to each manufacturing process, according to the company.