Industry News

Most political analysts agree that Donald Trump won the presidency on the backs of long-suffering blue-collar workers in industrial states. His campaign was propelled by a promise to revive manufacturing through trade, tax and regulatory policies. After nearly three years in office, the results are unfortunately tepid in terms of engineering a real boom in this sector, and the trends in recent months signal spreading weakness. Nonetheless, manufacturing is stronger than it was when he took office, and policy support is still in place for growth. Headwinds from trade policy and political uncertainty, however, are restraining a more robust growth path.

Colin Cooper, Connecticut's first chief manufacturing officer, will be involved with regulations, hiring and training. The new position comes after manufacturing companies in the state said they would like to hire more local workers but struggle to find candidates.

RCM Industries Inc., a Wheeling, Illinois-based manufacturer of die-cast aluminum components for industries such as automotive and consumer products, found itself in competition with low-wage suppliers in Mexico for a large outsourced project. "We had to look at how to drive cost out of the product without reducing the value that we provide our customers," said Mike Higgins, RCM Industries director of sales and marketing. "Without the cobots, we would not have had a shot at that work."

The UP! App, the digital platform that connects industrial manufacturers to people that can service and repair their machinery, has committed an initial gift of $3,000 to the Columbus State Community College Foundation to support the school's engineering, manufacturing and Engineering Technology Pathway programs. These degrees can help prepare students to join the industrial manufacturing workforce as service technicians with a two-year degree or transfer for further education.

Vision Engineering, a manufacturer of high-quality visual inspection and measurement technologies, announces that it has sold over 20,000 Mantis microscope products in the last five years.

Milltronics USA has named Foothills Machinery Sales as its exclusive full-service distributor for the states of Colorado and New Mexico. Founded in 1984, Foothills Machinery Sales is Colorado's oldest independent dealer of machine tools. Located in Broomfield, Colorado, Foothills Machinery Sales is home to both knowledgeable sales and service support staffs.

The Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence Production Software Business has hired four new team members in support of its metalcutting software, including EDGECAM, SURFCAM and WORKNC. Customer Service Representatives Kristi Adeleke and Anita Pilarski, Applications Engineer Mike Rowe, and Account Manager Michael Skerjance will provide support and facilitate services for new and existing metalcutting customers.

Ultimaker a leader in desktop 3D printing, today released its first 3D Printing Sentiment Index. Independent research conducted by Savanta, an international research firm, details a comprehensive view of the current and future potential for 3D printing in 12 countries, while covering the widest range of verticals and professions, including education. The quantified index reveals the U.S., U.K. and Germany have the highest expectations for implementing additive manufacturing and capitalizing on its opportunities.

Newcastle Systems, a leading provider of mobile-powered workplace solutions designed to make warehouses, manufacturing facilities and retail floors more efficient, announced a new partnership with German-based Andreas Laubner GmbH that brings its mobile-powered solutions to the European market.

Newcastle Systems, a leading provider of mobile-powered workplace solutions designed to make warehouses, manufacturing facilities and retail floors more efficient, has signed an agreement with BlueStar, a leading global distributor of solutions-based digital Identification, mobility, point-of-sale, RFID, digital signage, network infrastructure and security technology. BlueStar's partner network will gain the opportunity to offer several of Newcastle Systems' Mobile Powered Products and Workplace Mobility Solutions.

Winbro Group Technologies Ltd. announces the acquisition of its business by Taiwan-headquartered Quaser Machine Tools (QMT).

Emuge Corp., a leading manufacturer of high performance taps, thread mills, drills, endmills and other rotary tools, and precision machine tools supplier Brooks Associates Inc. have announced a collaborative effort that expands their respective capabilities for customer training, machining demonstrations and applications testing.