Industry News

Irvine, CA, March 13, 2019 – CGTech kicked off the first of its 2019 North American VERICUT Users’ Exchange (VUE) events last week in Irvine, CA. At VUE, attendees learn about new software features, tips and tricks for improving manufacturing efficiency, and have the opportunity to express ideas about the future direction of the software. There is no charge to attend.

If a region is attracting new manufacturing companies, what's the fastest way to help them launch their businesses? The answer from Danville, Virginia, is the 51,250-sq.-ft. Center for Manufacturing Advancement.

In Chicagoland, most owners of manufacturing companies are not only white but at the age of retirement and lacking succession plans. The owners' kids don't want to take over, or they don't have the skills to. The likeliest fate for these businesses is to be bought by private equity firms that fire the employees, sell off some assets and move on, meaning a huge loss of jobs and revenue in the region.

At a manufacturing organization, a hardware design engineer or a factory floor manufacturing engineer can wear the hat of a citizen data scientist. Optimizing a design process or improving throughput/yield on the factory floor could be his or her goal to bring more business value out of processes.

One of the biggest developments in the world of technology over the last few years has been that of digital twins. A digital twin is a virtual replica of a physical system, process or product. The technology essentially provides a real-time look at how a physical asset is performing.

Chinese factories make up a third of the "manufacturing lighthouses," or principal drivers for adopting new technology in the fourth Industrial Revolution, according to a list by the World Economic Forum and management consulting firm McKinsey & Co. These advances in smart manufacturing should be encouraging for China, but the country already is undermining them.

The following interview was conducted with Platinum Tooling’s President, Preben Hansen, at the company’s headquarters in Prospect Heights, Illinois. Hansen discusses the beginnings of Platinum Tooling, the transition period, changes, product lines and the future.

There’s a common misconception that the manufacturing industry is almost universally male-dominated. In many people’s minds, the industry is old fashioned, hanging on to dated gender biases and excluding women from managerial roles that are key to climbing the industry ladder, such as production supervisors and operations managers. But the fact is, manufacturers are more forward-thinking than ever before, and women now make up nearly one-third of the manufacturing industry workforce in the United States.

The mobility concept for individual transportation will in the relatively near future be a combination of progressively downsized internal combustion engines and electric drives, say some, while others predict that electro-mobility will secure jobs or even create new ones. This, at least, is certain: traditional metalcutting machines are a long way from being ripe for the scrap heap – equipped with smart technologies, they will also play a prominent role at the EMO Hannover 2019.

Of all businesses, contract machining companies know what they want: Cincinnati-based firm Metalex Manufacturing Inc. already owns three Starrag machine tools, but after extensive benchmarking, the key customer has chosen to invest in a Droop+Rein T portal machining center from Starrag—its largest investment to date in every respect.

Industrial Innovations has expanded its machine shop and fabricating capability and is offering CNC machining of prototype, custom and replacement parts, as well as short production runs and 4-axis machining for a variety of applications and industries such as automotive, medical and furniture.

Manufacturers’ most valuable data is generated daily on shop floors, bringing with it the challenge of analyzing it to find prescriptive insights fast. This is an ideal problem for machine learning to solve.

In 2019, we expect a continued strong, robust manufacturing sector. Even if there is some slowdown, the challenge for many companies this year remains, “How do we generate more with less?” as they face labor and talent shortages and increasing prices for labor, energy and cost of materials.

The fact that polycrystalline diamonds (PCD) could “show profile” in October 1978 could be attributed to random chance, but could it have something to do with “luck”? But how did golf professional Tiger Woods answer when a journalist pointed out that he often had a lot of luck during his games? “The more I train, the more luck I have.”

The Manufacturing Institute announced they will award Danielle Allen with the Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Ahead Award. The STEP Ahead Awards honor women who have demonstrated excellence and leadership in their careers and represent all levels of the manufacturing industry, from the factory-floor to the C suite.

The market performance of the machine tool sector is highly dependent on commodity prices, macroeconomic conditions and sector performance (e.g., automotive, construction, aerospace, and ship building). According to IHS Markit Economy and Country Risk (ECR) information, a global recession is highly unlikely to occur in 2019. However, due to weaker global trade, pollical uncertainties, and other headwinds, global machine tools production revenue will only begin to improve late in 2020 or early in 2021.

To address the often-vexing questions about Industry 4.0, there is a new smart Manufacturing blog named Ask the Machine Whisperer? This blog is intended to educate the manufacturing community about all things DNC, machine monitoring and IT networking. The blog is interactive, as there is a dedicated page where readers get to ask their own questions of Steven “the Machine Whisperer” Anderson.

Boeing Co. has begun a sweeping transformation of its quality system, including the use of smart tools and automation. It also will eliminate thousands of quality checks because they are no longer necessary. The company told its union that it will cut about 450 quality inspector positions this year and potentially a similar number next year.

Micro-Laser Assisted Machining Technologies Inc. makes laser-based tools to improve machining for ceramics, silicon and metal. The lasers generate heat of about 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit at a tiny point a tenth the width of a human hair, softening the target, greatly reducing cutting time and decreasing cutting tool wear.

When it comes to cost-saving techniques, many manufacturers instinctively look toward making cuts; this could mean anything from laying off employees to pulling back on new technology. However, these methods can bring down morale and quash innovation, which allows competitors to get ahead.