Improvements in manufacturing management software, robotics, additive manufacturing and thermal controls are making small batch sizes more cost effective—even for smaller shops. Manufacturing plants are able to reduce inventory, improve throughput and reduce demands on human operators.
We no longer need to accept that it takes a decade to create and make a safe and effective vaccine—thanks in part to smart manufacturing.
Listen to this Smart Manufacturing magazine cover story: In the thick of the ‘herculean’ vaccine push. Moderna is among the companies able to tackle the most urgent of matters precisely because of their digital strength.
Industry 4.0 is often presented as a complex, somewhat overwhelming topic that involves large companies only. However, the data collection and transfer at the heart of Industry 4.0 can be as relevant to job shops and other small to medium sized enterprises as large companies.
Nikon Metrology today announced a new partnership with NSI Microscopy Inspection Automation of Wexford, Ireland. The agreement will help customers with Continuous Process Improvement by making use of automated microscopy, according to the company.
Until 2017, Schneider Electric faced a factory bottleneck at its breaker box plant in Lexington, Kentucky. When the automation cell that welded the boxes went down, all production could be forced to stop.
Hockley Pattern & Tool, Halesowen, England, is an example of a company dedicated to the art and science of making perfect tooling.
To grow in today’s manufacturing world, shops need to consolidate operations, automate, increase efficiency, capture and analyze data and more, in order to fully leverage opportunities in thriving industries, such as aerospace.
To speed production and increase worker safety in the aerospace industry, major manufacturers are willing to pay a higher price for quality equipment.
Extreme complexity is inherent to jet engines of all sizes, from those on a Boeing 777x to ones that power the smallest drone.
