Making operators and process designers better informed in real time, with a focus on making intelligent decisions with enhanced data, is the key to updating U.S. aerospace and defense manufacturing capabilities.
Smart manufacturing is transforming A&D manufacturing as more companies adopt automation, artificial intelligence and robotics. Some manufacturers are also focusing on eliminating so-called islands of automation and integrating the technology across entire processes.
Why don’t more manufacturers in the United States use smart manufacturing technologies like AI and machine learning to reduce waste, achieve predictive maintenance and enhance their automation systems? Five CESMII roundtable panelists share their insights.
LIMS—the Low Investment Manufacturing System—is an unassuming little box consisting of a computer with proprietary Solution Engine software and an I/O hub that plugs into a standard outlet. When wired at the edge of a piece of production equipment, it becomes a simple solution for collecting and sharing complex sensor-derived data.
Feature-based Product Line Engineering refers to the engineering of a portfolio of related products using a shared set of engineering assets, a managed set of features, and an automated means of production.
The three keynote speakers of HOUSTEX, EASTEC, SOUTHTEC and WESTEC—the Manufacturing Technology Series—offer perspectives pertinent to manufacturers in general, but of particular use to small and medium-sized manufacturers.
Around the U.S., the major manufacturing regions are taking stock of the fallout from the pandemic and how they can navigate out of the lockdowns in 2020 to thrive once again.
While it is typically up to the design engineers or the customer to specify the materials needed for a part, sometimes even materials within specs seem just a little more difficult to machine.
Hexagon is providing mold and die shops using its CAM software WORKNC with immediate access to its model preparation software. This allows integration of production workflows from any CAD model format to CAM so shops can machine parts more efficiently and avoid costly errors.
Avoiding product defects—and quickly finding and fixing those that occur—is a critical priority for all manufacturers.
