The ongoing digital transformation of manufacturing comes baked-in with many uncertainties, and the automotive business is no exception.
There are pros and cons to using a scaffold for tissue printing. Ultimately, it’s not a matter of choosing one method over the other, but using them to complement each other.
An early pioneer in the field of additive manufacturing (AM), the story of Carl R. Deckard, PhD, ME, is an example of the University of Texas motto: “What Starts Here Changes the World.”
Keeping products clean is becoming a more significant part of manufacturing as standards for cleanliness, deburring, and finish grow more stringent.
Most manufacturers have relied on third-party vendors to make parts that are then incorporated into the final product. From automakers sourcing stereos and aircraft makers contracting for jet engines to a small bakery ordering plastic bags or a woodshop buying nails, producers of all types have supplemented their internal capabilities through a painstakingly developed supply chain of external vendors.
The combination of metrology hardware, adaptive CAM software and connectivity to plant-wide systems is making additive hybrid machine tool applications ever more practical on the shop floor.
Some things are a given today. One is computing is cheap and powerful, and it is getting cheaper and more powerful. Another is the dropping price of industrial sensors. Combine this with easier ways of moving around data from those sensors and you get lots of data: Terabytes of data.
Industry 4.0 is often referred to as smart manufacturing, where technology enables interconnectivity for machines and manufacturing software and systems. It also provides “Big Data,” increased visibility and remote access to manufacturing assets.
Just getting familiar with the digital thread? You’ve come to the right place to learn what it is and why you need it for your products.
The only users who’ve clocked more time with HP’s Multi Jet Fusion additive manufacturing system than service bureau GoProto Inc. (Portland, OR) may be the actual developers of the technology.
