Advanced Manufacturing Now

David Tucker, automotive strategy and production development manager at HP 3D Printing, and Kyle Harvey, business unit manager for additive manufacturing at Extol, talk about HP's recent announcement of polypropylene as a material for AM, as well as how Extol is involved in HP's expansion of its 3D printing business.

Crean Inc. President James Crean discusses the post-pandemic future of manufacturing. His firm has been helping companies implement smart manufacturing tech so they can be more flexible and able to pivot, whenever necessary. Supply chains need to be brought back to the U.S., in part because of mass customization and "Amazon-time" demands, he says. He also prescribes ways for smaller companies to take advantage of demand shifts in the marketplace.

In this podcast, Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering magazine host Tom Jones and Isaiah Weiner, senior managers for Amazon's Cloud Services to Simulation & High Performance Computing and its role as one of the enablers that the Cloud provides for discrete manufacturing.

In this podcast, Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering Magazine discusses with Vince Bovino, of the Bovino Consulting Group how four basic principles around incentive pay can improve an organization's performance and profitability.

Digital transformation has been a major topic for manufacturers, but what exactly is it, and how can manufacturers use it to their advantage? In this episode, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering Magazine talks with Mo Abuali, Ph.D., Managing Partner at IoTco, about what Industry 4.0, IIoT, AI, and machine learning mean to the North American manufacturing industry; how manufacturers can create value from these tools; use cases that manufacturers should focus on; and the first steps manufacturers should take in order to get started in their own digital transformation.

As in other industries, U.S. forming and fabricating companies are experiencing a critical shortage of skilled labor. In this SME Media podcast, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Robert Tessier, National Director of Advanced Fabrication Technologies for Airgas about the skills gap in the forming and fabricating industry; changes needed in the education system to fill the need for skilled labor; how automation factors into efforts to reduce the skills gap; and efforts at Airgas to develop workers for manufacturing operations, including a special program for military veterans.

COVID-19 has been a major challenge for manufacturers, not only in dealing with the economic fallout but also in how to keep operating while maintaining employee safety. In this episode, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Robert Tessier, National Director of Advanced Fabrication Technologies for Airgas, about how companies can become more resilient and competitive during the COVID-19 pandemic; how they can enforce social distancing and use PPE to protect the health of employees, and with COVID-19 creating furloughs and reduction in force layoffs, consider how to recruit talent that fits their long-term needs.

The response of the 3D printing community to the specific shortages during the Covid-19 pandemic has helped to quickly raise the level of awareness of 3D printing and created a lot of buzz, but the realistic, scalable response has been somewhat different than what has been in the headlines. Matt Koons/Director of Business Development for Forecast 3D discusses this in this podcast, hosted by Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering Magazine.

Russell Waddell, managing director at the MTConnect Institute, dives into why so many standards exist, what manufacturers can gain from a digital factory project, and how they can cut through the hype—to at least achieve shop floor monitoring. MTConnect, a standard with more than 10 years of history, frees up manufacturers to focus on value-add functions instead of normalizing data. And it has been installed on more than 50,000 devices worldwide. Today, the use case is not just what happened or what is happening "what is going to happen: looking at … anything that is forward-looking and anticipating what will happen next." Perhaps most important, embracing standards allows for quick and easy integration of all types and brands of equipment.

Finishing operations have traditionally been manual, but automation and robotics are making major inroads in this key manufacturing process. In this podcast, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine talks with Normand Stoycheff, Business Development Manager for AV&R, and Giovanni Bevilacqua, Business Development Manager also with AV&R about emerging trends in automation/robotics; the main reasons allowing robotics to evolve from traditional pick-and-drop usage to more elaborate processes; how robots help the surface finishing process throughout the industry; and how surface finishing operations are developing the capability to inspect and repair.

Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering Magazine discusses with Tom Jones, Principal Solutions Architect at Amazon Web Services on how manufacturers can work more efficiently and speed time to market with cloud based digital services.

Manufacturers and businesses around the globe are facing an entirely new environment for operating and selling due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. But it's not just global pandemics than can test an organization's ability to succeed. Associate Editor Chris Mahar speaks with Ankit Shah, Senior Manager, Product Marketing at Quick Base, about how low-code platforms can help businesses become more flexible and adapt quicker to market and operational changes. Building operational agility that can enable them to flourish in difficult times and markets.

Craig Zoberis and Davin Erickson detail how Fusion OEM discovered and implemented collaborative robots, or cobots. The company is now investing in future expert machinists by using cobots—and making headway in closing the manufacturing industry skills gap. They explain the phases of training for cobots, as well as how cobots "talk" with other machines—and how machines perform "handshakes" (and are therefore envied by humans who today are struggling with social distancing).

Auto collisions have long been a fact of life but taking care of the damage has become a more complicated task for auto body shops in recent years. In this episode, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Shawn Moody, owner of Moody's Collision Shops, based in Gorham, Maine, about how automotive products have evolved over the past four decades; how abrasive products have evolved during that same time; what are the costs and benefits of using higher-end abrasives; and the types of new equipment body shops need to purchase to keep up with new technology.

Diego Tamburini, principal industry lead for manufacturing in the cloud + AI division of Microsoft, reviews the impact of the COVID-19 crisis in manufacturing. He shares his thoughts about how the industry should respond—and lists the attributes of manufacturers best positioned to survive the crisis. Finally, he outlines new opportunities for developers of smart manufacturing software solutions under the "new normal."

With the general trend towards offering a number of products as a service, this podcast discusses the idea of Manufacturing-as-a-Service with Greg Paulsen/Director of Application Engineering for Xometry, hosted by Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering Magazine.

New vibro-acoustic technologies are creating new opportunities, particularly in space engineering. In this podcast, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering Magazine, talks with Bryce Gardner, Lead Acoustic Scientist—Vibro-Acoustics, and Ignatius Vaz, Senior Technical Development Manager, both with ESI Group, about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the vibro-acoustic engineering industry; how the space industry, including rocket launching, is using vibro-acoustics; how vibro-acoustics is changing with modern analysis software and testing procedures; and how new ray tracing technology is contributing to launch-pad acoustic calculations. Click here for more information!

Deburring can sometimes be overlooked in production planning, but it is a critical part of forming and fabricating processes. In this podcast, part one of two, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Dr. LaRoux Gillespie, a researcher, engineer, manager, consultant, and writer with an extensive knowledge base on deburring and finishing gained from decades of both hands-on manufacturing and academic work. Dr. Gillespie is also a past president of SME. In this episode, the discussion focuses on key issues that create burrs in casting/forging/ molding, blanking and bending operations, and the basics of deburring in three key areas: burr properties, acceptable deburring, and cost effective deburring.

Because it is a production cost, reducing the need for deburring can help the bottom line. In this podcast, part two of two, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Dr. LaRoux Gillespie, a researcher, engineer, manager, consultant, and writer with an extensive knowledge base on deburring and finishing. In this episode, the discussion focuses on ways to reduce deburring costs in forming and fabrication operations, such as improving product design; preventing burrs; minimizing burr properties; and removing burrs during the main fab process. Also discussed are how shops can determine if deburring or edge finishing is needed, and how they can choose among the 124 different deburring processes.

Eric Kam, Product Marketing and Community Manager for ESI Group will discuss the various flavors of digital reality available today. Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Mixed Reality are all discussed. But aside from games, dealership showrooms, and operator training which seem to be the bulk of applications discussed by the world as a whole, which technology is right for you? This podcast will help to define each of these technologies, compare and contrast, and learn which aspects of your organization's goals can be addressed by the technology.

William Crane, CEO of IndustryStar, an on-demand supply chain services and software technology company, dives into what manufacturers concerned about supply chain risk can do to worry less. In his estimation, "on-demand supply chain risk management resources have really been taking off." It is possible, he said, to build a "supply chain competitive advantage." Heard of agile supply chain? If not, he explains it.

Marty Edwards, vice president for operational technology security at Tenable, discusses how chief information security officers (CISOs) are integrating and converging across all aspects of security, including people, process and technology. The goal: get an enterprise-wide assessment of cyber exposure and overall risk.

Combining beautiful beaches with a disciplined, ready-made workforce, this podcast looks at the advantages of manufacturing in Okaloosa County, Florida. To discuss why a move to the Florida Panhandle might make sense, Bruce Morey senior technical editor for Manufacturing Engineering magazine is joined by Nathan Sparks, executive director of the Okaloosa County EDC.

A whole new layer of insight can be harvested inside factories with the data you already have, today. Companies are sometimes holding back from leveraging sensors and tools like AI and deep data analysis that would allow for it because of cultural gaps between, for example, IT and OT. Ownership issues can also be a problem if some are, say, building devices vs operating devices. Paul Boris, EVP at Praemo fights against using red herrings like security concerns inside the same factory to continue down the same old paths that limit performance. He understands how seductive risk avoidance can be. And he speaks frankly about this and other issues with Brett Brune, editor in chief of Smart Manufacturing magazine.

When it comes to machining, for as many opportunities as there are for amazing things to happen – there are just as many things that can go wrong. Dave O'Neil, vice president, SME Media, sits down with Don Davies, vice president, DP Technology Corp., the developer of Esprit CAM/CAD software to talk about how advancing technology is helping solve manufacturing challenges. Modern CAD/CAM systems are helping manufacturers increase productivity, cut waste, avoid disasters and boost profitability.

The manufacturing industry is on the precipice of a great remake where companies are accelerating from being merely producers of goods to producers of customer experiences. Digital processes has become a critical source of growth and a powerful way to increase brand equity whether its industrial, consumer packaged goods or anything in between. One way they are increasing effectiveness is leveraging consumer analytics, marketing automation and customer relationship management (CRM) systems. To discuss these trends and how best to take advantage of them, Bruce Morey senior technical editor for Manufacturing Engineering magazine is joined by Rishabh Dayal, Head of Digital Strategy, Enterprise and Claudia de Lavalle Digital Strategy Consultant, both of Adobe.

Aerospace is thought of as the industry with some of the most advanced technology, including automation. However, especially in automation, that may not be exactly true. In this podcast, Bruce Morey senior technical editor for Manufacturing Engineering magazine talks with Rick Schulz of FANUC America about some of the challenges and misperceptions in using automation more fully in aerospace manufacturing. Mistakes to be avoided, such as simply replacing humans with a robot, and how to use collaborative robots. The main message is that employing automation to its fullest requires a systematic approach to the entire manufacturing process.

As manufacturers work to keep critical operations humming along during the COVID-19 crisis, they're tasked with protecting workers health while ensuring business continuity and operational readiness. Russ Fadel, CEO at Augmentir, talks with Chris Mahar, Associate Editor, about how connected worker technology can benefit operations during today's pandemic and when things return to normal. Enabling manufacturers to maintain their critical operations even when key workers and vendors are unable to be on-site at a facility. *During the COVID-19 crisis, Augmentir is offering their Remote Assist tool free through the end of 2020.

April is National Welding Month and exciting things are happening within the industry. In this podcast, Chris Mahar, Associate Editor of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Monica Pfarr, Executive Director of the American Welding Society Foundation about what's happening in the industry and what AWS is doing to celebrate. From the industry as a whole to the current market temperature and the workforce, this podcast is a welding one-stop-shop.

Like many disciplines, metrology has taken giant steps in recent years as new technology creates new measurement technology that is faster, more accurate and easier to perform than ever before. In this episode, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Michael Wilm, business manager of calibration products for Renishaw Inc., about the emerging trends that are creating metrology challenges in the machine tool and motion control industry; the benefits of using six-degrees-of-freedom technology over single-degree-of-freedom measurement devices; and the labor-saving benefits of this technology for manufacturers and for their employees.

The trade war and disruption from the coronavirus are spurring companies to rethink their global supply chains, manufacturing processes, factory design, automation and workforce needs. In this episode, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Rosemary Coates, Executive Director of the Reshoring Institute, about how the trade war and COVID-19 have affected manufacturers worldwide, why it has more companies considering returning their manufacturing to the U.S., the hurdles and issues to leaving China, and what decision-makers should be thinking about when planning for manufacturing in the future. Click here for more information!

The manufacturing industry has always been interchangeable with producing customer goods. But, increasingly it is an industry that must transform itself to become a producer of customer experiences. Whether industrial, consumer packaged goods, or anything in between, manufacturers have begun investing in customer experience, or CX for shorthand. To discuss this new, emerging trend in this podcast, Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering Magazine is joined by Rishabh Dayal, Head of Digital Strategy, Enterprise for Adobe and Claudia de Lavalle, Digital Strategy Consultant for Adobe.

In this podcast discussion with Rick Schultz of FANUC America and Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering Magazine, current practices in aerospace machining is dissected. Many shops today stick with the tried and true to reduce risk to schedule and profit, but that tried and true is stuck in the 1980s and 1990s. Rick discusses practical ways to get the most out of 21st century machining technology, by programming for the part and not the machine.

Additive manufacturing has made an outsized impact on aerospace manufacturing in a short amount of time. In this episode, Alan Rooks, Editor in Chief of Manufacturing Engineering, talks with Sean Henson, Global Product Manager, Composites & Additive Manufacturing for Ascent Aerospace, about the growing role of additive in the industry; the investments Ascent has made in AM in recent years; the kinds of tooling Ascent provides customers through its large-scale LSAM printer, and design considerations for manufacturers when they use large-format AM.

Mark Kirby, Registered Professional Engineer and Additive Manufacturing Business Manager for Renishaw Canada and Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for Manufacturing Engineering Magazine discuss the pluses and minuses of the still-emerging 3D printing technology that is sweeping the business press. We will take a look at common misconceptions and what, in our opinion, could be things to watch out for if any of our listeners are thinking about adopting 3D printing for their applications.

Smart Manufacturing magazine Contributing Editor Karen Haywood Queen speaks with Sridhar Tayur about what supply chain players are learning from COVID-19. The Carnegie Mellon professor covers the roles AM and cobots are playing. He also looks at what manufacturers should consider doing to be prepared for the next hugely disruptive event.

The use of automation is growing rapidly in aerospace manufacturing and many companies are looking for help navigating this new reality. In this episode, Alan Rooks, editor in chief of Manufacturing Engineering magazine, talks with Randy Woolridge, global product manager, automation & integration for Ascent Aerospace, about the services Ascent provides customers in aerospace manufacturing and integration; the investments Ascent has made in manufacturing and assembly technology over the last few years; and the growth in the aerospace manufacturing industry and Ascent's vision to keep pace with the industry.

One of the key challenges in aerospace manufacturing is how to measure and inspect the complex and demanding parts used in aerospace applications. In this episode, Alan Rooks, editor in chief of Manufacturing Engineering, talks with Mark O'Connell, applications engineer for ZEISS Industrial Quality Solutions, about the challenges aerospace components like airfoils pose for industrial metrology; how to integrate measurement and inspection into aerospace production lines; and how this type of equipment differs from solutions available 5-10 years ago.

Composites are increasingly becoming a key feature of the aerospace market. In this episode, Chris Mahar, Associate Editor, talks with Doug Decker, aerospace consultant and retired technical fellow at Northrup Grumman – winner of the 2019 J.H. "Jud" Hall Composites Manufacturing Award. Decker shares his insights about composites within the aerospace market and a bit of history on how he got to where he is today. Click here to make a nomination for the J.H. "Jud" Hall Composites Manufacturing Award for 2021

Pivot International CEO Mark Dohnalek talks with Smart Manufacturing magazine's Brett Brune about not only Industry 4.0 but also how manufacturers are breathing a sigh of relief because of the China Trade Deal First Phase, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and the arrival of Brexit. Dohnalek also details how Pivot has successfully alleviated trade tensions operationally.

When it comes to manufacturing – especially machining – the toolroom is the heart of an operation. The critical tool management, cleaning, assembly, presetting and delivery that comes out of the toolroom is what keeps manufacturing life pumping out on the shop floor. Chris Mahar, Associate Editor, talks with Jeff Schemel, North American Sales Manager at Rego-Fix, about how automating their toolroom can benefit manufacturers. As technologies advance, automated toolrooms are enabling manufacturers to perform better in today's competitive environment.

Alan Rooks and Brett Brune, editors in chief of Manufacturing Engineering and Smart Manufacturing, respectively, preview some of the actionable information readers can find in the February issues.

Terry Wohlers, a renowned expert on additive manufacturing, and Bruce Morey, Senior Technical Editor for SME's Manufacturing Engineering Magazine, discuss the present and future of AM in the medical and dental fields. Applications are discussed and skepticism addressed as the industry anticipates RAPID + TCT in Anaheim April 20-23 and the Additive Manufacturing for Medical Yearbook SME will publish in April.

When it comes to making something move, whether it be a robot arm, machine head, assembly line or more, you need to get the power from where it is generated to where the movement happens – enter gearboxes. Mike Quaas, President of DieQua, sits down with Chris Mahar, Associate Editor, to talk about the world of automation and how gearboxes are critical to its deployment. Gearboxes have been around for hundreds or years, but today's engineers have more choices than ever in how to utilize their power.

SME Interviewed Reid Coe, President of COE Press Equipment at FABTECH in November 2019. This podcast explores Advanced High Strength Steels and the impact on Coil Processing Equipment. Advanced High Strength Steels are certainly making an impact in the auto industry, and we learn about the challenges they pose to processing equipment. The podcast covers the purpose of coil feed equipment in the pressroom, why advanced strength steels are more difficult to handle, and some of the design changes that COE implemented to process AHSS?

SME interviewed onsite at FABTECH Shawn Miely, Senior Marketing Manager for Pro Segment of MakerBot. Founded in 2009, MakerBot was one of the first companies to make 3D printing accessible and affordable with its first 3D printer, the Cupcake CNC. This podcast features a discussion about the new MakerBot Method X in general, new materials available, and additive manufacturing for professionals.

As manufacturers continue to see demand for tighter tolerances and less waste, new solutions are needed to solve challenges. Dave O'Neil, Vice President of SME Media, sits down with Patrick Cratty, Assistant Product Manager and Richard Bevers, Southern District Manager for BIG Kaiser Precision Tooling, to talk about new technology and products. Hitting upon how digital technology and advanced workholding designs are improving machining and eliminating persistent manufacturing issues.

SME interviewed at FABTECH Greg Morehouse. He is the Executive Vice President for operations, Acieta, a leading RIA certified and FANUC Authorized System Integrator. This podcast describes how Acieta defines custom automation and how one should approach the task of engaging an integrator like Acieta in procuring an automation system, whether your shop has three people or 300.

When it comes to making decisions for manufacturing, you don't know what you don't know. But solutions exist for changing this. Chris Mahar, Associate Editor for Manufacturing Engineering, talks with Egbert Schröer, Principal Program Manager Azure Industrial IoT & AI at Microsoft, to talk about artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things. Technologies that are enabling manufacturers to improve their business and manufacturing operations by uncovering the unknown. Click here for more information!

Today, an iPhone has more than 100,000 times the processing power of the computer that took Neil Armstrong to the moon in Apollo 11 – and the size and capabilities of today's computer boards are making an even more monumental change in how we manufacture. All this technology gives manufacturers the capability to operate, as stated in The Six Million Dollar Man, "better, stronger, faster." Christoph Berlin, Partner Program Manager at Microsoft sat down with Associate Editor Chris Mahar to talk about smart manufacturing and Microsoft's Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) vision. Click here for more information!