All Features
Anne Trafton
(MIT: Cambridge, MA) -- A classic way to image nanoscale structures in cells is with expensive high-powered, super-resolution microscopes. As an alternative, MIT researchers have developed a way to expand tissue before imaging it—a technique that allows them to achieve nanoscale resolution with a…
Michael Mills
You’ve finally gotten ISO 9001 certification. Congratulations! You’ve built your quality management system, written your procedures, trained your staff, sweated through internal and external audits, and your registrar sent you a certificate suitable for framing. Now, at long last, all of your…
David L. Chandler
Industrial electrochemical processes that use electrodes to produce fuels and chemical products are hampered by the formation of bubbles that block parts of the electrode surface, reducing the area available for the active reaction. Such blockage reduces the performance of the electrodes by…
Scott Crow
W ithin the utility industry, regional entities increasingly focus on internal controls as a measuring stick for overall compliance performance.
Developing and executing rock-solid internal controls with an automated compliance management software solution can help maintain compliance, not only…
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
(ORNL: Oak Ridge, TN) -- Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory were recently honored with the prestigious ACE Award for Composites Excellence by the American Composites Manufacturers Association. The team won the “innovation in green composites design” prize…
Rob Moorey
Biomedical equipment technicians (BMETs) are facing increased workloads and staffing shortages that are expected to get worse as the current workforce retires.
About one-third of healthcare technology management (HTM) professionals are older than 55, putting pressure on health systems to attract…
ISO
Modern-day security breaches, such as the SolarWinds or T-Mobile attacks, aren’t one-off events; they are prime examples of how someone can steal your organization’s credentials and use them to gain illegitimate privileged access to sensitive assets. Data breaches happen daily, and in too many…
Quality Digest
(Sandvik Coromant: Sandviken, Sweden) -- Sandvik Coromant, a leader in cutting tools and tooling systems, recently launched CoroCut 2 with -RF geometry, designed for secure and high-precision profiling. Additionally, the company introduced grade GC1205 for parting and grooving operations in aged…
Quality Digest
(Nordson: East Providence, RI) -- Nordson EFD, a Nordson Corp. company, has announced that its new-to-market PICO Nexμs jetting system has been recognized by Machine Design magazine with a 2024 Edge Award in the Automation & IIoT category.
Designed for smart factory readiness, PICO Nexμs…
Scott Ginsberg
Despite the industry’s push toward digital transformation, 95% of manufacturers use paper-based documentation, according to Forbes. But modernization doesn’t have to be overwhelming for manufacturing teams.
When implemented strategically, digital documentation can improve processes, enhance…
Harish Jose
In this article, I’m looking at Weber’s Law. It’s named after Ernst Heinrich Weber (1795–1878), a German physician who was one of the pioneers of experimental psychology. I highly recommend the Numberphile YouTube video that explains this in detail.
A simple explanation of Weber’s Law is that we…
Quality Digest
(GFT: New York) -- Manufacturers are in the midst of one of the most significant transformations of their time, defined in large part by new AI-powered efficiencies. But for many companies, decades of siloed data stand between them and this new reality.
GFT has been working with Google Cloud since…
Quality Digest
(Nikon Metrology NV: Brighton, MI)—Nikon Metrology NV, a subsidiary of Nikon Corp., announces the launch of Scatter Correction CT, a software solution designed to address the challenges posed by X-ray scatter artifacts in industrial computed tomography (CT) scanning. By employing advanced physics-…
Gleb Tsipursky
Despite the clear benefits of hybrid work models, a significant number of managers still push for their teams to be back in the office. A KPMG report of responses from 100 CEOs of large companies shows that more than a third expect to have all corporate workers back to the office full time by 2027…
Bruce Hamilton
Not long ago, I accompanied two of the Greater Boston Manufacturing Partnership’s consultants, Bob Elliott and Peter Melnik, to a Shingo Systems Design workshop at Osram, a terrific host site in Hillsboro, New Hampshire. Bob and Peter did all the work. My job, in the spirit of continuous…
Quality Digest
(Digital Twin Consortium: Boston) -- Digital Twin Consortium (DTC) has announced revised definitions for digital twin and digital thread, aligning these concepts more closely with core digital engineering principles. These refined definitions underscore the central role of digital twins and digital…
NIST
(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- The Baldrige Executive Fellows Program is a one-year, nationally ranked leadership development experience for direct reports to the most senior leader in the organization or business unit leaders.
The program prepares this elite group of rising senior executives for…
Quality Digest
(3D Scanners UK: Barford, England) -- 3D Scanners UK, the master distributer of PolyWorks software in the U.K. and Ireland, has expanded its services to include geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T) training. In line with its dedication to supporting the manufacturing and engineering…
Quality Digest
(Ansys: Canonsburg, PA) -- Faraday Technology Corp., a leading company in the semiconductor industry, is expanding its use of Ansys technology to enhance its capabilities in developing advanced designs for multi-die 2.5D/3D-ICs—critical for artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT),…
Donald J. Wheeler
All improvement efforts require a framework. No matter what we’re doing, we all need some way to align our efforts and focus on a specific objective. During my 50 years in this business, I’ve seen people use many different improvement frameworks. Most of these have been variations on either PDSA (…
Steve Ilmrud
As we approach 2025, one of the most pressing challenges manufacturers face is a growing labor shortage. Research anticipates that 1.9 million jobs will go unfilled during the next decade. This issue, compounded by the retirement of experienced workers and the lack of interest from younger…
Mike Figliuolo
This ain’t your daddy’s or mommy’s business world anymore. I’m sure you’ve figured that out already. First of all, people use cell phones. I keep reminding my father.
“Dad, turn on your cell phone when you’re not home.”
“Why? Then it will ring. I’m retired, and I don’t want to be bothered by…
Quality Digest
(ETQ: Burlington, MA) -- ETQ, part of Hexagon, has launched its Reliance Predictive Quality Analytics solution, bringing a new level of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven analytics to its quality management system (QMS). The solution enables automated early detection and proactive resolution to…
William A. Levinson
The Associated Press, reporting on the strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association, noted, “Local ILA president Boise Butler said workers want a fair contract that doesn’t allow automation of their jobs.” The report added, “The union had message boards on the side of a truck reading, ‘…
Roman Davydov
More and more companies in the manufacturing industry admit that providing great customer experience is vital to their business success. 41% of respondents to the “2024 State of Manufacturing Report” by Fictiv consider enhancing customer experience (CX) one of their top three priorities for this…
