manufacturing technology
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Apply the “Touch It Once” Productivity Principle to Manufacturing
- June 9, 2021
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Digital Transformation, Manufacturing, Productivity
No CommentsI often hear about the “Touch It Once” principle from productivity experts. The idea is that as soon as you pick up an item — say, an email or a piece of mail — you deal with it immediately. You don’t set it down to do later, you deal with it at that moment. That
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Three Lessons Manufacturers Should Have Learned from the Pandemic
- April 28, 2021
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Management, Manufacturing
The COVID-19 pandemic certainly brought the world to a crashing halt, especially manufacturers. Companies that continued working were either considered essential manufacturers or they had pivoted and were making things like ventilators. We weren’t able to start working from home or working remotely. We had to be onsite, working in wide-open spaces, and trying to
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How Have the Challenges of Manufacturing Remained the Same Over the Years?
- February 17, 2021
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Manufacturing
Over the last several years — decades, in fact — certain aspects of manufacturing have stayed the same. I could say the attitudes about change and disruption, but that would be a bit mean. And also untrue. If you’ve paid attention to the automotive manufacturing industry, you already know the massive changes they’ve gone through
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Should Manufacturers Use Blockchain
- January 27, 2021
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Digital Transformation, Innovation, Manufacturing
You’re no doubt hearing more and more about blockchain and how it’s being used in new and different applications. For one thing, you’re probably hearing more about Bitcoin, and you may even know that it operates on the blockchain principles. But what is blockchain? Is it important? Can manufacturers use it? Should we use it?
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5 Manufacturing Predictions for 2021
- January 6, 2021
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Business, Digital Transformation, Innovation, Manufacturing
Sometimes we’re so close to the trees that we can’t see the forest. We’re so focused on this one tree, not realizing that the forest is growing and changing all around us. I feel that way when I think about all the manufacturing technology changes that have been going on around us in 2020 and
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Win Trust of Your Associates If You Want to Make Technology Changes
- October 7, 2020
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management
I recently read a story on IndustryWeek.com that has elements that should be familiar to anyone in manufacturing management. Years ago in Detroit, the author, John Sobel, and his company installed a system that used AI and machine vision to examine the tailgates for any quality problems. To spot defects, the tailgates had to be
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How Does Digital Manufacturing Help You Become Agile?
- August 19, 2020
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Manufacturing
If you’ve ever made pancakes on a Saturday morning, you probably know the first one is always the throwaway, the mistake, the burnt offering to the breakfast gods. It’s the one you either throw in the garbage, or sneak eat while everyone else is still getting ready. You burned it or undercooked it, or something
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The Value of Smart Manufacturing in 2020
- July 15, 2020
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Digital Transformation, Manufacturing
The pandemic has created unprecedented changes in the American economy for the last several months. Some companies have shut down and furloughed their employees, while other companies that manufacture food, PPE, or medical supplies are seeing skyrocketing demands for their products, and they’re fighting to keep up with the increase in orders. Other companies are
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What are the Downsides of a Digital Workplace?
- July 8, 2020
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Digital Transformation, Manufacturing
There are a lot of people who are worried about the implications of an automated and digital workplace in a manufacturing setting, but the truth is there are no real downsides. If anything, a digital workplace solves an awful lot of practical problems. The funny thing is that having a totally people-powered operation is a
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What Will Manufacturing Look Like 50 Years From Now?
- January 19, 2020
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Digital Transformation, Manufacturing
Industry Week recently asked what manufacturing will look like 50 years from now. Author Irene Patrick, senior director of the Industrial Innovation/IIoT Group, Intel, wrote about the eight driving factors that she thought manufacturers would be facing around 2070. It was an interesting prediction, and it’s a fun mental exercise to imagine the machines I
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