Manufacturing for Growth Strategies for Driving Growth and Employment

whitePaper | May 21, 2020

We are living through a historic time, when advanced technologies continually change how a manufacturer generates value. This new digital era is the “Fourth Industrial Revolution” (4IR). Companies see new technologies accelerating strategic, tech-enabled transformations. Regardless, many manufacturing companies are stuck in the proof of concept (PoC) phase or are running projects that are delivering results far from revolutionary. Add to that the COVID-19 tsunami, a crisis that changed the world in a matter of weeks. It is difficult to predict every aspect of the post-COVID-19 era, but it is already clear the world will never be the same. Even the most conservative industrial player will need to adapt to the “new normal”, with the importance of digital rapidly increasing for the entire value chain. Executives are expected to speed up digital transformation initiatives, changing the operating model forever.

whitePaper | January 2, 2023

Additive Manufacturing (AM) and Injection Molding (IM) are often perceived as competing plastic processing technologies. However, organizations must be ready to utilize and switch between different production technologies to address changing product requirements, shift production schedules based on market demands, or respond to supply chain crises. This includes making both technologies complementary, not exclusive.

whitePaper | April 13, 2021

The Manufacturing Execution System (MES) is the channel of information from the shop floor to the top floor in a manufacturing organization. An Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP) is often not enough to understand what is actually happening in the factory.

whitePaper | July 25, 2022

Manufacturers are demanding ever-greater precision, accuracy, and reliability from industrial automation. Fortunately, sensors, robot arms, grippers, and the software to connect and guide them have become increasingly capable. In response to the labor and supply chain challenges of the past few years, as well as the demands for personalization and rapid fulfillment, many factories and other facilities are looking to adopt robots or add them to their operations. In this Special Focus Issue, we look at how AI and machine learning are enabling more precise picking, among other applications.

whitePaper | July 13, 2020

There are different tracking technologies typically used in a production facility. Depending on the amount of data transmitted and the complexity of implementation each have corresponding price points. The manual manipulation of hand scanners requires time for processing and allows for error in recording. The cost of implementation is low, but systems require consistent investment of time devoted to ensuring accuracy. The cost to serialize assets for tracking is low, but the data can be damaged and capacity/flexibility for data storage is limited.

whitePaper | November 1, 2022

Many businesses are experiencing an increase in supply chain disruptions reverberating down to the customer. A rapidly growing population adding to the swell of demand, the threat of a looming recession, and complex logistics systems create an incredibly delicate balance. We are facing a pivotal time for the future of supply chains.