Rachael Pasini

As the aerospace and defense industries continue to push toward higher temperatures, lower weights, and more demanding mission profiles, more composite materials are emerging to advance thermal and structural design, enabling technologies that were previously not feasible with metal-based systems alone. In this article, we cover different types of composites commonly used and selection considerations…

Extensive cooling systems drive much of the growing energy demand of data centers, as high-density computer equipment — including servers, networking gear, and storage systems — generates enormous amounts of heat as a byproduct of electrical consumption. Jeff Hemphill, CTO of Schaeffler Americas, noted that one of the most critical challenges of our time is…

The machine tool industry faces the same challenges as other industries: skilled labor shortages, rising cost pressures, and geopolitical shifts. Traditional customer groups such as automotive manufacturers and suppliers are undergoing restructuring and reducing their investments, while other export-oriented sectors are postponing investments due to tariff disputes and potential trade restrictions. For suppliers such as…

Laser micromachining is a non-contact thermal material-removal process that uses focused laser beams to ablate, cut, drill, or mark materials at the microscale with extreme precision. The process is widely used in semiconductor manufacturing, electronics assembly, and medical device fabrication for applications including wafer dicing, via drilling in advanced packaging, and precision cutting of thin…

In a conventional axial piston pump, each piston has a slipper to maintain sliding contact with the swash plate. This slipper, also called a shoe, helps support the load from the piston, creates a high-pressure seal to prevent leakage, and lubricates the sliding surface. Although critical to the pump’s operation, the slipper experiences wear, cavitation…

Material selection is of utmost importance not only for product viability and performance, but also for long-term impacts that can create new problems later. Our global plastic usage has been causing significant issues in our water supplies for decades, yet the problem, or at least its severity, is still not common knowledge, nor is there…

Each year, Design World editors reflect back on the content you read the most. Supply chains, AI-enabled automation, electrification, and motors were top of mind for many readers this round. Here’s a list of 10 of the most-read articles in 2025, in the order they were published. If you haven’t already, treat yourself to the Engineer’s…

Marine environments expose components, such as encoders, to saltwater, temperature fluctuations, pressure variations, and corrosive conditions that rapidly degrade standard optical and capacitive sensing systems. These harsh operating conditions require specialized materials and sealed construction to ensure reliable angular position feedback in ship propulsion systems, offshore platform equipment, and subsea robotics, where encoder failure can…

Since 1990, GAM Enterprises (GAM) has provided precision mechanical components, including high-precision gear reducers, couplings, and engineered motion solutions serving automation, robotics, aerospace, medical, and semiconductor OEMs. The company has evolved to a full-scale manufacturer with deep engineering expertise, application-specific customization, and favorable lead times. GAM’s products are mission-critical components embedded in OEM equipment, forming…

Accessibility is key as AI continues to transform manufacturing. By embedding AI steadily and responsibly into workflows using the crawl, walk, run, fly framework, businesses can deploy analytical AI tools swiftly and agilely. Rahul Garg • VP for Industrial Machinery Vertical Software Strategy | Siemens Digital Industries Software The AI revolution is here and accelerating.…

HarmonEyes H-SMART eye tracking technology measures and predicts cognitive load and fatigue to prevent safety risks during space missions. Astronauts face significant cognitive load challenges due to a combination of numerous psychological and environmental factors. Their environment includes altered gravity, radiation exposure, isolation and confinement, sleep loss, circadian rhythm disturbance, high operational workload, and communication…

For more than two decades, supersonic commercial aviation has remained grounded. The Concorde, which entered service in 1976 and retired in 2003, proved that supersonic passenger flight was technically feasible, but it also revealed obstacles that have prevented its return. The aircraft could cruise at Mach 2 and reduce transatlantic flight times from seven to…

Jeff Zacherl, industrial vertical market lead for Pharmaceutical and Life Science at Siemens, shines a light on the interdependence between sustainability and digitalization in modern pharmaceutical manufacturing. Sustainability has become a strong driver of business value as pharmaceutical companies scale and localize operations and strive to decarbonize production. Beyond environmental impact, forward-looking manufacturers find that…

As artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, quantum computing, and edge workloads grow in complexity, traditional silicon-based architectures may be hitting physical and architectural limits. Rising energy costs, slower data transfer, and fragmented chiplet packaging are constraining progress across industries. CDimension aims to solve these challenges, starting with new materials and progressing toward a monolithic 3D architecture…

With global plastic production soaring to almost 450 million tonnes annually, slight variations in polymer quality can quickly cascade, leading to scrap, downtime, or even recalls. Stephanie Williams, senior product specialist at Instron, states that melt flow testing (MFT), a precise “flow speed” test, helps ensure consistency and efficiency in polymer processing for medical device…

Hydrogen has long been seen as a promising, sustainable, renewable energy source. However, the technical complexity of liquid hydrogen refueling challenges infrastructure designers seeking to match the operational speed and reliability of diesel systems. Bosch Rexroth’s CryoPump stations, unveiled at Hannover Messe 2025, introduce an electro-hydraulic solution that addresses these constraints by departing from conventional…

The winners of the 2025 LEAP Awards (Leadership in Engineering Achievement Program) were announced this week across several categories. Here are the winners in the Computer Hardware and Software category. Gold Advantech UNO-2271 V3 The judges commented: “The size of this unit alone is amazing with a non-fan-cooled component cabinet. Very well done; it is…

The annual LEAP Awards recognizes and celebrates innovative products and technologies in engineering. Here are the 2025 LEAP Awards Winners in the Advanced Materials category. Gold SiTime MEMS-based precision timing technology The judges commented: “Great alternative to the traditional quartz timing systems. Good work! Surely a great advancement in the field, with very wide application…

Design World is thrilled to announce the 2025 LEAP Awards winners! LEAP stands for Leadership in Engineering Achievement Program and celebrates innovative engineering achievements in product and component design. Winners were unveiled in an online broadcast, which you can view on demand here: 2025 LEAP Awards — Winners Announcement. This year, we recognized innovations across…

Though these materials require complex processes to manufacture, they have unique properties and a transformative impact on modern engineering and design. In this article, Trelleborg experts highlight how high-performance plastics solve critical challenges, the benefits they provide over alternatives such as metal, and the specialized expertise needed to unlock their full potential. In the quest…

Remote sites need modern solutions that connect easily to the cloud or SCADA systems and bring together wired and wireless signals into one secure, flexible, and scalable hub. SignalFire Wireless Telemetry recently announced the launch of the PATRIoT Gateway, a multi-protocol hub that integrates both wireless and wired devices into SCADA, cloud, and monitoring systems.…

When the Wright brothers lifted off near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, in 1903, their Flyer weighed just 750 pounds, including the pilot, engine, and fluids, and was constructed primarily from spruce and ash wood covered in muslin fabric. About a century later, aircraft such as the F-35 Lightning II started achieving supersonic speeds while operating…

Bishop-Wisecarver celebrates its 75th anniversary this year as a family-owned company delivering industrial automation solutions. The company began as a custom machine builder and screw machine shop, quickly earning a reputation for solving tough application challenges from venetian blind manufacturing to production lines for Standard Oil and Cardinale Bakery. Over the decades, the company expanded…

Design World sat down with Vikram Kolluru of Belden to discuss trends and advancements in anomaly detection technologies, specifically for material handling applications. Here’s the Q&A with actionable guidance for OEMs. At Design World, we typically focus on motion systems in various industries and share knowledge and insight from experts who are advancing technologies to…

Conflux modernizes heat exchange solutions for aerospace, defense, and automotive industries with advanced simulation and additive manufacturing. Michael Fuller spent 15 years as a design engineer in the European motorsport industry before founding a company that creates additively manufactured heat exchange technology. As he puts it, the concept for Conflux Technology was a classic case…