Many trade and technical schools in the U.S. include certification from the National Institute of Metalworking Skills (NIMS) in their training programs to uphold students to current manufacturing industry standards. To help support the initiative, Renishaw developed a gauging system package to improve the inspection of NIMS parts. Background NIMS is a non-profit organization that…
Is China’s manufacturing future in trouble?
At the recent NFPA Annual Conference, I was eager to hear Peter Ziehan, the famed geopolitical analyst, and his take on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Ziehan has been predicting this type of aggression from Putin for years, based on his country’s terrible societal demographics, which indicate a country slowly imploding. But what I came away…
EXAIR’s Family of Air Knives
EXAIR’s family of engineered Air Knives (Super Air Knife, Standard Air Knife and Full-Flow Air Knife) dramatically reduce compressed air usage and noise when compared to other blowoffs. The Super Air Knife is the most efficient way to clean, dry or cool parts, webs or conveyors. It delivers a uniform sheet of laminar airflow across…
How manufacturers can protect IoT products from cyberattacks
Cybersecurity has long been a critical focus for large enterprises. Now IoT device design engineers must take a page from the enterprise security playbook. Alan Grau, Sectigo, VP of IoT Though Internet of Things device manufacturers are heavily investing in the development of new solutions, these organizations often lack the security expertise and the technical…
Self-cleaning, maintenance-free ionizers remove static electricity
KOGANEI International America Inc. has introduced the DTY-ELF14HC multi-function, self-cleaning ionizer for easy and efficient static electricity removal. This high-performance AC (200 Hz) system provides excellent ion balance (±5 V) and steady long-term elimination of static electricity over an extensive range. The unit’s automatic cleaning function removes dirt on the discharge needle with a built-in…
Conserve compressed air for manufacturing applications
Compressed air is a limited resource that is generated in-house for the benefit of many operations within the manufacturing environment. Learn how to ensure all point of use applications are using your compressed air in the most effective and efficient way possible. If an open, unchecked water pipe was being used to cool a machining…
EXAIR’s single point ionizer for spot neutralization
EXAIR’s Gen4 Ionizing Point is a compact, single point ionizer suitable for winding, rewinding or slitting operations. It can also be mounted through a duct to neutralize static charges due to moving air or materials. The shockless Gen4 Ionizing Point delivers a high concentration of positive and negative ions for fast static decay. It can…
Impact sensors monitor for brain injury in sports and recreation helmets
Digital manufacturing leader Protolabs announced that Tozuda is its latest Cool Idea Award winner. Attached to sports helmets, the head impact sensors made by this Philadelphia-based company of the same name change color to bright red when they experience an impact potentially strong enough to cause a concussion. Protolabs’ Cool Idea Award provides in-kind manufacturing…
Linear guides for 5-Axis milling application
As components are growing smaller, developers are dreaming bigger. Reduced sizing and pricing of parts has opened the door to more innovations from engineers and inventors and is giving greater access to end-users. In 2011, recognizing the need for a compact 5-axis milling machine, Pocket NC founders Matt and Michelle Hertel started designing the Pocket…
New laser marking service for electronic enclosures
Electronic enclosures manufacturer OKW has added new laser marking technology to its wide range of customization services. Laser marking of legends and logos is waterproof, smudge-proof and durable. It is ideal for small machine-readable markings such as sequential QR codes or barcodes. Consecutive numbering can be carried out quickly, easily and cost-effectively. Using a laser…
Talking manufacturing and education with Festo Didactic’s Thomas Lichtenberger
In our latest Executive Edition series, Mary Gannon of Design World chats with Festo Didactic’s CEO Thomas Lichtenberger, about the organizations successful programs to change the manufacturing landscape in the United States. Festo Didactic provides equipment and solutions for technical education for all areas of technology in factory and process automation, such as pneumatics, hydraulics,…
CLICK Ethernet PLCs now offer PID control
PID loop control capability (up to 8 loops simultaneously) has been added to the CLICK Series of stackable, Ethernet-capable micro brick PLCs. CLICK PID control is streamlined with only the features that most users need, including direct or reverse acting control, pulse width modulated control outputs, bumpless transfer, anti-windup, auto-tuning, process variable alarms, process variable…
Tariff tango? A reminder why domestic manufacturing matters
Teschler on Topic Leland Teschler • Executive Editor [email protected] On Twitter @ DW_LeeTeschler The recent round of tariffs on $300 billion-worth of imports from China rocked markets because it will mostly target popular consumer products such as cellphones, laptops, apparel, and toys. Unfortunately, the politics of tariffs can obscure the rationale underlying tariff wars: the…
MachineMetrics — one of first to achieve AWS Industrial Software Competency
MachineMetrics Industrial IoT Platform for discrete manufacturing has achieved Amazon Web Services (AWS) Industrial Software Competency status. This designation recognizes that MachineMetrics has demonstrated technical proficiency and proven customer success building solutions for discrete manufacturing. These specialized software solutions enable companies in the discrete manufacturing space to increase the pace of product innovation while decreasing…
Mitigating defects in metal AM parts
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researchers, along with scientists at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC) have discovered a solution to a major type of defect in metal 3D-printed parts. Combining high-performance computer simulations with X-ray imaging of the laser powder bed fusion (LBPF) metal additive manufacturing (AM) process obtained with SLAC’s synchrotron, researchers have found…
Small internal mix spray nozzles — to coat, cool, treat, and paint
EXAIR’s new 1/8 NPT small internal mix spray nozzles atomize fluids up to 28 gallons per hour. Internal mix atomizing nozzles mix the liquid and air inside the cap and produce the finest atomization. Internal mix nozzles can be used on liquids with a viscosity up to 300 centipoise. Small internal mix nozzles are available…
Weintek now sells iR-ECAT EtherCAT communication coupler
EtherCAT (Ethernet for Control Automation Technology) is a high performance and very efficient Ethernet-based fieldbus system applicable for various types of devices in the industrial network systems. Thanks to these advantages, it is one of the most widely adopted industrial Ethernet technologies, and has gradually become a standard communication interface in the industrial field. Responding…
Industry 4.0 smart sensor
Leuze electronic will showcase Industry 4.0 and Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) solutions at booth 7332 in the north hall of Automate 2019, collocated with Promat 2019. Leuze electronic sensors provide the foundation for Industry 4.0/IIoT by transmitting data via OPC UA directly to the Microsoft Azure cloud. The BCL 348i bar code reader and IO-Link…
Service Bureau or Broker? How to choose the right option for your parts
If you’ve decided not to produce parts in-house, you’ll find a range of out-side contract manufacturing services for production and in just about any quantity you need. Outside services include Service Bureaus, Service Brokers, Independent Machine Shops, and High- Volume Production Houses. Each of these options offers a range of design help, manufacturing processes, capacity,…
Protolabs digital manufacturing model makes production affordable
CNC machining is a popular way to obtain prototypes and low-volume production runs. And engineers can choose from a range of providers, from full-service providers to independent shops. But the key to selecting a vendor is still how fast can they deliver parts, and do so consistently. The preferred answer is days, not weeks. At…
For want of a screw: Why U.S. manufacturing jobs matter
Leland Teschler, Executive Editor [email protected] On Twitter @ DW_LeeTeschler The N.Y. Times grabbed a lot of attention recently when it published an article about Apple’s travails trying to source a tiny screw in the U.S. for its Mac computer. According to the report Apple could get vast quantities of custom screws in China on short…
New enterprise product-line engineering solution from BigLever extends PLE to Advance Digitalization
Supplier of Product Line Engineering (PLE) tools BigLever Software now offers next-generation Enterprise Gears software. The new software delivers a web-based interface (that makes Gears fully accessible for all users) and a server API that enables seamless integration of PLE with other tools, processes, and enterprise systems. With Enterprise Gears an organization can advance and…
The most-read engineering stories of 2018
2018 was an interesting year for the engineering and manufacturing worlds, with a generally upbeat economy and good market for component manufacturers. We saw continued advancements in robotics, 3D printing, artificial intelligence, and the IoT — all things that affect how products are designed and made. Our editorial staff is always looking to bring you…
PCB design platform provides up-front verification to minimize respins
The new Xpedition printed circuit board (PCB) design platform focuses on multi-dimensional verification. Mentor tools enable engineers to integrate a broad range of easy-to-use verification tools into a PCB design platform within a singular authoring environment to identify problems at the schematic or layout phases. This new Xpedition platform for nonspecialist PCB engineers delivers accurate…
Cadence Inc. and Valley Career and Technical Center invest in future of manufacturing
Cadence Inc. recently partnered with Valley Career and Technical Center (VCTC) located in Fishersville, Va. to help get their new Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) program up and running to help train the next generation of the manufacturing workforce. Cadence donated funds that provided a UR5 collaborative robot to be used in the lab’s Robotics &…