Blogs
The Lead
Networks of Responsibility: The Philadelphia Building Collapse
June 12, 2013 | by Karl Stephan, Consulting Engineer, Texas State University, San Marcos | Comments
While demolition operations fall under the purview of the City of Philadelphia’s building inspectors, and a permit was required to begin the demolition, no inspections were carried out during the demolition itself. If a city inspector had happened by on Sunday, June 2, he might have seen what a passerby videoed that afternoon and subsequently posted on YouTube.
Should Preemptive Legislation be Considered Before a New Tech Takes Off?
June 12, 2013 12:34 pm | by Chris Warner, Executive Editor, ECN | Comments
Lately it seems that every time I scroll through the news that lands in my inbox, and read a...
Why Own Expensive Equipment When You Can Lease It?
June 11, 2013 10:16 am | by Chris Fox, Associate Editor, PD&D | Comments
The idea is that owning something as expensive as a jet engine is not only costly, but risky. An...
Yes, Manufacturing is Back in the U.S.
June 7, 2013 3:24 pm | by Harry Moser | Comments
David Mantey recently published the article “Is It Possible to Bring Manufacturing Back to the U...
'Saving' the Next Generation of Manufacturing Workers
June 14, 2013 4:11 pm | by Joel Hans, Managing Editor, Manufacturing.net | CommentsWhen it comes to the monumental task of training another generation of manufacturing employees, armed with the high-tech skills that the technology-heavy processes of the future will require, it’s easy to come down hard on the educational system.
Equipment Financing Means Flexible Solutions for Unique Business Needs
June 14, 2013 3:55 pm | by William G. Sutton, CAE President and CEO, Equipment Leasing and Finance Association | CommentsEconomic times are challenging many businesses today, and the current economic environment poses even greater difficulties for entrepreneurial startups and small businesses that are struggling to get established, grow or just stay in business.
DIY Hot-Air Iron
June 5, 2013 5:19 pm | by M. Simon, Technical Contributor | CommentsA while back, I wrote a column on fine-pitch soldering. Several commenters noted that a hot-air soldering iron was the hand tool of choice when it came to fine pitch soldering by hand. So I decided to look up the tools and found that they were out of my price range. I still wanted one.
Should Robot Soldiers Kill—Or Be Killed?
June 3, 2013 3:37 pm | by Karl Stephan, Consulting Engineer, Texas State University, San Marcos | CommentsIf good engineering practices are used, I would expect all lethal autonomous robots to have some sort of nearly fail-safe “pull-the-plug” command. But the whole point of LARs is to have them work so fast and well that human intervention isn’t needed.
Drones: The New Cold War
June 3, 2013 9:54 am | by Chris Fox, Associate Editor, PD&D | CommentsOne of the most hotly debated topics in politics has a direct vein into the engineering community, drones (the hottest debated topic, unless of course you’re talking about 3D printed guns). As recently reported by NBC News, a company known as Denel Dynamics, out of Pretoria, South Africa, is preparing to test armed drones, which it intends to sell to governments around the world.
The Everyday Usefulness of SIPOC
May 31, 2013 8:52 am | by Alan Nicol, Executive Member, AlanNicolSolutions | CommentsThe S.I.P.O.C. is a tool many of us know for designing or fixing processes or process steps. Consider how else it can be used for common dilemmas, particularly for determining roles and responsibilities.
STEM Learning vs. Pseudo Science
May 28, 2013 5:31 pm | by Mike Collins, Author, Saving American Manufacturing | CommentsThere is a continuous barrage of editorials, TV commentators and published stories that denounce the current education system as declining and inferior to other countries. In general the blame is directed at students, teachers, school administrators, and their curriculums. Everyone seems to be searching for the magic key that will unlock the performance of kids and knock down the barriers to a good education.
The Everyday Usefulness of the Problem Statement
May 24, 2013 2:59 pm | by Alan Nicol, Executive Member, AlanNicolSolutions | CommentsOur process improvement tools are useful to us in many ways every day, not just for improvement events. Examine this example concerning problem statements.
Fire Human Resources
May 23, 2013 4:57 pm | by M. Simon, Technical Contributor | CommentsManagement Consultant Dave Logan at CBS Moneywatch is warning companies to avoid falling in love with company policy. He talks about a company that wanted to hire a very disruptive genius. But HR said it wasn't possible because they had no job description for the function envisioned.
Manufacturing Gangnam Style
May 22, 2013 9:05 am | by Stacey Wagner, Manager, Workforce Systems Development, NIST MEP | CommentsRethink Robotics, the firm that designed and manufactured Baxter the famous industrial robot, has met its match. Robotis’ Bioloid, an educational DIY robotics set, has developed a new, hipper cousin to Baxter that dances – Gangnam Style.
CI Tools Aren’t Just for CI Events; They’re for Everyday
May 20, 2013 5:40 pm | by Alan Nicol, Executive Member, AlanNicolSolutions | CommentsI write a great deal about the difference between Lean and Six Sigma and Kaizen on the production floor and in the office. We learn a great many continuous improvement tools in training, then we forget them because we aren’t CI experts. Don’t! Use them anytime.
The Future of Google Glass
May 17, 2013 1:18 pm | by Kasey Panetta, Managing Editor ECN | CommentsThere has been a lot of talk about Google Glass lately, mostly due to the prototype debut, but one interesting aspect of that public viewing is that developers –outside of GoogleLand—can take a crack at coming up with interesting uses for the technology. By allowing new voices into the conversation, the world is seeing even more possibilities for Google Glass.
Printing Guns
May 17, 2013 9:26 am | by Karl Stephan, Consulting Engineer, Texas State University, San Marcos | CommentsSomebody was going to do it sooner or later. And we have Cody Wilson, a law student at the University of Texas at Austin, to thank for the fact that, when it was finally done for the first time, the news media learned about it right away. All the same, now that somebody has used a 3-D printer to make a functional gun, we face a whole array of questions that up till now were hypothetical ones.
Root Cause Failure Analysis: A Tool for Reducing Costs & Increasing Customer Satisfaction
May 14, 2013 3:54 pm | by Joseph Berk, Principal Engineering Faculty, Eogogics Inc | CommentsRoot cause failure analysis is a technology for objectively identifying all potential failure causes, and then objectively and systematically identifying the likelihood of each potential cause. This article describes how root cause failure analysis identified and eliminated recurring Apache main rotor blade rejections.
Much Ado About Nothing: The Impact of the Medical Device Excise Tax
May 14, 2013 2:19 pm | by EMichael Lewis, Writer, Money Crashers Personal Finance | CommentsCritics of the new 2.3% medical device excise tax are hitting new heights with their claims of dire consequences. What are the facts? Is the industry overreacting? Students of military strategy learn quickly the advantages of choosing when and where to fight, rather than wasting resources on trivial issues.
