The global manufacturing industry is in the midst of a dramatic transformation that will change warehouse and factory operations. Every stage of the manufacturing process, including end-to-end supply chain management, will soon be connected by the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), and manufacturers are turning to technology to improve handling vast amounts of crucial information.

Learn how to improve gear designs and gain new insight into concepts presented through illustrations and demonstrations. Explore all factors that go into good gear design from life cycle, load, torque, tooth optimization, and evaluating consequences. 

The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the U.S. economy grew by an annualized 3.0 percent in the third quarter, extending the 3.1 percent gain in the second quarter. This was slightly better than the predicted growth rate of 2.6 percent — a sign that even with the recent hurricanes, the U.S. economy continues to expand at a decent clip. Strength in consumer and business spending, including inventories, and net exports boosted the third-quarter data.

While countless manufacturers throughout West Michigan have lamented the lack of available talent, evidence shows the workforce constraint has finally affected the industry’s ability to grow. That’s according to Paul Isely, an economist and associate dean at Grand Valley State University’s Seidman College of Business, who notes the limited pool of talent in the region has shown up in the productivity data for manufacturing. 

Over the last 25 years, U.S.-manufactured goods have quadrupled, and in 2016 alone, manufacturers contributed $2.18 trillion to the U.S. economy. In fact, for every dollar spent in manufacturing, another $1.81 is added to the economy, which is the single largest multiplier in any industry. 

Explore gear failure analysis in this hands-on seminar where students not only see slides of failed gears but can hold and examine those same field samples close up. Experience the use of microscope and take your own contact pattern from field samples. 

The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is either here now or coming soon to every industrial plant or facility and, if implemented correctly, can improve operations in a variety of areas. The IIoT does this by turning raw data from sensors and other sources into actionable information, and by quickly delivering this information to those who can make the best use of it. 

Imagine you’re getting ready to leave on vacation. You hop in your car to gas up and a "check transmission" error message pops up. You head to the dealer, they find the problem, and the part will take five days to arrive at the shop. Now, imagine your dealer has access to a local 3-D printer and can manufacture that part on demand, taking 1-2 days instead of five. It’s a future vision that’s on its way to becoming reality.

Manufacturing at long last is enjoying a revitalization in the U.S. as companies from around the world invest in the country's operations – a key development in President Donald Trump's quest to make America great again. But presidential policies may not be the primary driver of the manufacturing shift back to the U.S. — and an industrial return isn't expected to create nearly the same number of jobs that factory floors maintained in decades past.

SMW Manufacturing is taking over operations at the former Caterpillar facility in Lafayette County, Mississippi. The company plans to invest in excess of $15 million and hire up to 50 employees, comprised of predominantly former Caterpillar employees, by the end of 2018.

With rare exceptions, American and European companies have goods made in China for one reason: because it’s cheaper. Why is it cheaper? Because labor is so much cheaper in China than in the US and Europe, and labor is a significant portion of the production cost. But over the past several years, wages have been steadily rising in China, making Chinese factories progressively less competitive on labor costs. 

AGMA has opened registration for all of the 2018 education classes including Gearbox System Design, January 23-25 in Las Vegas. Explore the supporting elements of a gearbox that allows gears and bearings to do their jobs most efficiently. Learn about seals, lubrication, lubricants, housings, breathers and other details that go into designing gearbox systems.

Just as global miners recover from an extended downturn and anemic metal prices, the industry faces a fresh challenge: higher costs. Mining companies, including Newmont Mining Corp, Teck Resources and Barrick Gold Corp, reported increased costs this week in their quarterly earnings, lifted by factors including supplier inflation, firmer currencies and renewed exploration and development spending.

Fabrisonic, now 6 years old, moves to develop new processes, material. Fabrisonic LLC wants to move from startup to established company. The company, established in October 2011, had its own twist on 3D printing. Fabrisonic utilizes a process it calls Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing (UAM). That refers to using ultrasound waves to weld layers of metal foil.

Allied Machine & Engineering Corp. (AMEC: Dover, OH) has launched a new content-rich website with access to its newly introduced Wohlhaupter Tool-Architect tool drawing software. Tool-Architect is a configurator for modular system tools that allows customers to virtually build customized tools online using Wohlhaupter parts, now part of Allied’s solutions for holemaking and finishing. Tool-Architect streamlines the entire process of designing, quoting, manufacturing and shipping custom modular system tools.

Harcliff Mining Services has invested in one of the largest Hӧfler Klingelnberg gear-grinder machines in Africa. Harcliff Mining Services is a specialist engineering and manufacturing company servicing the mining and minerals sector and other heavy industries. The focus of the company is design, engineering, manufacture, spare parts, maintenance and refurbishment of new and existing equipment. It offers grinding mills and components, scrubbers, open gearing, kiln and drier components, industrial gearbox rebuilds, Radicon, Benzlers, Elecon and Kumera gearboxes and drives and crusher wear and mechanical spare parts.