The AGMA Electric Drive Committee released the white paper: A Gearing-Centric Snapshot of the EV Space. The paper takes a detailed look at the gearing developments in drivetrain design. The committee worked to provide the industry with information on the diversity in drivetrain design; the high-level technology in the machine tool market; new players in the market with new ideas; different and higher precision manufacturing processes; and the quest for the silent drivetrain. The paper also provides high-level information including some history of electric vehicles, the evolution of the EV consumer, and current regulations driving some of the changes in these industries. 

We are less than one month out from our first live event in over a year! Make sure you are registered to take advantage of timely training and presentations, networking and a tour of the Clemson wind turbine test facility.

The Operating Ratio Report is the benchmarking report for the gear industry. It is the annual profitability survey of AGMA members. Reporting is easy and absolutely FREE of charge, but only available to AGMA members. Only those companies that send in data may receive the reports. *This is only available for gear manufacturers in North America. For more information, please reach out to doran@agma.org

This course is specially designed for engineers and others with technical backgrounds that have had limited exposure to bearings and need to adapt their technical training to bearings or seek an upgrade to their technical knowledge. The Essential Course focuses on understanding basic internal geometry, tribology, bearing attributes and applications and explores the basic concepts around manufacturing methods, loads, internal load contacts, lubrication and failure. 

Gain a basic understanding of steel and its properties. Learn to make use of steel properties in an application and understand the potential that different steel and heat treatment options can offer. Explore how performance of the material depends on how the steel is produced.

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, News Release
Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 266,000 in April, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 6.1%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Notable job gains in leisure and hospitality, other services and local government education were partially offset by employment declines in temporary help services and in couriers and messengers.

Azo Nano
A team of researchers working in multiple engineering disciplines has developed a new battery that could revolutionize energy storage by replacing the harmful solvents we use in regular batteries today with seawater.

 

Manufacturing Global
Founded in 2008, Lion Electric is an innovative manufacturer of all-electric, zero-emissions, medium and heavy-duty urban vehicles. Lion Electric designs, manufacturers, and assembles all components for its vehicles that have unique features specifically adapted to the users and their needs. Just two months after announcing plans to construct a battery manufacturing plant and innovation center in Quebec, Lion Electric is expanding its locations further selecting Joliet, Illinois for its new manufacturing facility in the U.S.

Bloomberg
Inflation continues to brew in America’s industrial heartland as growing materials shortages cascade into record-long delivery times and leave manufacturers struggling to keep pace with an energized economy. As producers attempt to navigate supply-chain pitfalls for the commodities necessary to produce their wares, wage growth is beginning to percolate. A recent Labor Department report showed the largest quarterly increase in worker pay at companies since 2003.

Industrial Machinery Digest
Manufacturers are looking to lower cost and increase speed without sacrificing quality. This means getting more done in less time with less manpower, less scrap and fewer mistakes. To do this, the manufacturing industry is investing more in automation. Specifically, automating the processes and tasks that machines can do quicker and better than humans and integrating them with a company’s ERP system and other technology.

Manufacturng.net
Huawei is one of the world’s most prominent consumer electronics and telecommunications companies. It’s also the first global tech giant to emerge from China — a fact that put a target on its back from governments wary of Beijing’s influence and motives. The U.S., in particular, imposed sanctions that prevented the company from using U.S.-made technology and put pressure on its allies to look elsewhere for high-tech telecom gear.

Crain’s Detroit Business
Metro Detroit is seeing promising signs the travel industry is starting to come back, the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitor’s Bureau said. Hotel occupancy has more than doubled for this week year over year, and the DMCVB has booked several new meetings and conferences for 2022 and beyond.

News 4 Tuscon – KVOA.com
Can Lucid, Nikola and ElectraMeccanica turn Arizona into a major electric vehicle manufacturing hub? The president and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council says it’s possible.

MDM
New orders placed in March also marked a 16.1% increase from the previous month of February, according to the most recent U.S. Manufacturing Technology Orders report. 

3D Printing Media Network
Most manufacturers would never dream of switching from an investment cast part to one made by additive manufacturing, especially if they already had paid for the casting mold. Yet that is exactly what GE engineers from GE Aviation are doing with four bleed air parts from a land/marine turbine. They made the decision based on cost and time to market.

 

Mining.com
Rio Tinto has developed and tested a new water atomized steel powder designed for 3D printing applications at its Rio Tinto Fer et Titane (RTFT) metallurgical complex in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec. 

Gear Technology
Why prototyping with end-mills on bevel gear machines? Manufacturing of spiral bevel and hypoid gears can be conducted in several ways.

Engineering.com
Growing up, Tiffany Chu wanted to be an architect and a gymnast. Little did she know that she’d be a chief executive officer and cofounder of a multimillion-dollar transportation planning software company before the age of 30. 

 

 

Industry Week
Steel giant Arcelor said it recorded its best quarterly performance in a decade as commodity prices have soared due to booming demand fueled by an economic recovery from the pandemic.

Power Transmission Engineering
Robot orders in the first quarter of 2021 were up 20% over the same period in 2020, with substantial increases in purchases coming from companies in metals (up to 86%), life sciences, pharmaceuticals, biomed (up 72%), food and consumer goods (up 32%), and other non-automotive industries (12%). According to industry stats by the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), North American companies purchased 9,098 units valued at $466 million in Q1, with non-automotive OEMs and components suppliers combined seeing a 12% increase year-over-year.