Surviving the Trade Hurricane: Overview of Key U.S. Trade Issues and Prospects for 2020 and Beyond
March 4, 2020 | 1:00-2:00pm Eastern time
In this webinar, Nate Bolin, a leading trade attorney and policy expert will provide an update on the “state of play” regarding various key trade law issues, detail the most significant changes on the horizon for 2020, and provide practical examples of how companies and investors in the bearing and gear industries can successfully navigate and reduce the many risks U.S. laws present while taking advantage of new opportunities. This webinar will set the stage for a “deep dive” into these topics in subsequent webinars.

Institute for Supply Management press release
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector grew in February, and the overall economy grew for the 130th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM^® Report On Business^®.

The business activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector expanded at a soft pace in February with the IHS Markit Manufacturing PMI dropping to 50.7 from 51.9 in January. This reading came in slightly below the market expectation and previous reading of 50.8.

Industrial Machinery Digest
OnRobot’s 3FG15 three-finger gripper with a 150mm stroke is a powerful alternative to bulkier and less-flexible three-finger grippers currently on the market — a unique solution. The new gripper excels at heavy-payload machine-tending applications that require high precision and flexible handling.

Automotive News
A Spanish plant majority owned by Denso is prepared to halt some production of auto electronics components because of a shortage of parts from China due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Thomas Net
Late last month, the U.S. Department of Labor announced it had awarded grants to 28 public-private apprenticeship partnerships, with a total of nearly $100 million through the Apprenticeship: Closing the Skills Gap grant program. The agency said the grants will support large-scale expansions of apprenticeship in industries including advanced manufacturing, healthcare and information technology.

Bloomberg
The world’s largest steel industry just sent out another warning flare as producers grapple with the coronavirus outbreak: nationwide stockpiles of reinforcement bar have swelled to the most on record.

April 21-22 | Oak Lawn, IL
Learn the common, current and basics of the tools and techniques used to measure and inspect gears. There are four main categories by which a gear evaluated and classified. Gear design, manufacture and inspection are based on numerical scale that defines gear quality. The methodology to measure and techniques required to quantify quality of a gear tooth form will be thoroughly investigated and explained. It is often stated that quality cannot be inspected into the part, however inspection can tell us what to do to correct many issues.

Harvard Business Review
Developing a cogent supply chain response to the coronavirus outbreak is extremely challenging, given the scale of the crisis and the rate at which it is evolving. The best response, of course, is to be ready before such a crisis hits, since options become more limited when a disruption is in full swing. However, there are measures that can be taken now even if you’re not fully prepared. 

Forbes
The success of early adopters has driven over 40% of manufacturers to implement enterprise-wide digital transformation initiatives in place by 2021, according to IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Manufacturing 2019 Prediction. Industrial IoT, Machine Learning (ML) and Applied analytics solutions remain top of mind for global manufacturing teams given the declining contribution margins many factories face.

Forbes
In an interview with John Lindekugel, who spent 31 years at 3M Company, Forbes looks at how the expert approached “Brody moments” in manufacturing and supply chain and how the company overcame these obstacles.

Industrial Machinery Digest
Warehouses and distribution centers are under an increasing amount of pressure to move more product through their facility faster. While the adage to have “a place for everything and everything in its place” may have once sufficed as a means for achieving warehouse efficiency, this practice alone is now insufficient. Companies looking to obtain and maintain a competitive advantage need tools and best practices that save time and money.

Azo Materials
To accurately develop and produce engineered components with required surface conditions, appropriate technologies should be used to test and quantify surface properties. When engineered parts are tested under different conditions, real-world product functionality can be predicted. 

Thomas Net
Rockwell Automation has signed an agreement to acquire Beachwood, Ohio-based Kalypso, a software delivery and consulting firm specializing in the digital transformation of industrial companies with a strong client base in life sciences, consumer products and industrial high-tech. Rockwell has also signed an agreement to acquire Italy-based ASEM, S.p.A., a provider of digital automation technologies. ASEM provides a complete range of Industrial PCs (IPCs), Human-machine interface (HMI) hardware and software, remote access capabilities, and secure industrial IoT gateway solutions.

Modern Materials Handling
Almost half (40%) of manufacturers surveyed recently by Deloitte and the Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity & Innovation (MAPI) said their operations were impacted by a cyber incident in the past 12 months, and yet one in four have not performed a cyber risk assessment in the last year.

Aerospace Manufacturing
In late February, the UK’s National Composites Center (NCC) opened the doors to the most advanced composite manufacturing facility in the world.

OA online
XL Fleet, the leader in vehicle electrification solutions for commercial and municipal fleets, will debut two new hybrid electric Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck options at NTEA’s The Work Truck Show, March 3-6 in Indianapolis, Ind.

EPPM
Comau, a global leader in advanced industrial automation products and solutions, and Exechon, an international company whose patented technologies are being used to develop advanced Parallel Kinematic Machine (PKM) solutions, have joined forces to design and produce a new Comau machining centre able to handle lightweight framing and structural components for multiple sectors, particularly automotive, aerospace and electrification.

Supply Chain Drive
When the NotPetya virus infected computers internationally in 2017, the Russian military’s target was Ukraine, not manufacturing.

The AGMA Strategic Resources Network Event is May 27-29 in Charleston, SC.
The 2020 AGMA Strategic Resources Network (SRN) event has been designed for the next-generation manufacturing leaders. We are providing presentations that address the agile skills that our current manufacturing environments require. Learn how to protect your company from cybersecurity threats; discuss what is keeping your peers up at night; and learn the latest discoveries from the AGMA Emerging Technology committees. Hotel deadline is April 1 — reserve your room today!