“It does not require many words to speak the truth.”
– Hinmaton-Yalaktit aka Chief Joseph
1. Additive Hanging on by a Link
Would you fly in a helicopter with additive parts in the main rotor? Well, if you fly an Apache, you have no choice. Boeing plans to additively manufacture the main rotor out of 6000 series aluminum to cut one year from the current lead time. This is worth the test.
2. Spoiler Alert: Data Is the Foundation of DME
DME, or digital manufacturing enterprise, is another acronym to keep track of in the digital space. Why is this important? This holistic approach cascades into data-driven product design, manufacturing, supply chain management, quality control, and after-sales support. I'm not sure what else hits that many areas in the factory.
3. Mobile Robots Are Coming
You already know this. One thing we are missing is a mobile test bed. How do we rapidly experiment with new sensors, motors, and algorithms? As this technology propagates to smaller shops, there will be a need for light and inexpensive platforms with which to experiment. Small to medium-sized companies need a platform to reduce the financial risk and understand the technology.
4. Is Sustainability Part of Your Business Model?
It should be. For a long time, sustainability was an organization's corporate social responsibility. Recently, however, organizations are finding a solid return on investment from these efforts. Now, the question is: How do we scale up these practices, standards, and technologies so it becomes the norm?
5. AI, Where Are You?
Most people are on board with large language model commercial artificial intelligence (AI) applications. What about in the industrial space? Well, machine learning and AI have been in manufacturing for more than a minute. I always tell my friends that manufacturing is the tip of the technology spear.
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