Browse Topic: Productivity
Today, advancements in industrial laser cleaning automation show great promise in boosting productivity and safety when rust and contaminant removal or surface preparation is required for higher volumes of components and equipment
The integration of collaborative robots, or cobots, into manufacturing has revolutionized traditional processes, offering an unprecedented blend of precision, productivity, and safety. Known for their effectiveness in activities from palletizing to welding, cobots are emerging as invaluable assets for activities involving material removal like sanding, grinding and polishing, relieving human workers from arduous and risky tasks
The concept of the vehicle has changed in accordance with the technological innovations on last decade. Today we can call these changes basically as "CASE" (Connected, Autonomous/Automated, Shared, and Electric). The ease of product access on the user side and the mass production related works have increased worldwide production volumes. This issue has resulted in a greater demand for manpower in the sector. In addition, management, productivity, and profitability related difficulties have occurred. In this project, improvements were made mainly around the productivity through the automation of "vehicle transfer operations in plant operations", which is one of a major problem and a manpower/hour consuming task. This system named as Remote-Control Auto Driving System (RCD). The advance technology used system enabling unmanned, secured operations, were implemented in mass production environment earlier than the rest of the world
As manufacturers push for increased productivity, low-value tasks such as material transport have become clear targets for improvement. In efforts to reduce material transport in large facilities, companies have explored the use of intermediate warehouse areas throughout the production floor. However, this takes up valuable space, requires additional material processing and handling, and creates opportunities for errors and lost or misplaced materials
Diversity in the workforce contributes to creativity, productivity, and innovation. More women today are studying and excelling in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). In the U.S., women make up 14 percent of the engineering workforce. The number of female engineers across the globe is on the rise but compared to male engineers it is still much lower
Efficient transportation for carrying heavy loads is a common challenge across various applications, from supermarkets to industrial purposes. Conventional trolleys often fall short when loaded with heavy cargo, resulting in increased exertion and diminished productivity. Moreover, these challenges can adversely affect posture and lumbar spine health, especially for elder people and persons with cervical problems. There is a need for more user-friendly, ergonomic, and space-efficient solutions. This project addresses these challenges through an innovative design that encompasses various aspects of trolley functionality, including the study of comfort, wheel selection, and material considerations, drawing from ergonomic research. Multiple methods are employed to optimize the trolley’s dimensions to improve its overall performance. The trolley’s design features a collapsible basket for the transport of smaller-sized items and a base frame for larger goods and luggage. The project
India striving for carbon neutrality influences futures powertrain architecture of commercial vehicles. The use of CO2-free drives as battery electric have been demonstrated for various applications. The productivity still is a challenge due to missing high power charging infrastructure or limited range. This draws the attention to the use of sustainable fuels due to lower refueling times. The hydrogen engine got highest attention in the last couple of years. For markets as the EU the driver for hydrogen is the CO2 emission reduction, whereas for markets as India hydrogen offers the additional opportunity for more independence from fossil imports. Different OEMs all over the world have converted diesel engines to hydrogen operation with strong focus on performance and emission demonstration, so far with limited technology readiness of different key components. As of a strong market pull, AVL will show how to ensure SOP readiness in 2025 by effective use of simulation, verification
New Holland Construction is entering a new equipment category with its full line of small articulated loaders. The lineup consists of five models - the ML12, ML12T, ML15, ML23 and ML22X - that will be available in the first quarter of 2024. “These new small articulated loaders are the embodiment of New Holland Construction's commitment to innovation and excellence,” said Daniel Kakareka, product manager for New Holland Construction North America. “They're designed to empower our customers to accomplish more in confined spaces, with increased productivity and precision. Truly, refining the way we approach landscaping and light construction tasks
Aerospace manufacturers know what it means to work with high stakes. Extremely tight tolerances, expensive materials and complicated processes define the industry. But few aerospace components are more critical - or more challenging - than the turbine discs that go into the hot side of jet engines. When machining these rotating components, everything must be correct, secure and reliable - not only to meet stringent surface integrity requirements, but also to avoid devastatingly expensive failures. A mistake that leads to a scrapped component can cost a manufacturer upward of $100,000, depending on when the mistake happened in the production process
In the 1st generation Toyota "MIRAI" fuel cell stack, carbon protective surface coating is deposited after individual Ti bipolar plate being press-formed into the desired shape. Such a process has relatively low production speed, not ideal for large scale manufacturing. A new coating concept, consisting of a nanostructured composite layer of titanium oxide and carbon particles, was devised to enable the incorporation of both the surface treatment and the press processes into the roll-to-roll production line. The initial coating showed higher than expected contact resistance, of which the root cause was identified as nitrogen contamination during the annealing step that inhibited the formation of the composite film structure. Upon the implementation of a vacuum furnace chamber as the countermeasure, the issue was resolved, and the improved coating could meet all the requirements of productivity, conductivity, and durability for use in the newer generation of fuel cell stacks
Sports medicine and wound management have been strong growth areas for Smith & Nephew, which has also seen its orthopedics business gain momentum since the end of 2022. With COVID behind them and patients and their physicians returning to elective procedures, the company is seeing strong market revenue growth in 2022, according to CEO Deepak Nath, who spoke during its first quarter trading update
Sometimes an innovation comes along that changes the manufacturing landscape. Pro Spot International has created a unique Cobot Spot Welding solution. By bringing this new tool to the sheet metal fabrication market, the company aims to bring game-changing gains in productivity, reliability, traceability, and ergonomic safety to the manufacturing world
The demand for air travel is back. And so is the demand for new aircraft. The volume of production demand has reached 2019 levels much sooner than many aerospace component manufacturers anticipated. As the industry looks for ways to ramp up production, aerospace machining operations are grappling with numerous challenges to meet deliveries on time
It's no longer a question of when metal additive manufacturing (AM)-and particularly metal laser powder-bed fusion (LPBF)-will become an accepted, reliable production technology, particularly in aerospace and defense. This is already the case now. Over the past 18 months a host of aerospace leaders, OEMs, startups, and contract manufacturers (CMs) alike have purchased, or begun outsourcing work to, advanced AM systems. They're confidently producing end-use, 3D-printed parts-and sometimes entire rocket engines. In a quarterly study of revenue growth of leading AM system-makers, published in the summer of 2022, the industrial sector was reported to have grown 19 percent compared to the same period in 2021. This was cited as proof that companies and users are looking to invest in the larger, more powerful industrial AM solutions that offer greater efficiency and productivity
Stainless Steel 304 (SS304) is a nickel–chromium–based alloy that is regularly used in valves, refrigeration components, evaporators, and cryogenic containers due to its greater corrosion resistance, high ductility, and non-magnetic properties, as well as good weldability and formability. Multiple regression analysis was used to establish empirical relationships between process variables. Additionally, the established regression equations are employed to predict and compare experimental data. Due to the increasing demands for high-quality surface finishes and complex geometries, traditional methods are being replaced by non-conventional techniques such as wire EDM. This process, which emerged from the electrical discharge machining concept, mainly involves creating intricate components. WEDM results in a high degree of precision and excellent surface quality. Due to the complexity of WEDM, the processing parameters cannot be selected by using the trial-and-error method. The various
Since the earliest days of atmospheric flight, aviation has connected the world and increased global productivity, economic opportunity, and quality of life. Maintaining these benefits requires that industry, government, and academia collaborate in ensuring safe skies, enabling a sustainable industry to preserve our environment, and developing a smart workforce supported by smarter machines
High-speed digital imaging expands the benefits of traditional machine vision (MV), transforming it from a process control tool into a diagnostic tool. Traditional MV systems use commercial off-the-shelf imaging sensors, lighting modules and processors to guide, inspect or identify parts moving along production lines. Compared to human operators, these systems are fast, accurate and repeatable, increasing productivity in fast-paced manufacturing environments
Operational Technology (OT) networks are historically “air-gapped” from the rest of the networked world. But pressure is mounting for manufacturers to leverage real-time data exchanges from outside their controlled environments to increase productivity and efficiency. One major concern for manufacturers is how safe and secure it is to open the OT network’s doors to the internet
Threaded, potted inserts are commonly used as a standard connecting element for sandwich components, which are used for aircraft interior. Since they often offer the only detachable connection, they are used in very high quantities. To ensure a material bond between the inserts and the honeycomb structure, the joint is filled with adhesive. Despite the high number of inserts, this process is performed manually. Recent research has shown new approaches for automated gripping and placement of the inserts by an industrial robot that yield high potential for cost savings and increased productivity. Automated adhesive insertion, so-called potting, has not been considered so far but is an essential contribution to the full automation of the entire process chain. The amount of adhesive varies depending on the type of insert and its position on the honeycomb structure. During the potting process, it is also mandatory to prevent air inclusions, to fulfill safety requirements in the aviation
To find out about the contributions integrated building systems can provide to enhance the working and living environment inside a commercial building, I interviewed Dwight Stewart, Founder and CTO, Igor, Inc. (West Des Moines, IA
Autonomous agricultural vehicles are entering the marketplace, performing jobs that current equipment cannot do or are too dangerous for people to perform. They offer the prospect of greater farm productivity, and they will help to feed the world’s growing population. Commercialization of Autonomous Agricultural Vehicles looks at several topics that impact the commercial success of autonomous agricultural vehicles: Economic benefits Machine utilization rates Job quality Labor savings Reliability Standards and regulations Click here to access the full SAE EDGETM Research Report portfolio
The logistics process in Brazil and the world represents a significant portion of the cost of manufactured products, either for export or import. The availability of technologies that make the logistic process more efficient directly affects the product’s transportation productivity and makes them more competitive. This paper presents a telemetry model of commercial vehicles integrated with harvest machines in agriculture operations, allowing accurate scheduling of loading and unloading processes at the field. In this study, we introduce a conceptual model of a technological matrix, where the shared topologies of vehicle information processing help predict failures, identification of wear of vehicle and machine’s components. The opportunity is demonstrated to collect data from agricultural machines and combine them with data extracted from trucks. The sharing of information on farm machinery and trucks in real-time establishes an essential change in crop management in the field
After more than a century of the world’s automotive systems being powered and driven by gasoline and diesel internal combustion engines, the irreversible transition to electric vehicles (EVs) is underway
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