U.S. gross domestic product rose at an annual rate of 1.1% in the January to March period, markedly less than expected. U.S. economic growth lost steam in the first quarter as gloomier business investment countered a rise in consumer spending, the Commerce Department said Thursday, while the... Continue Reading
The key to dealing with disruption is agility. The key to agility is having a strategic approach to harnessing data flows in real time using today’s digital tools. Agility is essential for manufacturers to deliver a solution that suits consumers and brands. Indeed, Industry 4.0 describes an... Continue Reading
The ISM manufacturing survey rose slightly to 47.1% last month, up 0.8 percentage points from March. U.S. manufacturing activity shrank again in April as companies continued to match slowing demand by cutting new orders, according to survey data released Monday. The contraction registered by the... Continue Reading
Hint: It's not your in-house lean expert. Your lean culture depends on you providing the correct answer to this basic question: Who leads and owns the lean transformation? Who has the responsibility to create and sustain the culture that enables lean behaviors throughout the organization? I... Continue Reading
Coaching is a way of being with others that's accessible to everyone and is by no means the exclusive purview of professional coaches. And while there are limits on the extent to which you as a leader can coach an employee, coaching is an approach that lends itself well to many managerial... Continue Reading
Accelerating the use of AI can result in substantial benefits, but manufacturers must proceed with a practical understanding of the best applications. Artificial Intelligence adoption and deployment seem to be less extensive and mature in industrial manufacturing than in most other industries.... Continue Reading
70% of younger workers said they would quit their job in favor of one with more control over their schedule. Figuring out strategies to accommodate younger workers entails being open to ways of working that are taking new directions. One recent direction involves when employees want to work.... Continue Reading
A former antitrust prosecutor and manufacturing consultant weigh in on the proposed rule. In the early 2000s, courts ruled that at least two franchise sandwich shops—Subway and Jimmy John’s—used non-compete clauses in employment contracts to prevent former employees from working... Continue Reading
Conversational artificial intelligence that can be used to communicate with equipment and generate machine parts. Digital versions of vehicles and planes that can be modified to fine-tune their physical counterparts, and autonomous robots that move as you walk by. These are just a few of the... Continue Reading
Industry insiders and other experts largely praised the agency’s recommendations but noted that its recent report omitted some key hurdles to adopting energy storage. In a wide-ranging report, released March 30, the Government Accountability Office outlined some of the challenges facing... Continue Reading
Eye-tracking technology has advanced to where it can provide useful insights into human eye scanning behavior. Eye tracking technology is an effective analysis tool and has the potential to be of value in other human performance areas that affect wells operations, and enable future safety... Continue Reading
It's daunting for a business to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies at scale. However, given the added value of automation and process optimization, the benefits can outweigh risks. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is becoming reality. Organizations are envisioning what they can do with AI, IoT,... Continue Reading
