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Manufacturing

US President Donald Trump orders reduction of manufacturing and construction bureaucracy

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Newly inaugurated US President Donald Trump has signed an order aimed at reducing the amount of bureaucracy involved in getting permissions and licences in the manufacturing and construction sectors. 

Trump got elected partly on a platform to rejuvenate manufacturing and industry – or his “make it in America” mantra – and these first few days have seen some big changes proposed.

The order he signed is designed to streamline the administrative process, which Trump said was “incredibly cumbersome, long, horrible”.  [Read more…] about US President Donald Trump orders reduction of manufacturing and construction bureaucracy

Siemens, Strata and Etihad team up to create 3D printed interiors for planes

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etihad

Siemens, Strata and Etihad Airways have signed an agreement to work together to develop the first 3D-printed parts for aircraft interiors in the Middle East and North Africa.

The partnership aims to “revolutionize” the aerospace industry, leveraging additive manufacturing, known as 3D printing, to help airlines to improve their designs, including making complex parts on demand and manufacturing discontinued parts.

Under the partnership, a pilot project will develop 3D printing solutions for aircraft cabin interior products for Etihad, the UAE’s national carrier.  [Read more…] about Siemens, Strata and Etihad team up to create 3D printed interiors for planes

Biopharmaceuticals manufacturing: Strict but supple

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Robert Harrison, pharmaceutical industry manager of industrial software expert Copa-Data, explains how industrial automation solutions could change the face of biopharmaceutical manufacturing in the years to come

Despite producing innovative drugs that save millions of lives, the pharmaceutical sector is one of the most conservative areas of industry. This cautious approach to new technologies is particularly clear in pharma’s less matured subsectors, including biopharmaceuticals.

Biopharmaceuticals represent the fastest growing sector of the pharmaceutical industry, making up about 20 per cent of the market. Annual growth rates of the biopharma subsector are around eight per cent – double that of more traditional pharmaceutical sectors.  [Read more…] about Biopharmaceuticals manufacturing: Strict but supple

World’s largest manufacturing companies

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samsung chip

It’s a couple of years old, and we will update it as we go along, but this list provides an overview of the global manufacturing landscape over the past few years.

It shows that traditional companies – meaning those with a long history – are still dominant. Giants like Samsung, Toyota, Volkswagen, Daimler, General Electric, and General Motors have each been around for a century.

Samsung is relatively young, having been established in 1938. And it’s probably perceived as being even younger, since it’s the world’s largest manufacturer of smartphones, a product which has been in existence for barely a decade.  [Read more…] about World’s largest manufacturing companies

Siemens to invest $133 million in Canadian operations

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siemens and seneca college canada
Last year, Seneca College and Siemens Canada opened what they said was Ontario’s first Mechatronics Simulation and Demonstration Centre

Siemens plans to invest $110.6 million in research and development activities at its plant in Dorval, Canada to design and make improvements to aero-derivative gas turbines.

These turbines are used for, among other things, the production of electricity, and serve as a backup source in the event that the existing network is unable to meet the demand.

The engineering company also plans to invest $22 million to launch a platform of expertise related to Industry 4.0 and the implementation of a training system integrated into the workplace.  [Read more…] about Siemens to invest $133 million in Canadian operations

Hannover Messe: Smart materials paving the way to 3D printing and to the ‘microfactory’

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3d printed supercar

Get your complimentary ticket to Hannover Messe 2017

There may or may not be slight differences between what’s called “3D printing” and “additive manufacturing”, but essentially both are advanced techniques that could spell the end of assembly lines as we know them. 

It’s a widely known historic fact that giant car companies pioneered what we now known as the assembly line, where a product – such as a car or any other complex item – would move along production line, where different workers and teams of workers would do their jobs and eventually a finished product would be the result.

This process, however, is now being reconsidered in an age where customers are asking for increaing amounts of customisation and new technologies such as 3D printing and additive manufacturing are making this customisation possible.  [Read more…] about Hannover Messe: Smart materials paving the way to 3D printing and to the ‘microfactory’

General Motors to invest an extra $1 billion in US manufacturing

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gm building

General Motors says it will invest an additional $1 billion into its manufacturing operations in the US, adding to the $2.9 billion of investment it announced last year. 

And in a what may have been an extra comment aimed at President-elect Donald Trump, GM says it has invested a total of $21 billion in its US manufacturing operations since 2009.

Like virtually all other automakers and large manufacturing companies, such as Apple, GM has been the target of some criticism from Trump, who wants to fulfil his campaign promise to bring back manufacturing jobs to the US.  [Read more…] about General Motors to invest an extra $1 billion in US manufacturing

Boeing completes prototype parts for 777X wing at new billion-dollar advanced manufacturing facility

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Boeing says it has completed prototype parts for the wing of its new 777X Dreamliner aircraft. 

The company is using advanced manufacturing methods, including additive or 3D printing, in the construction of the passenger plane at its new $1 billion Everett, Washington facility.

When completed, the wing for the 777X will be the largest wing Boeing has ever built.  [Read more…] about Boeing completes prototype parts for 777X wing at new billion-dollar advanced manufacturing facility

GM begins autonomous vehicle manufacturing and testing in Michigan

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On the heels of the signing of the Save Act legislation to support autonomous vehicle testing and deployment in Michigan, General Motors says it will immediately begin testing autonomous vehicles on public roads.

GM also announced it will produce the next generation of its autonomous test vehicles at its Orion Township assembly plant beginning in early 2017.

General Motors chairman and CEO Mary Barra, says: “Revolutionizing transportation for our customers while improving safety on roads is the goal of our autonomous vehicle technology, and today’s announcement gets us one step closer to making this vision a reality.

“Our autonomous technology will be reliable and safe, as customers have come to expect from any of our vehicles.”  [Read more…] about GM begins autonomous vehicle manufacturing and testing in Michigan

Apple to expand manufacturing in America

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apple tim cook
Apple CEO Tim Cook during a visit to the company’s facility in Austin, Texas, where the Mac Pro is assembled. Picture courtesy MacRumours.com

Tech giant Apple looks to have decided to expand its manufacturing operations in the US. The company filed a notification in the Federal Register apparently to that effect. 

A statement on the Federal Register website says that Apple already has authority to manufacture within the Mesa, Arizona region. “The new request would add finished products and foreign status materials and components to the scope of authority,” it says.

TechCrunch notes that the statement included a mention of Apple’s plan to build data centre server cabinets, which is not a consumer product Apple sells and, therefore, TechCrunch presumes, would be “used for building out its own data centers”.  [Read more…] about Apple to expand manufacturing in America