Monthly Archives: March 2019

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Subjectivity vs Objectivity

As humans we are are all about subjectivity. Its what keeps things interesting, fresh and innovative.  As a one-time co-worked of mine liked to say:  If we’re all thinking the same thing then somebody’s not thinking.  But when it comes to the subject of quality, there is no room for gut feel or personal opinion. Manufacturers and suppliers have to get it right.  Simply put, quality should not be left to human emotion. What’s unacceptable one day might be accepted the next; depending on any number of circumstances or how the individual feels on that particular day.  All reputable manufacturers implement some sort of quality assurance. But if quality is open to interpretation they are headed down a dangerous road.

I recently put the finishing touches on a story about this featuring the quality inspection solutions of Signalysis.  Check them out if you get a chance.

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Democratizing Simulation: A Revolution in Simulation

I, along with a couple of colleagues, put our heads together a couple of years ago and launched a web site to support a growing movement known as “Democratizing Simulation”.   The result of that effort is RevolutionInSimulation.Org (or more concisely: rev-sim.org).

The underlying idea is that today there are a select few individuals within a manufacturing, product development, engineering organization with the experience and expertise to perform engineering simulation.  In a simplistic sense, engineering simulation (also commonly referred to as CAE or Engineering Analysis) is the process to validate product designs for quality, durability, manufacturability, etc.) in the very early upstream stages of new product development.  This greatly reduces – or even eliminates – the need to build and test multiple physical prototypes. The result is a shorter development cycle and less time to get products to market.

Democratizing Simulation allows companies to basically capture and extend the knowledge and experience of expert CAE analysts.  Make no mistake, simulation tools are costly and sophisticated; and represent a serious investment.  Even though simulation software is very advanced, the process to validate designs does not happen at the push of a button.  It requires the use of these technologies along with a certain amount of judgement that comes from experience. The problem is that this often causes a bottleneck as there are many more models to be analyzed than there are experts to perform the task.

Intelligent templates allow companies to capture the experience of their simulation experts extending the capability to perform simulations to non-experts. This democratizes simulation and allows companies to get products validated much faster and evaluate many more designs to boost innovation.

So what about the CAE experts? Does this mean that they are no longer needed?  To the contrary, Democratizing Simulation allows these experts to focus their time on more sophisticated or higher priority simulations.

If you’re interested to learn more about this visit rev-sim.org.  Here you’ll find a host of educational materials including success stories, articles, papers, webinars, videos, presentations, industry events, and much more.

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Industries with an Identity Crisis

Labor shortages in manufacturing and distribution circles are certainly well documented.  I have some thoughts on why these industries are struggling with resources. I believe that both industries suffer from an identity crisis.

What do you envision when you hear the words “Warehousing and Distribution”?  If you’re like me – before I began working with a couple of clients in the industry – you probably pictured a forklift moving boxes on a loading dock.  At the same time, the word “Manufacturing” likely conjures images of a long assembly line or sparks flying across s shop floor a welder.

Conversely, the word “Technology” may get you thinking about a flashy computer model, robotics, or something not as manual-labor intensive as manufacturing or distribution.  The truth is that today’s manufacturing and distribution environments do have strong technical elements.  Today’s young workforce largely perceives these industries as manually-intensive and unsophisticated.  This could not be further from the truth.

Processing metal requires a level of technical expertise and experience that would surprise most of us.  Programming metal processing equipment for example requires a working knowledge of CAD/CAM software and experience with assist gasses and knowing how to process various materials.  Its not rocket science; but it is complex and technical.

At the same time, today’s warehouses are a whirlwind of automation. From conveyors and carousels to order fulfillment hardware and autonomous robots, equipment, resources and processes must be effectively managed.  Warehouse Management, Execution and Control Systems (WMS, WES, WCS) are driving today’s warehousing and distribution processes.  Understanding and leveraging the technology for specific and unique requirements can product measurable and sustained improvements.

Manufacturing and Warehousing are two industries that have been wrongfully pegged as low or no-tech.  In reality these industries offer fantastic opportunities for today’s tech-savvy young workforce.