Being on Time, Every Time: On-Time Delivery & Customer Satisfaction

Sep 21, 2017

Meeting customer’s expectations and delivery requirements has to be a priority for every business. The good news is those expectations are usually pretty simple: orders should be shipped accurately an...

The Heijunka System for Better Materials Management

Sep 14, 2017

When one part of the production process is delayed, it can cause a ripple effect throughout a manufacturing facility. A prime example of how this type of disruption can occur is when the function of m...

How to Build a Value Stream Map

Aug 31, 2017

Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is a planning activity used to determine opportunities for a leaner workflow. The value stream is a set of all actions necessary to bring the product to the customer. It ana...

5 Trends in Lean Manufacturing

Aug 29, 2017

[Original post on newcastlesys.com]  While it’s important for lean consultants to stay on top of current trends in lean manufacturing, it is difficult to keep up with advances in technology and new op...

7 Advantages of One-Piece Flow in Manufacturing

Aug 24, 2017

One of the most fundamental elements of creating a lean environment is operating with one-piece-flow. To think of processing one unit at a time can send a shudder through an organisation if this isn’t...

Inefficient Material Handling Leads to Supply Chain Problems

Aug 17, 2017

Every manufacturer is challenged by how to best handle the materials that go into their production. Even an automated production system can have areas of inefficiency which affect many other parts of ...

Introduction to Lean in a Job Shop Manufacturing Environment

Aug 10, 2017

Many companies find lean manufacturing is an effective method to cut costs and operate more efficiently. One area that has not embraced lean fully is the job shop environment, largely because of the d...

Industry 4.0 Fuels Lights-Out Manufacturing [Webinar Recap]

Aug 03, 2017

What is Industry 4.0 and how does it fuel lights-out manufacturing? Is lights-out really possible today or does it remain a far-reaching goal? In our webinar Industrial Robots for Lights-Out Manufactu...

Automated Material Handling is the Secret to One Piece Flow for Lean Production

Jul 27, 2017

Whether you’re running a mid-sized enterprise or a multinational conglomerate, a lean manufacturing system can be integrated in manufacturing and assembly cells that drive a variety of advantages with...

Industry 4.0 Readiness: The Connected Factory is Coming

Jul 26, 2017

In the midst of global change and innovation, there are indications that manufacturing has not kept up. It needs to. With Fortune 500 companies disappearing there is unprecedented threat, but also opp...

How to Set Up a Lean Factory That Works

Jul 25, 2017

[Original post on Industry Week] Lean manufacturers have a leg up on speeding products to market, reducing costs and keeping customers happy. In this overview, I’ll share how to engineer, set up and m...

Forklift Free Manufacturing: Is It For You?

Jul 20, 2017

Fork-free manufacturing is a fast growing ideology that removes fork trucks from the material handling equation. Favouring the use of carts and dollies to move materials to the line, fork-free also op...

Webinar: Industrial Robots for Lights-Out Manufacturing

Jul 13, 2017

Working toward their vision of lights-out manufacturing, automotive parts manufacturer HIROTEC AMERICA jumped at the opportunity to use mobile industrial robots in their facility. But why now? Because...

3 Best Practices to Achieve Lean in Workcell Design

Jul 06, 2017

Traditional machine and fabrication shops divide their floor into multiple departments that group similar equipment or processes, and then move materials in and out once the process is complete. For e...

Lights-Out Manufacturing with Mobile Manipulation: HIROTEC Case Study

Jun 29, 2017

How do you improve throughput and productivity in an environment that is already operating lean? HIROTEC AMERICA asked the same question after spending three decades focused on the K2 philosophy of wo...

In Search of Supply Chain Visibility: Transparency via The Cloud

Jun 27, 2017

[Original post on Industry Week] Responding to market volatility or uncertainty is a top pain point for most manufacturing supply chain executives, and the source of the problem is that most can’t ans...

Manufacturing Work Cell Design: How to Optimize Layout and Minimize Transit Time

Jun 15, 2017

You may have found success with integrating cellular manufacturing into your operation as it brings equipment, people and process into a single location for higher productivity. But you are most likel...

The New Lean: What it Means for Manufacturing

Jun 08, 2017

Written by Diane Huang Lean manufacturing, the buzz words that have been echoing from the walls of management meetings to industrial factory floors. Everyone is striving to perfect a process that is l...

Job Shop Manufacturing: Manual material transport could cost you $1M/year

Jun 01, 2017

Automation in a job shop can be used to take on low-value tasks so employees can stick to the high-value jobs - we’ve heard this before. Although this statement holds genuine truth, what’s not blatant...

North American robotics orders jump 32% in first quarter

May 30, 2017

Original post on DC Velocity. The North American robotics market jumped 32 percent in order volume for the first quarter, as industrial and retail giants such as General Motors Co. and Amazon.com Inc....

Clean Power Plan: How Public Policy Affects Manufacturing

May 25, 2017

Part 3 of our series on How Policy Affects Manufacturers explores changes to the Clean Power Plan. Announced in August 2015 by President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the plan f...

Right-to-Work: How Policy Affects Manufacturers

May 18, 2017

As part of our series, "How Policy Affects Manufacturers," we're discussing changes and impacts of right-to-work laws - it’s shaping up to be an active year in the U.S., with more individual states jo...

How the Industrial IoT Drives Productivity in Factories

May 04, 2017

Technologies that offer connectivity and utilize the IoT (Internet of Things) are able to collect and report a tremendous amount of data. As factory operators are continuously looking to solve for adv...

The Future of Facilities Management: 4 Technologies Changing How We Work

May 02, 2017

Original post by Control Solutions Inc.  Automation has long been a focus for facilities managers, whether that has meant the installation of dynamic thermostats in offices or working with full buildi...

Wage Increases: How Policy Affects Manufacturers

Apr 27, 2017

Labor is a variable, complex expense within the manufacturing sector that holds a great deal of influence on how an organization operates. Even incremental changes in minimum manufacturing wages can s...

Lean Manufacturing with Flexible Automation: GE Case Study

Apr 19, 2017

At GE Healthcare’s 280,000 square foot Repair Operations Center in Milwaukee, a fleet of OTTO self-driving vehicles are used to deliver parts to workstation cells to handle over 2,000 repairs of medic...

5 Reasons to Use Material Handling Automation

Apr 13, 2017

The concept of the last mile, and companies who are focused on making those deliveries, seem to get all the attention these days – largely thanks to Amazon and the talk about drone deliveries for the ...

Can Millennials Solve the Manufacturing Labor Shortage?

Apr 06, 2017

The Manufacturing Labor Shortage...

Automotive Manufacturing Keeps Up with Future Demand

Apr 04, 2017

Original post by David Stain at Zebra Technologies. The future of automotive manufacturing in the UK automotive is set to increase by a third, to two million vehicles a year by 20201. And as the IoT...

Reshoring to America: Why companies are moving from offshore manufacturing to reshoring

Mar 30, 2017

In the past four years, there has been a 250% increase in North American manufacturers reshoring their operations to American soil. A change in the industry to this degree has not occurred since the o...

Trump Fuels Onshoring Movement in Manufacturing

Mar 23, 2017

There is significant change happening in the manufacturing industry. The new U.S. president, Trump, is already acting on his campaign promise of promoting onshoring – bringing manufacturing jobs back ...

AGVs Alternative: Self-Driving Material Transport

Mar 16, 2017

There are several types of industrial robotics that have changed how manufacturers and warehouses operate. But, all technologies are not all the same and many are improving. A prime example is the ma...

ProMat 2017: What to Expect in Material Handling

Mar 02, 2017

It’s been two years in the making, but now the countdown is officially on - ProMat 2017 is almost here. Held April in Chicago at McCormick Place, this year’s event features 850 exhibitors and over 35,...

Robots for the Economy: What is Technological Unemployment?

Mar 02, 2017

Defining Technological Unemployment...

Continuous Improvement Isn't Enough: Industry 4.0 Sets New Bar

Feb 28, 2017

Industry 4.0 provides manufacturers with opportunities to transform digitally and uncover value within their operations. It leverages internet-connected technologies to improve existing processes and ...

4 Ways to Optimize Material Transport

Feb 23, 2017

Material transport can be perceived as the "first mile" - the manufacturer's equivalent to the last mile concept in delivering products or goods to a customer. The first mile draws parallels to the la...

Material Handling Robots for Manufacturing

Feb 21, 2017

"Material handling robot for manufacturing" is a phrase you may searching to find a way to improve your operation. As a leader in manufacturing, you realize there's always a better way to get the jobs...

Manufacturing Data in Industry 4.0: Get Closer to the Customer

Feb 16, 2017

Deploying Industry 4.0 capability delivers benefits that extend beyond the notion of new products or services. It establishes a manufacturer - its employees and ecosystem of customers and suppliers - ...

Inventory Storage: Opportunity for Lean Material Handling

Feb 09, 2017

Manufacturers, warehouse operators and distribution centers continually look for ways to improve efficiency and productivity. Implementing lean material handling principles combined with increased use...

Why Is the Digital Supply Chain Important for Manufacturing?

Feb 02, 2017

Industry 4.0 is changing the way products are delivered to the marketplace, forcing manufacturers to quickly adopt new business and revenue models. Typically, products are delivered to customers thro...

Interoperability Is Key to Lean Manufacturing in Industry 4.0

Jan 26, 2017

Today, improving manufacturing requires more than simply finding ways to operate faster and reduce expenses. Modern manufacturing is about being smarter. This is where the importance of interoperabili...

Manufacturing Risk Management With Flexible Automation

Jan 19, 2017

Industry 4.0 technologies deliver opportunity for manufacturers to manage risks using flexible automation, particularly when it comes to material movement inside facilities. Automation capabilities ar...

What is the Smart Factory and its Impact on Manufacturing?

Jan 12, 2017

You don’t have to look too closely to see that technology is having a profound impact on how factories operate today. The application of technology is making the process of manufacturing ever increasi...

Industry 4.0 Ushers in a New Era of Manufacturing Intelligence

Jan 05, 2017

Industry 4.0 may be in its infancy but there remain plenty of advances on the horizon, many of which are related to manufacturing intelligence. Manufacturers are currently deploying Industry 4.0 and t...

Year in Review: Industry Embraces Supply Chain Trends of 2016

Dec 20, 2016

This time last year we reviewed 3 Supply Chain Trends to Watch in 2016. The trends were bold, visionary, seemingly futuristic, but industry did not disappoint. There is still much work to be done with...

The Impact of Innovation in Material Transport Technology

Dec 15, 2016

While largely unnoticed by people outside the industry, an area significantly impacted by new technology is the material transport function of manufacturing. Changes to material transport technology a...

5 Articles to Understand Industry 4.0 in Manufacturing

Dec 08, 2016

Continuous improvement is a part of human nature - we work, learn, apply, and repeat. The same mantra can be applied to manufacturing. Whether it’s process changes, employee training, or advances in t...

The Expanding Role of Robotics In Manufacturing

Dec 01, 2016

Since their first use in die casting 50-plus years ago, robots have spread throughout manufacturing. Today they perform a wide range of duties in many different industries. Thanks to advances in senso...

4 Steps to Get Started with Industry 4.0

Nov 24, 2016

We are in an arms race to find a new means of raising the bar for productive, competitive manufacturing. Some say AI is the last tech human beings will ever really invent, learning from and adapting t...

The First Mile in the Manufacturing Supply Chain

Nov 14, 2016

As the final step in the supply chain, the Last Mile has always been a focus of improvement: “How do we cut costs? How do we get goods to the customer faster than on-time?” New processes, urban sprawl...

RoboBusiness 2016 Key Takeaways

Oct 25, 2016

This post is by Sam Bouchard and originally published on the Robotiq blog. We’re back from our yearly sync with the robotics industry happening at RoboBusiness. As usual, there were great talks and ...

Mobile Cobots are Coming

Oct 19, 2016

Production plants and distribution centers spend much of their time moving goods, but many of the solutions currently in use are problematic. The forklift yields high labor costs, bringing with it ris...

Emerging Tech from IMTS 2016

Oct 04, 2016

IMTS 2016 featured over 2000 exhibitors and welcomed over 100,000 attendees ranging from eager-to-learn students to seasoned professionals who operate multi-million dollar manufacturing facilities. Th...

5 Key Industry 4.0 Technologies

Sep 27, 2016

Originally posted via ARC Advisory Group. New industry 4.0 technologies, spanning mobile computing to cloud computing, have undergone vast development in the last decade and are now ready to be used ...

The Smart Factory: Manufacturing our Future

Aug 16, 2016

The link between manufacturing and economic growth is critical. For every dollar spent in manufacturing, another $1.37 is added to the economy—this is the largest multiplier of any sector. Manuf...

AI in the Manufacturing Industry

Jul 19, 2016

AI is having quite a moment, as buzzwords go. The Economist recently devoted a front-page to artificial intelligence....

Efficient Lineside Delivery in the Era of Lean Manufacturing

Jul 07, 2016

The goal of the assembly line has not changed since its introduction in the early 20th century. Products must roll off the line meeting the metrics of takt times and productivity along with being defe...

Understanding Industry 4.0

Jun 09, 2016

You’ve heard it in the context of thought leadership, in conversations about advanced manufacturing, and from tech giants who are propelling innovation, but what exactly is Industry 4.0? To quote our ...

LEAN Manufacturing: ​A solution for lean materials handling

May 12, 2016

Sometimes we forget that lean manufacturing is a process and not a final destination - it can be easy to think that way. Your manufacturing operation achieved an improvement of “X” by uncovering signi...

LEAN Manufacturing: Eliminating the Transportation Muda

May 05, 2016

Manufacturing is broken and the transport of materials is responsible. There are of course other problems within manufacturing, but they often start with transport of material. Transportation is one o...

LEAN Manufacturing: Wasted Movement is the Silent Killer

Apr 28, 2016

So often we jump in to complete tasks reactively and neglect to realize that the process is, in actuality, unreliable. This came to mind as we did some spring cleaning and maintenance with our buildin...

LEAN Manufacturing: ​Changing excess inventory from too much to just right

Apr 21, 2016

You have likely heard of the phrase “too much of a good thing.” One may ask if it is possible to have too much of a good thing. Well, consider this example: in Canada and many portions of the northern...

Emerging Tech from MODEX 2016

Apr 19, 2016

Referred to as “the greatest Supply Chain show on earth,” MODEX 2016 made its mark in Atlanta, Georgia April 4-7th and did not disappoint. With over 800 exhibitors, countless networking opportunities,...

LEAN Manufacturing: How to Gain Time on the Assembly Line

Apr 13, 2016

Hurry up and wait. Waiting is part of everyday life. We wait for our coffee every morning. The computer seems like it takes too long when booting up. According to a study by Texas A & M, we spend 38 h...

LEAN Manufacturing: Tackling the 7 Muda in Materials Handling

Apr 13, 2016

Muda (無駄) is a Japanese word meaning "wasteful" and is a key concept in the Toyota Production System (TPS), the precursor to LEAN Manufacturing. According to Toyota, Muda is a process that does not ad...

Lineside Delivery is Broken. Here’s Why.

Mar 23, 2016

Plant supervisor: “What do you mean the line is shut down?”Line foreman: “Station three has the wrong assemblies. Station eight doesn’t have its materials because it didn’t arrive on time.”Plant super...

Indoor Material Transport for Indoor Cities

Mar 22, 2016

Self-driving vehicles aren’t only for Google maps and space-age books. In fact, self-driving vehicles are already hitting the streets – indoor streets that is, for indoor material transport. Indoor c...

5 Challenges in Material Transport Innovation

Mar 16, 2016

To continue to prosper and grow, manufacturers need to embrace innovations in material transport to overcome some of the significant challenges they face in the day-to-day operation of their business....

Introducing OTTO Motors: A Division Of Clearpath

Mar 12, 2016

Clearpath started with humble yet ambitious beginnings and quickly grew to become the leader in research robotics for autonomous vehicles. Since then, the company has evolved to support a more complex...

Why Industry 4.0 Requires Flexible AGVs

Mar 10, 2016

Technology has been in development for the last decade and has now come to fruition in the form of self-driving vehicles. These vehicles are driving into industrial centers and beginning to replace tr...

Why is the Blog Called Level 4?

Mar 08, 2016

Level 4 is the the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) classification for a self-driving vehicle that "performs all safety-critical functions for the entire trip, with the driver no...

Ramping up to Industry 4.0

Mar 01, 2016

So what really is Industry 4.0 and why should you be excited? Industry 4.0 is the next leap in manufacturing. It combines our quest for using large quantities of data; translating it (computing power)...

3 Supply Chain Trends to Watch in 2016

Jan 07, 2016

The New Year is upon us and with that comes predictions of what 2016 has in store. Will Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) continue to drive materials on the factory floor? What is ‘Industry 4.0’ and wh...

3 Challenges of Modern Warehouse Operations

Dec 16, 2015

Human nature forces us to beg the question “how can we be better?” Since the dawn of the industrial revolution, this question has motivated warehouse operators to maintain focus on improving and optim...

Webinar Recording: Transform Your Intralogistics

Oct 30, 2015

Your organization is growing so fast that you can’t keep up. One of your facilities isn’t operating at peak efficiency. Your company is a victim of labour shortage. These challenges have lead you to p...

Introducing OTTO: The World’s First Self-Driving Vehicle for Intralogistics

Sep 23, 2015

After putting in 2 years of product development, we’re excited to announce the world’s first self-driving vehicle for intralogistics and materials handling. World, meet OTTO Self-Driving Vehicle, desi...