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Next generation manufacturing will succeed or fail based on how the next generation work force is utilized. "I can think of no faster path to a worldwide recession than for the United States and China to turn against one another." Automation, flexibility and optimization will define the factory of the future. So said presenters at the ARC Forum, held last month in Orlando, where “Next Generation Manufacturing” was the topic. “I suddenly realized that almost the entire ‘Who’s Who’ of automation was in that room today,” said an industry marketing vice president to Jane Gerold and me during the recent Manufacturing Strategies Forum put on by Andy Chatha and his ARC Advisory Group, held in Orlando Feb. “Knowledge is the only instrument of production that is not subject to diminishing returns.” — J.M. Clark. Automation professionals are a pretty smart bunch of people. For decades, control system vendors packaged automation solutions in black-box configurations—open them and make changes at your own risk. The United States, and indeed, much of the developed world, is in the midst of a curious labor quandary. Even as the business journals report massive layoffs in the manufacturing sector—affecting hundreds of thousands of employees—manufacturers themselves are complaining of difficulties in hiring skilled workers. Every ten years or so, a technology comes along that completely changes the way we do business. Sometimes it’s a brand new technology; other times it’s a technology that has finally reached critical adoption. The Hart communication protocol (for Highway Addressable Remote Transmitter) is a venerable protocol now more than 20 years old. One of the worst natural disasters in the history of the United States is bringing out the best in its citizens—and the automation industry is no exception. It hit me like one of those times when your kids point out the obvious that you’ve been either missing or avoiding. During an interview, Nic Gihl, Schneider Electric vice president of industrial automation and control, threw the phrase “our industry” into an answer. “No one told you when to run/You missed the starting gun” —from “On the Run,” Pink Floyd. Security assessments of plant networks and audits of production equipment reveal that manufacturers are using a wide range of methods to support remote access to their equipment. I’m in mobile phone purgatory. My cellular provider was purchased last year in what I thought at the time was a great move. You see, I didn’t like the service I had all that much and thought the new company would be an improvement. The use of wireless sensors in wellhead monitoring of oil and gas fields is a key application that shows promise. The measurements involved are conventional process measurements of pressure, level and flow using a small number of wireless measurements on each well. As a “geeky,” introverted, engineering type as an undergraduate, the offer to bail out of speech class in order to help fill a section of “small group discussion” class and still fulfill the requirement was an answer to prayers. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) has proved valuable as a means to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of product development. The automotive industry’s migration to a build-to-order paradigm is full of challenges, not the least of which is aligning the hundreds of component suppliers to an automotive manufacturer. While “Big Brother” may not be watching you, it’s a sure bet that someone is. Almost all aspects of our lives are exposed to scrutiny, from security cameras to Internet links to Google searches. “Where Are the Jobs?” screams the cover of the March 22 issue of BusinessWeek. “Machines Continue Takeover,” warns the March 7 edition of the Chicago Tribune.
indicates a sponsored article that was submitted directly to this Web site by the supplier, and was not handled by the AW editorial staff.
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