A fusion of additive manufacturing and advanced subtractive multitasking capabilities, the Mazak Integrex i-400AM hybrid is indicative of the new technologies with which manufacturers and their employees must keep pace.
Connected and Collaborative Enterprises Collaboration among the players in a market will be the next key to success.
Our company is sponsoring the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute (DMDII), a major effort in Chicago, for example, where companies of all types are joining forces to conceptualize and implement that digital factory, where, for our purposes in the machine tool busi- ness, the fusion of CAD/CAM/CNC and quality control will be overlaid with the product lifecycle management outlook to produce the most cost-effective and effi cient manufactur- ing process for quality products in the market. Friedman’s level playing fi eld factors here, as the acceleration of robot- ics for both machining and material handling enters the picture and acts as a counterbalance to the labor-intensive but very low-cost markets on the planet. As a corollary, the importance of mechatronics in the machine building indus- try must be emphasized, as it already plays a key factor in the design and construction of the machines for that digital factory. Machines will not only need to make the part, they will need the ability to see it, measure it, compare it to the design, make changes on the fl y in an entirely electronic mode with no more trial-and-error and, fi nally, log all the production and workfl ow data, uploading it to a bus for non-
stop statistical analysis of the factory or factories, in the case of multinationals.
An Awareness Not Just of What is, But of What’s Possible Lastly, a keen awareness of the new technologies will be vital. As additive manufacturing alone, in all its seven (current) forms, continues to change the look of American manufactur- ing at the speed of light, companies must be in line with that development and others such as the hybrid machine, which fuses conventional chip-cutting with perhaps laser sintering or other additive methods, to produce a fi nished part. Speed, the one constant goal of OEMs since the day when Henry Ford had his lightbulb moment with the conveyor line for assembly of his cars, will be critical not only in the machining and assembly, but also in the design, modifi cation implementation and logistical handling of parts, as they arrive on that assembly line. Finally, I suggest you begin to see the Industry 4.0 con- cept as something more than a nice catchphrase. It is already impacting your business, in ways you might not yet see, but soon will. Just be sure you see them soon in your factory, not your competitor’s. One quick suggestion is to visit a trade show in your market along with a second show, unrelated to your market. It might make you see your corner of that fl at Earth with a whole new perspective.
63 — Energy Manufacturing 2016
Courtesy Mazak
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