FAIRFIELD, CT—Henry Ford was fond of saying that “nothing was particularly hard if you divided it into small jobs.” He followed his own advice, built the world’s first large-scale assembly lines that cranked out millions of Model Ts every year, and left his competitors in the dust. GE engineers are now taking Ford’s advice to the extreme and breaking down the factory into even smaller pieces: bits and bytes.
Established methods—like ultrasonic and resistance welding—increasingly face competition from advancing technologies like laser, friction and micro welding.
Engineers have many options for joining identical or similar materials. To join, say, a steel part to another steel part, engineers can use screws, rivets, welds, adhesives, clinches or press-fits.
ALEXANDRIA, VA—Fourteen people—including the inventors of the blue LED, the nickel-metal-hydride battery, and the X-ray spectrometer—have been named to the National Inventors Hall of Fame.
If someone tells you his leak test system is superior because of its control software, kick the tires, so to speak. In many, if not most, applications, it is the hardware, not the software, that makes or breaks the ability to get high throughput without compromising gauge R&R.
CLEVELAND—Four North American assembly plants are among the six factories named as Industry Week magazine’s “Best Plants.” The six factories are Boston Scientific (Maple Grove, MN); Cessna Mexico (Chihuahua, Mexico); L.B. Foster Rail Technologies Corp. (Vancouver, BC); General Cable Corp. (Marion, IN); The Raymond Corp. (Greene, NY); and T&S Brass and Bronze Works (Travelers Rest, SC).
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