In a competitive marketplace, details help differentiate one product from another. A thoughtful feature or a more rugged design can make all the difference. Consumers who buy based solely on price often end up disappointed.

Plastic squeeze bottles for water or Gatorade are ubiquitous at sporting events around the world. Hundreds of millions of them are produced annually.

Have you ever ordered a meal that sounded delicious on the menu, but tasted terrible once it arrived at your table? Have you ever purchased the latest recording from your favorite musician only to find it lacking? No matter what the product or service, what you expect isn’t always what’s delivered.

Will the aerospace industry continue to soar? Or is there turbulence ahead? Share your thoughts.

There are three reasons to attend trade shows: to learn about industry trends and new ways of doing things; to network with industry peers; and to see new technologies. This month’s Assembly Show will not disappoint on any of those fronts.

In 2011, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration received more than 400,000 reports of adverse events related to medical devices. More than 12 percent of those events resulted in hospitalization.

Slowly but surely, the economy is recovering from the Great Recession.

ASSEMBLY magazine has been around since 1958. In that time, we’ve had lean years and great years. We’ve changed our name three times, and we’ve been bought and sold at least five times. We’ve survived tidal shifts in both U.S. manufacturing and publishing. (If you had told me 26 years ago that I would be spending 30 minutes a day on something called Twitter…)

There’s an old joke that the factory of the future will be so automated that it will have just two employees: a guard dog and someone to feed it. Fortunately or not, such a scenario remains the purview of science fiction. Indeed, despite advances in robotics and automation, people remain the most flexible assembly technology.

Last month, my nephew began his first year in college. He hopes someday to get a job in the automotive industry, and I wish him the best of luck.