“If a company is considering the purchase of a CT scanner, they can call us and validate the suitability, then send us a part,” says Steve Young, co-president of Exact Metrology. “We’ll scan it and send them the images. If they don’t believe the output is superior to other scanners in the 225kV range, we’ll send them $100... no strings attached.”
We start off this weekend news with a shout out of congratulations to Jergens Inc. recipients of the NorthCoast 99 Award from ERC, recognizing the company as one of the 99 great Northeast Ohio workplaces for top talent. This annual recognition program and event is in its 21st year of honoring 99 great Northeast Ohio workplaces for top talent.
“The entire Jergens family of employees is excited to be selected as a 2019 NorthCoast 99 award winner. Our company was founded in 1942 by my father and grandfather, and as the third generation leading the company, it has been a total team effort to support Jergens’ worldwide manufacturing of machine tooling, precision assembly tools and industrial distribution growth. Without them, none our success over the last 77 years could have been achieved,” states Jack H. Schron, Jr. president of Jergens Inc.
The 2019 NorthCoast 99 Awards program is sponsored by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield; CareerCurve; Cleveland Magazine; ERChealth; Gino’s Awards; Mark Wayner Creative; Meyers, Roman, Friedburg, & Lewis; Oswald Companies; Staffing Solutions Enterprises; and Ultimate Software.
Meet the Rollbots
And just some cool research coming out of Harvard's John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and Caltech are self-folding robots. Inspired by origami, the soft robotic systems can move and change shape in response to external stimuli, paving the way for fully untethered soft robots.
The researchers turned to origami to create multifunctional soft robots. Through sequential folds, origami can encode multiple shapes and functionalities in a single structure. Using materials known as liquid crystal elastomers that change shape when exposed to heat, the research team 3D-printed two types of soft hinges that fold at different temperatures and thus can be programmed to fold in a specific order.
So what can top a self-folding robot, just a recap of the weekly news you may have missed:
Nearly two-thirds of manufacturers surveyed believe that Quality 4.0 – the application of Industry 4.0's advanced digital technologies to enhance quality management – will significantly affect their operation within 5 years. The benefits of this approach include reductions in defect rates and in costs related to poor quality. Nevertheless, only 16% say that their company has begun implementing Quality 4.0; 20% say that their company has started to plan for implementation; and 63% have not even reached the planning stage yet. European companies are off to a faster start: 21% have started to adopt, compared with only 6% of U.S. companies.
These findings are from a global survey conducted by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in collaboration with ASQ and German Association for Quality (DGQ). The survey sought to evaluate participants' views on Quality 4.0 as it exists today and as in 2024, to understand the most important use cases and to identify major challenges and skills needed to implement a transformation.
The study found that technology is only one piece in a broader quality transformation that must also focus on people and skills. The survey's findings revealed a diverse set of opportunities and challenges:
Survey participants acknowledge the importance of Quality 4.0 at all stages of the value chain but see manufacturing and R&D as the areas that will benefit most. They also understand the opportunity to capture quality-related improvements in value chain steps that have traditionally been seen as lying outside the scope of the quality function, such as logistics and sales.
Participants point to predictive analytics, sensors and tracking, and electronic feedback loops as the most important technologies for driving impact. For example, more than 60% say that predictive analytics will significantly affect quality performance and the bottom line within five years, compared with only 16% who cite a significant impact today.
Survey responses to skills-related questions reveal widespread unreadiness for implementation. Only one-third of participants say that they understand how digitization will change quality management roles and skills, and even fewer believe that their company has the right people in place to run a Quality 4.0 initiative (17%) or has a clear strategy for attracting Quality 4.0 talent (5%).
Many organizations lack the basic prerequisites of a quality-focused culture. Although 57% of participants say that quality initiatives are part of their executive-level strategy, only 27% strongly believe that their company has clearly articulated its quality goals and objectives to all layers of the organization. Only 14% of participants believe that individuals across the organization understand their roles in achieving quality goals.
Both frontrunners (companies that have started to implement Quality 4.0) and followers (all others) cite a shortage of digital skills and talent as the number one challenge they face. For frontrunners, the next three most important challenges involve technology and data. In contrast, followers point to strategic and cultural challenges. These differences in appraisal suggest that technology- and data-related challenges become more visible to companies as they proceed with implementation. Meanwhile, roadblocks related to strategy and culture discourage followers from even pursuing implementation—a reflection of the importance of establishing a strategic roadmap and a quality-centered culture as enablers of technological transformation.
Absolute Machine Tools Inc. invites anyone interested in productivity-boosting machine tools – as well as Bavarian-style food and beer – to register to attend a free authentic Oktoberfest Open House at the company’s 40,000ft2 technical center in Mason, Ohio, from 11:00am to 7:00pm, Thurs., Oct. 24, 2019.
At the event, company experts will help attendees match their parts to machines that can best produce them. With turning lines ranging from CNC gang-style lathes to multi-slide, multi-axis turning CNC screw machines, and sliding headstock Swiss solutions or fixed headstock CNC screw or hybrid machines, Absolute can provide a productive choice for any application.
Attendees will also learn how to simply and cost-effectively begin a journey into automation. Options range from 7-axis cobots for entry level collaborative automation to high-end machine tending and part inspection robots from Mitsubishi and Fanuc.
Many machines from Absolute feature built-in automation, including integrated loading systems such as single- and twin-spindle gantry loaders and palletized robotic systems. In addition, retrofit gantry-style loading systems and bar feeding equipment can be easily interfaced with existing machines.
9 global ophthalmic device market trends
The global ophthalmic devices market is predicted to reach $65 billion by 2025.
In the "Global Ophthalmic Devices Market, Major Deals, Trends, Key Players Analysis, Recent Developments - Forecast to 2025" report, the market is predicted to reach $65 billion by 2025. Used in the identification and treatment of ocular defects or deficiencies and eye disorders, ophthalmic medical devices are designed for diagnostics, surgical, and vision correction purposes and are continuously gaining increased importance and adoption due to the high prevalence of various ophthalmic diseases such as glaucoma, cataract, and other vision-related issues.
Vision care segment dominated overall ophthalmic devices market
Surgical instruments devices held the second highest share of overall ophthalmic devices market
Diagnostic & monitoring expected to grow at the fastest rate during the forecast period
Contact lens held the largest share of the ophthalmic devices market
Cataract surgery devices accounted for second-highest share of the total ophthalmic devices market
Retinal surgery devices – third largest product segment of the ophthalmic devices market in 2018
Global market for fundus cameras valued at $430 million in 2018
Global optical coherence tomography (OCT) scanner market poised to grow at a CAGR of around 9.5% during through 2025
Global cataract surgery devices market projected to reach $9 billion mark by 2025
Posted by Elizabeth Engler Modic
