PMI at 50.2%; GE's mfg. suite; NIST, NSF consortium supports advanced manufacturing; MFG DAY 2015; Robotics revolution

PMI at 50.2%: Sept. 2015 Manufacturing ISM Report On Business
New orders, production, and employment growing while supplier deliveries are slower and inventories are contracting.
The report was issued by Bradley J. Holcomb, CPSM, CPSD, chair of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. "The September PMI registered 50.2%, a decrease of 0.9 percentage point from the August reading of 51.1%. The New Orders Index registered 50.1%, a decrease of 1.6 percentage points from the reading of 51.7% in August. The Production Index registered 51.8%, 1.8 percentage points below the August reading of 53.6%. The Employment Index registered 50.5%, 0.7 percentage point below the August reading of 51.2%. Backlog of Orders registered 41.5%, a decrease of 5 percentage points from the August reading of 46.5%. The Prices Index registered 38%, a decrease of 1 percentage point from the August reading of 39%, indicating lower raw materials prices for the 11th consecutive month. The New Export Orders Index registered 46.5%, the same reading as in August. Comments from the panel are mixed with some concern about the global economy and customer confidence."

GE launches brilliant manufacturing suite
Start with realization of the Digital Thread. Next, employ data and analytics across the complete product life cycle. Then, optimize efficiency, from design to manufacturing, operations, and maintenance to service in a closed-loop environment.??
GE officials announced the next version of its Brilliant Manufacturing Suite at its fourth annual Minds + Machines conference. Field-tested and optimized within GE’s own factories, the suite maximizes manufacturing production performance through advanced real-time analytics to enable all manufacturers to realize GE’s Brilliant Factory vision.

The robotics revolution: The next great leap in manufacturing
Few manufacturing companies will be left untouched by the new robotics revolution. But getting the timing, cost, and location right will be critical.
It has been roughly four decades since industrial robots – with mechanical arms that can be programmed to weld, paint, and pick up and place objects with monotonous regularity – first began to transform assembly lines in Europe, Japan, and the U.S.

On Manufacturing Day, NIST and NSF launch consortium to support advanced manufacturing
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, will lead a consortium to identify new and emerging areas of advanced manufacturing that would benefit from shared public-private investment in research and development, education and training.

MFG DAY 2015 is just the start #WhyMFG
Oct. 2, 2015 was a roaring success with more than 2,300 events hosted in manufacturing plants and facilities across North America…all in celebration of MFG DAY 2015.
While the event is tied to the first Friday in October, this year many communities are calling October Manufacturing Month. Three years ago, MFG DAY saw 240 events. In 2014, there were 1,650 events across all 50 states. This year, it may surpass 2,500 events.
Read more on the impact of manufacturing.

https://www.aei.org/publication/october-2-is-manufacturing-day-so-lets-recognize-americas-world-class-manufacturing-sector-and-factory-workers/

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/oct/1/michael-shue-celebrating-manufacturing/

http://www.mfgday.com/