The phrase “cloud computing” quickly grew from a vague concept into a popular data storage, retrieval and sharing strategy that more and more companies are using to streamline their businesses. As cloud technology continues to advance in terms of security, user-friendliness and efficiency, it becomes more important for every company to consider whether or not…
Read More
On May 9, the California Energy Commission unanimously voted to require all new homes built after January 1, 2020, to feature solar panels. California has long been at the forefront of clean energy, helping lead the way for alternative fuel use in fleet vehicles and offering more electric recharge options for hybrid and full-electric vehicle…
Read More
Manufacturing is alive and well in the U.S.: This industry has been leading job growth in the country, adding 222,000 jobs from February 2017 to the same month in 2018, and, in turn, boosting the economy. That’s because manufacturing jobs offer higher average weekly compensation with full work weeks and better benefits than many available…
Read More
Perhaps you heard the news, and perhaps you didn’t. Either way, 2018 is the year of employee engagement. What does this mean and how does it affect you? What Is Employee Engagement? Employee engagement is the effort to improve the employee experience. It may include employee benefit programs and other efforts to increase employee happiness….
Read More
Hindsight is usually perfect but of little use in today’s fast-paced manufacturing environment in the U.S. and around the world. The IHS Markit Flash Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) tracks business trends across the manufacturing sector in the U.S. In addition to keeping up with the monthly Institute for Supply Management (ISM) PMI, monitoring the Flash…
Read More
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is proposing to curb the oversupply of prescription painkillers available on the market. The development comes against the backdrop of an opioid crisis that killed nearly 64,000 people in the U.S. in 2016. The plan, which Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced last month, could reduce the volume of opioids…
Read More
Have you ever wondered if there was an alternate way to start the motors of your various machines and pieces of equipment? An ordinary startup gets the job done, but there are many ways in which it’s less than ideal. Is there an alternative method you could be using? If so, what is it? If…
Read More
In the world of machine driven manufacturing if you want to increase production to match a growth cycle you logically have to add on more machines. But even if your company is enjoying a steady pattern of growth, the cost of increasing production can be enormous. No matter what industry you are in or what your…
Read More
Manufacturing is trending more and more towards automation with obvious benefits such as streamlined production lines, succinct product tracking and robust data collection to analyze logistics and production flow. One big push in automation is the use of RFID (radio frequency identification) to track products throughout the product lifecycle without the need for scanning barcodes….
Read More
Despite a 1.5 percentage point decrease in March, manufacturers were optimistic about industry growth moving out of the first quarter of 2018. Showing similar signs, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) again dropped in April. With a decrease of 2.0 percentage points from March’s 59.3 reading to 57.3 in April, what…
Read More