Modern Manufacturing (Vol.1) - Best Practices From Industry Champions

From assembly lines to man-made tools to machines to automation, the evolution of modern manufacturing has driven the course of the global economy for centuries. We continue to see innovation and creative ideas change the face of modern manufacturing.

By Michelle Segrest, Navigate Content, Inc.

My first impression of Paris was most likely different than anyone else’s. I drove right past the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower and headed straight to the poste Mazas pumping station located beneath the city in the infamous Sewers of Paris. I was equipped with a full-body protective jumpsuit, heavy rubber boots, hardhat, protective glasses, and a gas mask. Then I walked down into literally the bowels of the City of Light. I waded through the waste of a million Parisians, swatting flying insects from my face, to report about the powerful Flygt pumps that protect the glamorous city from waste and stormwater overflow. I love it when people tell me I have a glamorous job!

While this was a memorable plant tour, it wasn’t the first time I witnessed a high-performance facility in action. It wouldn’t be the last.

Since 2008, I have been touring manufacturing facilities worldwide for major industry trade publications. Each one has made a memorable impression. I have watched groundbreaking performance testing in action. I’ve seen sophisticated robotics and advanced machine learning automation that made me think I was on another planet. But I’ve also seen hundreds of dedicated blue-collar workers painstakingly assemble miniature parts by hand. I’ve witnessed the processes of big-budget, brand-name manufacturing with highly sophisticated technology as well as small plants with miniscule budgets—all effectively using simple and complex tools to discover new ways to improve efficiency and reliability.

Best Manufacturing Processes and Modern Manufacturing Fundamentals

After touring more than 75 facilities representing dozens of industries in 12 countries on three continents, there are two common certainties I can report—no two plants are alike, and even if the manufacturing process you are considering is in a vastly different industry than yours, there is something valuable to be learned from every plant’s process.

From assembly lines to man-made tools to machines to automation, the evolution of modern manufacturing has driven the course of the global economy for centuries. We continue to see innovation and creative ideas change the face of modern manufacturing.

I’m so excited to share some of my favorite facility experiences in this three-volume ebook series about modern manufacturing. I just released Volume 1 in which you will read about additive manufacturing—3D printing—and how it is being used in a variety of ways across all industry sectors to increase productivity, improve efficiency, and enhance innovation.

You will learn from major manufacturing companies about how they have used tools like the industrial internet of things (IIoT), condition-based monitoring, in-house equipment testing, sophisticated power systems, computerized maintenance management software (CMMS), continuous improvement, drones, automation, and critical facility design strategies to boost their manufacturing processes.

Each chapter can be read individually and contains valuable lessons and examples that can be used in any industry. More real-world stories will be shared in future volumes. The mission of this series is to share a variety of ideas, expert insight, and best practices from industry champions who have used these tools effectively and successfully. Hopefully, we all can learn from history and the experiences of others and get a glimpse of the future of manufacturing.