Manufacturing Matters

“Let's not treat the humans like a robot. Let's treat the robot like a robot.” 

Welding and fabrication can be tedious and unfulfilling when you’re creating the same part over and over. This is just one factor that’s making welders harder to find around the globe. While some manufacturers have invested in traditional robotic welding cells to handle repetitive tasks, they’re often prohibitively expensive and hard to use. In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, Matthew Bush, COO and Co-Founder of Hirebotics, joined TECH B2B Marketing’s Winn Hardin and Amanda Del Buono to talk about how the cobot integrator is helping solve the labor shortage with accessible, easy-to-use cobot welding cells.  

They discuss the impact easy-to-use cobots are having on the fabrication workforce, how these solutions are improving product quality and safety, and much more. 

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What comes to mind when reading the term “no-touch serialization?” and how does that fit into the machine vision space?

Can you imagine taking images of each blank piece of paper in a full ream, “feature printing” (think digital fingerprint), each of them, and then being able to identify each one? For U.S. Pacific Northwest company Alitheon, this is everyday life. In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, Roei Ganzarski, CEO of Alitheon joined TECH B2B Marketing’s Jimmy Carroll and Dan McCarthy to discuss the technology and how it’s used in industries including transportation, luxury goods, collectibles, art, government, and beyond. Ganzarski also talks about the differentiation between barcodes and feature prints, how AI comes into play, how customer data is handled, and the intersection of this technology and machine vision.

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In this special machine vision panel discussion episode of the Manufacturing Matters podcast, Jason Covar (The Imaging Source), David Dechow (Motion AI), and Dale Deering (Teledyne) join TECH B2B Marketing’s Winn Hardin and Jimmy Carroll to discuss all things current and trending in the machine vision space. Topics include the intersection of robotics and machine vision, the real value of AI on the factory floor, line scan imaging, and the latest image sensor developments. Additional topics 3D imaging, SWIR and hyperspectral, industrial computing, and much more.

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I felt the pain of being an integrator and envisioned a world where an entire workflow could be entirely digitalized.

Picture building an automation system in hours, just like with LEGOs. This is what Vention set out to do when Vention began in 2016. In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, Etienne Lacroix, Founder and CEO of Vention joined TECH B2B Marketing’s Jimmy Carroll to talk about how Vention aims to break down the barriers of entry when it comes to automation system adoption. He also compares what Apple did for music – with the integration of iTunes and the iPod – to putting automation hardware and software in one simplistic, plug-and-play ecosystem that is more easily accessible. Additional topics include automation growth drivers, AI and machine vision trends and benefits, building an ecosystem through partnerships, and more.

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With “explainable, industrial-grade AI” the goal is not just predict an issue but understand why.

In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, Berk Birand, CEO, Fero Labs joined TECH B2B Marketing’s Jimmy Carroll to talk about the deployment of AI-based technologies on the factory floor. Leveraging AI in industrial automation can mean more than just visual inspection, as AI tools for process optimization can now help predict when something will go wrong and why, provide positive environmental impacts, and ultimately optimize operational efficiencies and drive revenue. This episode dives into these topics while also touching on greenwashing in the steel industry, generative AI and LLMs, the digitization movement in the industrial sector, the results of a recent AI survey, and more.

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You should expect more from your automation.

In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, Reinhold Niesing, Vice President, Automotive & Battery Vertical Markets, Siemens joined TECH B2B Marketing’s Winn Hardin and Jimmy Carroll to talk about why manufacturers and end users today should expect more out of their automation systems. Leveraging technologies such as AI, for example, can help with preventative maintenance, programming automation systems, visual inspection, and more. As we enter a phase where AI can be grouped into traditional AI and emerging AI, the paradigm continues to shift in terms of how AI can add value. The discussion covered a range of other topics, including EV battery manufacturing, IIoT technology, Siemens’ latest innovations, and more. In addition, Niesing offered a stalwart prediction for the next few years in the industrial automation space.

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“I’ve been doing this technology long enough that I can almost see in shortwave infrared.” 

In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, Martin Ettenberg, CTO, Princeton Infrared Technologies joins TECH B2B Marketing’s Jimmy Carroll and John Lewis to talk about the rise of shortwave infrared (SWIR) imaging technology in the past few years, what’s led to this growth, and how SWIR has evolved over the last 27 years. In addition, the discussion covers relevant SWIR applications, including applications such as biological imaging, astronomy, agriculture, counterfeiting, and more. In addition, Ettenberg looks toward the future of SWIR.

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For startups entering the automation and manufacturing market, the road ahead can be a difficult one. But those coming from Europe into the United States, that road is much bumpier, even with significant funding behind them. In this episode, Sue Susenburger, Managing Partner at giddyUp! Innovations, explains how the company helps foreign startups enter the market with TECH B2B Marketing’s Winn Hardin. They talk about the steps that should be taken when entering the U.S. technology market, from market analysis and legal requirements to building a team and go-to-market strategy. Additionally, Susenburger explains the pitfalls that cause many startups to fail and how they can be avoided.

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As the labor shortage continues to impact manufacturers and the desire for lights-out manufacturing persists, robot adoption continues to grow across disparate types of businesses and applications. In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, Jane Heffner, Vice President of Global Sales & Marketing, Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR) joins TECH B2B Marketing’s Jimmy Carroll and Winn Hardin to discuss growing acceptance of robotics and the company’s advancements in autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). Additionally, they talk about MiR’s 10-year anniversary and the evolution of the company’s technology since Teradyne’s acquisition.

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How do image sensor companies approach new product development? Oftentimes it involves developing custom products for customers and then using the resulting IP as new products. Sometimes, however, these products that may target specific applications such as machine vision end up adding value far beyond the factory floor, from surgical guidance to indoor pet monitoring. If a camera can produce a crisp image for a customer, ultimately its intended use is of no consequence. In this episode of Manufacturing Matters, James McCann, Director of the Low Noise Business Team at Teledyne Imaging joins TECH B2B Marketing’s Jimmy Carroll and John Lewis to discuss the company’s latest technological innovations and the applications in which they add value. In addition, McCann discusses its approach to working with camera customers, single photon imaging, and more. 

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