The Next Frontier Podcast

Edward Mehr, the visionary CEO of Machina Labs. Machina Labs, at the forefront of a new era in manufacturing, is revolutionizing the field with its groundbreaking Robotic Craftsman platform. Our discussion today will journey through Ed's experiences in founding Machina Labs, exploring how this innovative company is redefining metal forming technology and reshaping the future of manufacturing in the United States.

This episode promises to be a treasure trove for those intrigued by the evolution of manufacturing, particularly in how Machina's Robotic Craftsman platform is disrupting traditional metal forming methods with its unparalleled cost efficiency, speed, and precision. We'll dive into the Robo Forming process, its compatibility with various materials, and how Machina Labs is advancing sheet metal forming technology. Ed will share insights into the training of their models, a critical aspect considering the complex physics of precision sheet metal forming, and discuss the potential scalability and democratization of this technology beyond aerospace.

We'll also touch upon the broader manufacturing landscape, gleaning Ed's perspective on leading companies in the U.S. manufacturing sector and valuable lessons from his extensive experience in innovative manufacturing environments, including SpaceX. Our conversation will conclude with Ed sharing a success story that encapsulates the transformative impact of Machina Labs' technology, alongside his vision for the next six months and his thoughts on the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.

We distilled key lessons learned working at world class enterprise companies that are powerfully applied to every small and medium sized manufacturing company.

Join us on this enlightening journey as we explore how Machina Labs is not just shaping metal, but also the future of manufacturing, contributing to a world where industry and innovation are key drivers of freedom and flourishing. Stay tuned for an episode that's not just informative but also a beacon for anyone passionate about the ever-evolving landscape of manufacturing and technology.

Resources Mentioned & Other Links of Interest

Aerospace Alloys oh my! – Inconel, inbar

Machina Labs Capabilities

Machina Labs Intro Video

Machina Labs on Smarter Everyday

Careers at Machina Labs

Photocredit: Tech Crunch - Machina Labs emerges from stealth with $16M raised for on-demand manufacturing robotics

About Our Guest

Follow Ed on LinkedIn, here.

Follow Machina Labs on Linkedin, here.

Learn more about Machina Labs, here.

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On the Next Frontier Podcast we deliver gems about how industry, innovation, and individualism are creating and protecting freedom and flourishing. We are witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces. The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing freedom and flourish as you lead the way into the Next Frontier.

We're now on Substack! If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

We dig into our food supply chain (stuff chain) and where our agriculture products come from. Farmland financier, entrepreneur and investor, Artem Milinchuk helps us learn through his data-driven, bird's eye view of how the agriculture industry works. Artem is pioneering democratized farmland investments at FarmTogether. The company is building technology to enable every individual to more deeply engage with and participate in our food stuff chain. Artem helps us learn how food makes its way from farmland across the United States into the bellies of people all over the world.  We also dive into different ways that innovation and technology are empowering more antifragile agriculture supply chains and capital ecosystems.

A quick note to round this intro off… Food is foundational to freedom and flourishing; without an antifragile food supply, lots of people die. And innovation, industry, and individualism are foundational to antifragile food supplies. The marvelous and miraculous human achievement of feeding billions of people at scale (as we do today) required and continues to require substantial innovation, industry, and individualism to build, make viable, sustain, and scale abundance. We’ll peel this onion (pun intended, b/c food) with targeted podcast conversations over the next few months.For full show notes, check out The Next Frontier Podcast on Substack.com by visiting www.nextfrontierpodcast.com.

About Our Guest

Follow Artem on LinkedIn, here.

Check out Farm Together on LinkedIn, here.

Check out Farm Together, here.

Subscribe for More

On the Next Frontier Podcast we deliver gems about how industry, innovation, and individualism are creating and protecting freedom and flourishing.

We're now on Substack! If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

Jason Kim leads one of the World’s most agile and innovative aerospace manufacturing companies. In this episode, we dive into how Jason and his team at Millennium Space Systems (a Boeing company) are pioneering digital-first, high volume manufacturing for small satellites. We also dive into Jason’s robust experience in the aerospace industry, ranging from his service in the US Air Force (thank you to all of the Veterans out there for your service!) to his time working across the aerospace industry, and now as CEO of Millenium Space Systems. Throughout the conversation, Jason shares powerful, tactical lessons about leadership, solving complex problems, and scaling a digitally defined manufacturing company.

South By Southwest

Boeing Acquires Millennium Space Systems

What is a satellite?

On Orbit Manufacturing And Servicing

3 Ways To Use Satellites In Your Business

How Tiny Satellites Are Changing The Way We Do Business

Insights From Boeing Additive Manufacturing

Design For Manufacturability 

Elon Musk Factory is The Product

Palmer Luckey On The All In Podcast

Millenium Space Systems Careers

Follow Jason on LinkedIn, here.

Check out Millennium Space Systems, here. They are hiring!

On the Next Frontier Podcast we deliver gems about how industry, innovation, and individualism are creating and protecting freedom and flourishing. We are witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces. The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing freedom and flourish as you lead the way into the Next Frontier.

We're now on Substack! If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

This episode is all about the macro state of the manufacturing workforce. “If you don’t make stuff, there is no stuff.” – Elon Musk.

All of the stuff we rely on and enjoy needs to come from somewhere… and someone. Manufacturing might otherwise be called: people and machines making the stuff that enables other peoples’ and machines’ high level of capabilities, flourishing, and freedom.

In this conversation with Jake Hall, AKA ‘The Manufacturing Millennial’, we deep dive into his work using media to inspire young people to join the manufacturing industry. From working with small manufacturers to Fortune 100 companies, Jake creates awareness around automation and modernization, investing in skilled trades, and attracting the next generation workforce. The Manufacturing Millennial makes a powerful case for the future of manufacturing – and manufacturing careers – in the United States.

National Association of Manufacturers: Key Manufacturing Statistics

Companion Episode: Digital Transformation With Keith Gargiulo 

American Welding Society 

Great Resignation

Amazon Uses A LOT OF Warehouse Robots

Amazon Robotics

AGV and AMR Industrial Robotics (Automated Guided Vehicle, Automated Mobile Robots)

Eastern Kentucky Advanced Manufacturing Institute (EKAMI)

Path Robotics Welding Robots

Follow Jake on LinkedIn, here.

Learn more about the Manufacturing Millennial, here.

On the Next Frontier Podcast we deliver gems about how industry, innovation, and individualism are creating and protecting freedom and flourishing. We are witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces. The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing freedom and flourish as you lead the way into the Next Frontier.

We're now on Substack! If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

Where Telecom Comes From with Michael Bloxton, CEO of Nebula Compute

Do you know where your cell service and internet come from? What does the physical infrastructure that lets you talk to your team, friends, and family on the other side of the world look like and how does it work? In this episode, Michael Bloxton joins us to explore how the bits that run our modern lives and businesses move around the world, and how the atoms of telecom infrastructure really make the magic happen. We also dive into where our computer power might come from in the future and what Mike is building at Nebula Space Systems.

The Cell Service Actually Works by Wendover Productions

Cellular Network Consolidation

Submarine Cable Map

Cell Tower Mapper

How Information Travels Wirelessly

Here's Why Your Phone Stops Working When You're In A Huge Crowd

PACE Planning

Episode #16 with Namrata Goswami

Nebula Compute

Follow Mike on LinkedIn, here.

Learn more about Nebula Compute, here.

The world is changing rapidly and dramatically. We are ALL witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces that we have not seen in modern human history (or possibly ever). The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing YOUR freedom and flourish as YOU lead the way into the Next Frontier. 

We're on Substack! If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

Energy production and independence are foundational to freedom and flourishing. As we learn from Ivan Gonick in this conversation, the United States power grid is extremely complex and fragile. Ivan is the CEO of Veteran Solar; in this conversation he breaks down how at home solar power systems work and why they are an excellent mechanism to build a more antifragile energy system. Ivan also shares insights about where solar systems come from – from the panels themselves, to auxiliary components like batteries and transformers.

Shorting The Grid (Book)

One Second After (Book)

Solar Module Manufacturing

Khan Academy: Solar Cells

Microgrids

Nuclear EMP Could Take Our The Power Grid

Cyberattacks

Mike Howard Podcast Episode

Texas Power Grid Was Minutes Away From Total Failure

For hackers and DIY’ers: Check out Jehu Garcia’s Youtube Channel All About Building Solar Systems

Follow Ivan on LinkedIn, here.

Check out Veteran Solar’s work, here.

The world is changing rapidly and dramatically. We are ALL witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces that we have not seen in modern human history (or possibly ever). The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing YOUR freedom and flourish as YOU lead the way into the Next Frontier. If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic research, conversations, ideas, and insights, please subscribe to our Substack here.

In this episode serial industrial entrepreneur, Fred Horowitz, shares lessons that he’s learned through his robust manufacturing career and how he is navigating the rapidly evolving industrial landscape as a United States consumer goods manufacturing company. Fred is a deeply experienced CEO and founder of multiple, fast-growing consumer product brands. He is the current Chairman and CEO of A.P. Deauville and Partner at American Brand Holdings, LLC, the parent company of popular apparel brand, Hang Ten®.

**A quick note on Audio Quality… We had to stick with backup audio for this episode; Fred comes through loud and clear, but Max comes through a bit muted. Thank you for your listenership and support as we grow our show and work out technical kinks!**

AP Deauville 

Plastic Supply Chain Disruption

Mike Howard Podcast

Shelley Huff Podcast

Antiperspirant vs Deodorant 

Propylene Glycol Force Majeure 

Just In Time Manufacturing and the supply chain

The Black Swan (Book)

The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith (Book)

About Our Guest

Follow Fred on LinkedIn, here.

We deliver gems about how industry, innovation, and individualism are creating and protecting freedom and flourishing. The world is changing rapidly and dramatically. We are ALL witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces that we have not seen in modern human history (or possibly ever). The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing YOUR freedom and flourish as YOU lead the way into the Next Frontier. If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

In this episode, Shelley Huff shares her frontline perspective on the transformation unfolding in the United States’ supply chains, particularly the shift from global, just-in-time, and fragile back towards local, safety stock, and antifragile (per Nassim Taleb's concept). Since we recorded this episode, Shelley moved from her role leading Serta Simmons as Chief Operating Officer to leading the organization as Chief Executive Officer. Before her current role as the CEO of Serta Simmons, Shelley played a central, action packed role building and leading key business initiatives for Walmart. In addition to her frontline insights on what is happening with global supply chains, Shelley helps us learn about where mattresses come from, how supply chains function at massive global organizations, the right way to use just-in-time manufacturing, and the rapid changes unfolding in the direct to consumer landscape.

Sourcing Matrix

Walmart and Supply Chain Transparency

Walmart Apply To Be A Supplier

Walmart’s Annual Event For American Made Products

Just In Time And Lean Manufacturing

Mattress Industry Shortages

Texas Ice Storm And Plastics

Safety Stock

Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder (Book)

Lean Six Sigma Black Belt

Direct To Consumer

Follow Shelley on LinkedIn, here.

The world is changing rapidly and dramatically. We are ALL witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces that we have not seen in modern human history (or possibly ever). The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking Where Stuff Comes From, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing YOUR freedom and flourish as YOU lead the way into the Next Frontier. If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

In this episode, we sit down with Lee Benson, a serial entrepreneur and industrialist who built, led, and exited Able Aerospace – a company he grew from 3 to 500 employees with 15 consecutive years of 20 percent compounded average annual growth. After selling Able Aerospace for 9-figures to publicly-traded Textron Aviation, Lee committed himself to helping other leaders achieve similar results. HE founded ETW, where he now helps senior leadership teams work better together at improving their organization’s most important number. His main focus is to help leaders develop intentional, high-performance cultures that are driven by key performance metrics. In this wide ranging conversation we explore how Lee built a fully integrated aerospace maintenance giant and how he's now empowering other leaders Execute To Win.

Able Aerospace

Vertical Integration

Extreme Ownership (Book)

The Great Resignation

Mind Methodology

Mind Up

Journeyage

Mentorcloud

Execute to Win

Follow Lee on LinkedIn, here.

The world is changing rapidly and dramatically. We are ALL witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces that we have not seen in modern human history (or possibly ever). The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing YOUR freedom and flourish as YOU lead the way into the Next Frontier. If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.

In this episode, we sit down with Cam Adair, Founder of GameQuitters.com to break down how digital and gaming addiction are shaping our world and the Next Frontier. Gaming and more broadly digital addiction affects nearly all young people in today's world. After learning from this conversation with Cam, I believe that understanding gaming addiction is critical to understanding a wide range of significant global trends - including increased rates of mental illness, the United State’s labor shortage, and the Free World’s ongoing Cold War with China.

Cam’s Ted Talk

Game Quitters

Cloudlandia

China Bans Gaming

Every Game Company That Tencent (China) Has Invested In

The Great Online Game

The Sabbath (Book)

Hadza Hunter-Gatherers in Tanzania (Video)

Joe Polish’s Genius Recovery

Americans Prefer Not To Know Where Their Stuff Comes From - NY Post

Follow Cam on LinkedIn, here.

Follow Cam on Twitter, here.

Follow Cam on YouTube, here.

Learn more about Cam on his website, here.

The world is changing rapidly and dramatically. We are ALL witnessing a collision of economic, political, technological, social, cultural, spiritual, and other powerful forces that we have not seen in modern human history (or possibly ever). The Next Frontier Podcast is THE forum to help you explore, converse, and learn about how our current frontier is evolving and how the next frontier is taking shape. From pro-freedom innovation resources and technology to rethinking where stuff comes from, we are driven to give you the ideas, tools, and information that are fundamental to maximizing YOUR freedom and flourish as YOU lead the way into the Next Frontier. If you’d like to stay up-to-date with and support our tactical and strategic insights, please subscribe here.