Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast
Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast offers news and information for the people who make, store and move things and those who manage and maintain the facilities where that work gets done. Manufacturers can listen for critical insights into the technologies, economic conditions and best practices that can influence how to best run facilities to reach operational excellence.
![Image](https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/btr6e2/Podcast_Home_Logo_V242c7aaea-649c-ac07-6142-ae0097802dce.png)
Meet the Manufacturing Group
Contributing to the podcast are seasoned manufacturing journalists from Endeavor Business Media’s Manufacturing Group:
- Robert Brooks, editor in chief, American Machinist
- Dave Blanchard, editor in chief, EHS Today
- Robert Brooks, editor in chief, Foundry Management & Technology
- Robert Schoenberger, editor in chief, IndustryWeek
- Dave Blanchard, editor in chief, Material Handling & Logistics
- Laura Davis, editor in chief, New Equipment Digest
- Thomas Wilk, editor in chief, Plant Services
- Scott Achelpohl, managing editor, Smart Industry
Episodes
![Lean Manufacturing: It's Still All About People, Darnit!](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/ols-screenshot_29fz4k_300x300.png)
2 days ago
2 days ago
No one will ever accuse Dave Rizzardo, associate director of the Maryland World Class Consortia of being shy or dispassionate about lean manufacturing and operational excellence. But, on a panel discussion at IndustryWeek's recent Operations Leadership Summit, the audience got an earful from the operations expert on treating people right, listening to your employees and how it's the leader's job to make sure everyone else can do their work.
Joining Dave for this particularly lively panel discussion was his friend (well, they were friends at the start of the conversation) Carl Livesay, general manager of Maryland-based Mercury Plastics. Also speaking was Sarah Tilkens, CEO of the KPI Lab and senior manager for operational excellence at GE Healthcare. The moderator is Robert Schoenberger, editor-in-chief at IndustryWeek.
![The Myths of Fiber Optic Cables](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/The-Myths-of-Fiber-Optic-Cables_seqx6r_300x300.jpg)
4 days ago
The Myths of Fiber Optic Cables
4 days ago
4 days ago
Bust your misconceptions of fiber optic cables by learning about their construction, types, terminations, costs, and advantages when used for the industrial IoT.
About the Article
A Guide to Fiber Cable Types and Cost for the Industrial IoTBust your misconceptions of fiber optic cables by learning about their construction, types, terminations, costs, and advantages when used for the industrial IoT.Written by Henry MartelRead by Laura DavisRead the article
![How To Identify and Eliminate Production Bottlenecks](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/How-To-Identify-and-Eliminate-Production-Bottlenecks_s7qqum_300x300.jpg)
Thursday Jul 18, 2024
How To Identify and Eliminate Production Bottlenecks
Thursday Jul 18, 2024
Thursday Jul 18, 2024
It’s a story so familiar that it is also a children’s proverb: “for want of a nail, the kingdom was lost.” In this new podcast episode we cover how to identify and eliminate pinch points on the manufacturing floor. Our guests this week, Jerry Nation and Hunter Price of Ingenics Corporation, talk about their experience helping plants in the automotive sector get past production bottlenecks that were dramatically slowing down production, and stressing out downstream operations teams.
![AI’s Potential in Manufacturing? The ‘Use Cases’ Keep Growing](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/AIs-potential-in-manufacturing-The-use_cases-keep-growing_u5k6z7_300x300.jpg)
Tuesday Jul 16, 2024
AI’s Potential in Manufacturing? The ‘Use Cases’ Keep Growing
Tuesday Jul 16, 2024
Tuesday Jul 16, 2024
Sean O’Meara is CIO of Monticello, Indiana-based heavy-duty generator and power enclosure maker Girtz Industries, and Jason Ryska is director of manufacturing technology development at one of the big Detroit Three, Ford Motor Company.
Smart Industry’s Scott Achelpohl moderated a question-and-answer session with O’Meara and Ryska at IndustryWeek’s end-of-June Operations Leadership Summit in Indianapolis, and since the chat was all about artificial intelligence applications in manufacturing, SI is bringing it to you as part of our group’s “Great Question” series.
Sean will say he knows a lot about what Girtz Industries does, but he’ll also say he’s their IT guy, meaning it’s his job to support the real experts, the engineers and manufacturing people who make it possible to do what Girtz does. He has helped Girtz overhaul its IT landscape, encompassing system integrations, network enhancements, and the adoption of robust platforms.
As the “IT guy,” part of his life has been all about AI, and how he can help Girtz leverage the use of AI in advancing its business processes and manufacturing processes. And he’s been a regular speaker at our industry conferences lately on the topic of how AI to the factory floor, including the just-concluded Operations Leadership Summit.
Jason and his team serve as intermediaries between technology companies and the automaker. His team looks at what problems need solving, the available technology and whether a technology initiative ties into Ford's larger objectives and business plan. Jason has almost 30 years of experience in automotive manufacturing.
![Reshoring Manufacturing: Pharma, Trucking, Plastics Insights [Production Pulse]](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/Production_Pulse_Reshoring_Jobs_to_America_2-46_screenshot_y2jdk5_300x300.png)
Thursday Jul 11, 2024
Reshoring Manufacturing: Pharma, Trucking, Plastics Insights [Production Pulse]
Thursday Jul 11, 2024
Thursday Jul 11, 2024
The Reshoring Initiative's 2023 report shows jobs continuing to flow into the United States from Asia as companies look to shorten supply chains and protect themselves against ongoing trade disputes. The figure fell in 2023 from 2022's record but remains well elevated compared to pre-pandemic statistics.
At IndustryWeek and other Endeavor Business Media publications, we've seen that trend building with new battery plants, trucking hubs, pharmaceutical operations and plastic injection molding facilities popping up -- operations that might have gone to Asia a decade ago.
Discussing that trend are:
Lynne Sherwin, managing editor of Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing
Karen Langhauser, chief content director for Pharma Manufacturing
Kevin Jones, editorial director of EBM's fleet group, including FleetOwner, Trailer/Body Builders, Bulk Transporter, Refrigerated Transporter, American Trucker, and Fleet Maintenance magazines and websites
Robert Schoenberger, editor-in-chief of IndustryWeek and editorial director of EBM's manufacturing group
![The Psychology Behind Safer Workplaces [Talking EHS]](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/The-Psychology-Behind-Safer-Workplaces_3fy52e_300x300.jpg)
Tuesday Jul 09, 2024
The Psychology Behind Safer Workplaces [Talking EHS]
Tuesday Jul 09, 2024
Tuesday Jul 09, 2024
In this “Talking EHS” podcast episode, you’ll learn about the new tools and strategies companies are using to foster psychologically safer workplaces.
About the Article
The Psychology of SafetyNew tools and strategies emerge to foster psychologically safer workplaces.Written and read by Adrienne SelkoRead the article
![Why Everyone Is Faking Their KPIs (But Shouldn’t Be) [Ask a Plant Manager]](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/Why-Everyone-Is-Faking-Their-KPIs-But-Shouldn_t-Be_3h6nz5_300x300.jpg)
Saturday Jul 06, 2024
Why Everyone Is Faking Their KPIs (But Shouldn’t Be) [Ask a Plant Manager]
Saturday Jul 06, 2024
Saturday Jul 06, 2024
Joe Kuhn, CMRP, former plant manager, engineer, and global reliability consultant, is now president of Lean Driven Reliability LLC. He is the author of the book “Zero to Hero: How to Jumpstart Your Reliability Journey Given Today’s Business Challenges” and the creator of the Joe Kuhn YouTube Channel, which offers content on starting your reliability journey and achieving financial independence. In our monthly podcast miniseries, Ask a Plant Manager, Joe considers a commonplace scenario facing the industry and offers his advice, as well as actions that you can take to get on track tomorrow. This episode offers insight into why fake numbers fake real progress.
![Best Practices Are Boring. Hop on the Fad Bandwagon to Make Your Facility More Exciting.](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/Hop-on-the-Fad-Bandwagon-to-Make-Your-Facility-More-Exciting_n7bp59_300x300.jpg)
Thursday Jul 04, 2024
Thursday Jul 04, 2024
Captain Unreliability is a satire of the state of the manufacturing industry in ’Merica today and is written by an industry professional known for using humor to get the point across. In his columns, The Captain covers a range of topics, including the art of avoiding work, creating a culture of unreliability, and why a reliability program is like a toilet. In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Alexis Gajewski, senior content strategist for Plant Services, shares The Captain’s thoughts on fads and why all complex problems can be solved by embracing The Next Big Thing as the solution.
About the Article
Why chasing fads is the key to corporate successCaptain Unreliability thinks that you can tackle all complex problems by embracing The Next Big Thing as the solution.Written by Captain UnreliabilityRead by Alexis GajewskiRead the article
![Reviewing the Mid-Year Manufacturing Reviews](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/Reviewing-the-Mid-Year-Manufacturing-Reviews_sukw3i_300x300.jpg)
Tuesday Jul 02, 2024
Reviewing the Mid-Year Manufacturing Reviews
Tuesday Jul 02, 2024
Tuesday Jul 02, 2024
2024 has reached its midpoint, and in businesses that is a good time for evaluation. There is uncertainty everywhere in manufacturing – with slow demand for manufactured products leading to weak revenue growth for manufacturing businesses. Here are three perspectives on the first half of 2024, and a peek at the months ahead of us.
![Our Top New Product Picks From This Month](https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/ep-logo/pbblog4283355/Our-Top-New-Product-Picks-From-This-Month_cezuyk_300x300.jpg)
Saturday Jun 29, 2024
Our Top New Product Picks From This Month
Saturday Jun 29, 2024
Saturday Jun 29, 2024
Join Alexis Gajewski, who is filling in for Laura Davis, Editor in Chief of New Equipment Digest, as she talks about her choices for the latest new products to hit the manufacturing industry this past month.
Learn more about the products mentioned in this episode