After years of cancellations and virtual events due to the pandemic, industrial trade shows are back. Even with tremendous advances in how virtual events are conducted, they still cannot compete with the efficiency and powerful ability of in-person events to help brands form new business connections.

The pandemic disrupted supply chains around the world and exposed many weaknesses, but one of the most glaring issues was in microchip manufacturing. Microchips are the engine that runs the modern world, from cars to mobile phones, computers, and electronics of all kinds, disruption to the production of microchips rippled through the world economy. Many industries that require advanced microchips in the manufacturing process experience delays and shortages. The shortages drove the price of goods up and contributed to rising worldwide inflationary pressures.

The James Webb Space Telescope is the successor to the Hubble Telescope and is one of the most expensive single devices built in human history. So far, the cost of the telescope has been more than $10 billion and operational costs will continue to add up over the years. The question is, is it worth it? What will be the return on the incredible investment in time, money, and resources? Some people argue that we should be investing in other more urgent issues, like healthcare, education, or environmental issues. But others believe that the search for new knowledge is essential for humanity's future and that every bit of new knowledge is invaluable.

Motors and Controllers' roles in advancing and increasing areas of operation are vast. In this infographic, you will find the top five advantages that motors with controllers can have on your company ranging from saving time to saving money.

With a global customer base of over 15,000 firms in the aerospace, defense, medical, and industrial sectors, Designatronics, Inc., has emerged as a leader in the design and sale of high-quality small power transmission components. Since it began operations in 1950, the company has expanded to three brands: (1) Quality Bearings and Components (“QBC”); (2) QTC Metric Gears (“QTC”); and (3) Stock Drive Products/Sterling Instrument (“SDP/SI”).  Its 87,000 powertrain products include gears, belt and chain drives, shafts, shaft accessories, bearings, couplings, universal joints, vibration mounts, miscellaneous components, hardware, gearheads and speed reducers, right angle drives, brakes and clutches.

What is “Tribal Leadership?”

After studying 24,000 people in more than two dozen organizations, three authors (David Logan, John King, and Halee Fischer-Wright) outlined some innovative, science-based leadership models. Their 2008 book, Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization, Logan et al., concluded that a company’s success depends on the strength of its “tribes.”

Think back to your first couple of semesters as an engineering student. You were flooded with new concepts. Likely, the mathematics were more difficult than anything you had encountered in high school, and you worked around the clock to absorb it all. But you knew some of the difficulties when you applied for school in the first place. The challenges weren’t a mystery to you, and something drove you to take them on. Becoming an engineer is a big, challenging goal that many people are not ready to accomplish or could not, even if they tried.

The Pace of Change

Most people understand that the pace of change is speeding up globally, along with the demand for more innovation. In a little more than 100 years, technological development has taken us from the first telephone call in 1876, to the first website in 1991. A mere 16 years elapsed between the appearance of the Internet and the first iPhone (2007). Since then, significant technological breakthroughs are happening each year.

Indisputably, “connectivity” to a host of applications and devices offers potential to improve people’s lives. We can do amazing things, like view the inside of our refrigerators from the supermarket, remotely control flying drones to deliver packages, see and speak to people on the other side of the world (in real time and on our cells phones, none-the-less), and retrieve vast amounts of information in seconds.

What is Human Augmentation?

Human augmentation (a.k.a. Human 2.0) seeks to enhance and exceed the natural cognitive and physical abilities of people through integrated technology. There are many applications of human augmentation with devices such as cochlear implants to increase sensory perception and orthotics that enhance motion or muscle capability. Some researchers are even working on data-connecting devices that would link the human body to visual/text-based sources of information. A decade or so ago, most people probably would have associated a “power suit” with corporate attire. The notion of a metal “skin” with motors to enhance human strength far beyond normal capability once science fiction, now is “science fact.” In this article, we take a closer look at the evolution of wearable and remote-controlled robots, and how an iterative design process has enabled incremental improvements in the pursuit to create bionic humans.