As the global use of automation, robotics, and language processing artificial intelligence (AI) like ChatGPT increases, many are questioning where the world is heading and not if, but when, technology will make their jobs obsolete.
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The Automation Question
Sustainability, Net Zero, even Rolling Resistance – Michelin’s on a RollMichelin North America
Since 1891, when Michelin brothers Édouard and André, who ran a rubber factory in Clermont-Ferrand, France, applied for their first patent for an easy-to-remove pneumatic bicycle tire that lent itself to quick repairs, Michelin has been revolutionizing the tire industry.
A Brewing and Distilling Equipment Expert Continues to InnovateSpecific Mechanical Systems
Specific Mechanical Systems Ltd., a Victoria, British Columbia-based company that designs, manufactures, and installs brewing and distilling equipment, has expanded its automation processes and market reach since it was profiled in November 2022 in Business in Focus magazine. In the face of significant technical challenges, the company has automated its already innovative distillation system.
Delivering What Is PromisedChamp Industries
In just a few years, Champ Industries has seen a great deal of change come its way thanks to changes within and outside its walls. It currently has locations in Canada and the U.S., in Winnipeg, Manitoba and Jamestown, North Dakota respectively, and is doing better than ever with a renewed focus.
Technology-Driven Metal TransformationJohn W. McDougall Co.
One can tell a lot about a company by the company it keeps. When vendors become customers and customers become vendors, as they do at John W. McDougall Co. Inc., it demonstrates that premium solutions and customer satisfaction are paramount here. The processing division of John W. McDougall Co. Inc. is home to in-depth fabrication expertise which has customers, from across the United States and further afield, returning for more.
Moving Manufacturing ForwardExcellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC)
The Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC) provides a depth and breadth of services, programs, and opportunities for manufacturers. Headquartered in Owen Sound, Ontario, with a national presence, EMC also encourages young people to enter the manufacturing workforce and is always looking for ways to enhance the sector.
Creating Sophisticated and Simplified SolutionsFiring Industries Ltd.
Working with customers to choose and provide technically complicated process machinery and equipment, Firing Industries Ltd. helps prominent Canadian businesses across numerous industries, including foundry, steel, culinary, chemical, and pharmaceutical. Employing a professional, consultative, problem-solving approach, the company offers invaluable assistance with the overall planning of specific projects.
Innovative Healthcare FurnitureWieland Healthcare
Wieland Healthcare is making waves in the healthcare furniture sector, succeeding alongside much bigger companies despite its more diminutive size. “We’re a relatively small company within our competitor range,” says Market Insights & Innovation Manager Kimberly Sank. The company may be relatively small, but its impact is big and the business has become widely recognized for innovative, patient-first products.
The Crane ExpertsCRS Crane Solutions
CRS Crane Solutions knows cranes. In business since 1991, the Alberta-based company has grown into one of the largest crane suppliers in North America, building a reputation for exceptional lifting solutions and a relentless commitment to customer service. The team produces more than 150 cranes a year, with up to 175-ton capacity and 130-foot span, in one of the biggest crane manufacturing plants on the continent, which boasts a whopping 30,000 square feet of quality-controlled production space.
Driving a Greener TomorrowLiberty Tire Recycling
Liberty Tire Recycling is on a mission to “drive a greener tomorrow that will improve our quality of life, protect our ecosystems and preserve natural resources,” explains the company’s website. The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based business works to achieve this goal by reclaiming, recycling, reusing, and repurposing discarded tires.
Sustainable Success for This Vinyl Recycling and Reclaiming CompanyNorwich Plastics
Norwich Plastics of Cambridge, Ontario wants to lead North America in vinyl reprocessing. To this end, it diverts over 50 million pounds of the material from landfills each year. The company primarily deals with flexible and semi-rigid PVC scrap, plus smaller amounts of other thermoplastic waste. The company takes this material, breaks it down, and transforms it into pellets or powders, for reuse in a variety of customer products and applications.
Continuous Improvement Is Taking This Company Into the FutureBanner Metals Group
To succeed in business for over a century takes determination, vision, skill, and the attitude to make it through tough times, which perfectly describes the metal products group Banner Metals. Founded in 1921 as the Banner Die, Tool, and Stamping Company, the company has experienced the highs and lows of all the decades since, yet continues to grow.
Still Leading the IndustrySwiss Automation, Inc.
Swiss Automation, Inc. is one of the largest manufacturers of Precision Turned Components in the United States, with over half a century of history and experience. After featuring the Barrington, Illinois-based business several times over the last few years, Manufacturing in Focus is checking in once again to hear the latest news and developments.
The Latest and GreatestPhillips Corporation
Phillips Corporation has been solving manufacturing challenges for the United States government, industry, and education leaders for over half a century. The Hanover, Maryland-based business has grown to become a global presence over the decades, building strategic partnerships with technology leaders such as Haas Automation and EOS.
Daisy Chains and Golden GatesA New Eco-Tech Sweeps San Francisco
Wearing flowers in your hair has new significance when visiting San Francisco in the 21st century. Perhaps not such a far cry from the lyrics described in Scott McKenzie’s 1967 hit song, the city is once again in the spotlight for being an international thought leader. As is typical here, technology and innovation play the lead role in welcoming the future.
Overcoming Workplace BiasesThe Race to Recruit Women
If you have worked in manufacturing for any length of time you have probably come up against the significant challenge of finding and retaining talented employees.
It’s All in the ChemistryNetchem
In the world of international specialty chemical procurement and distribution, Netchem Inc. serves hundreds of manufacturing customers, from independently-owned businesses to Fortune 100 companies. Netchem enables its customers to build and expand solid supply chains, striving to act as an extension of their procurement and distribution departments. And while bigger competitors had difficulties during the supply chain nightmare of recent years, Netchem fulfilled many urgent requests for material while increasing its standard three-month inventory holding period to support customers’ production schedules.
The Global Source for Trusted Bulk Mineral SuppliesCREMER ERZKONTOR North America
If ever there was a boutique broker of bulk material supplies, CREMER ERZKONTOR (formerly Possehl Erzkontor), the parent company of CREMER ERZKONTOR North America (CENA), is it. That is why increasing numbers of big manufacturers—especially in steel—look to this company to mitigate the risks in procuring raw materials and minerals from abroad. Founded in the early 1900s by the international materials trader Emil Possehl in Lübeck, Germany, it has earned itself a reputation for international raw materials trading excellence in the industry.
Clearing the AirAllied Blower
The last time Business in Focus touched base with Allied Blower, the whole world was in turmoil. The company’s plans to expand to the United States had just run into an obstacle that nobody could have foreseen: COVID-19. Travel was restricted, and every business was wondering exactly what the impact would be on regular operations, let alone any expansion plans.
Coatings With High-Performance ProtectionDynamix Inc.
Since opening its doors in 2006, Dynamix Inc. of Markham, Ontario, has supplied custom surface-finish coating chemicals mainly used by Canadian and other North American fabricators who supply diverse industries ranging from oil and gas to aerospace. The company also has distributors as far afield as Europe, Mexico, and China.
