I attended the PMPA annual meeting last weekend and watched an inspiring talk by Herbert E. Meyer, Former Vice Chairman of the CIA’s National Intelligence Council. He gave a unique perspective on where the opportunity lies in the coming decades for U.S. manufacturers. India, the Middle East and Africa will be the leading consumers in the next few decades, while Europe and Japan will literally die. According to Meyer, the Western capitalist democracies in Europe and Asia simply don’t produce enough children to support their aging populations. A rate of 2.1 births is needed to sustain a population, and modern…
Author: Noah Graff
Writing about the machine tool business while wondering if the Cubs will hire Theo Epstein. I attended my first Machinery Dealers National Association (MDNA) convention in Chicago last weekend, and I was surprised to find that it had a powerful effect me. The convention, called “Weekend With The Pros,” revolved around touring several large successful used machinery dealers’ facilities and networking with other dealers at various bars. The tours were impressive, but as I expected, mingling at the hotel bar was the true feature presentation. I’m the third generation to work at Graff-Pinkert & Co., but I only officially joined…
Seth Godin, one of my favorite bloggers, wrote a piece this month called “Back to (the Wrong) School,” in which he argued that the U.S. education system is designed to churn out conformist, obedient factory workers. He claims the system is an an anachronism based on 1920s industrial revolution thinking. He says schools need to be emphasizing initiative, creativity, and risk taking because countries with cheap labor are going to beat us at the commodity producing race. Godin is right that our schools need to encourage more critical thinking and less standardized testing, but sadly he like so many people…
Sometimes it can be difficult for me to explain to people outside of the manufacturing world what the heck I write about. They ask me what the precision machining industry does and they want an explanation of why they should care. The following are two stories from the 2011 PMTS show that brought the machining world to life to me. At the show, Matt Redder, a sales representative from a Haas Automation distributor in Cincinnati, Ohio, came over to the Today’s Machining World booth. He told us the story of his recent surgery to repair a bad disc in his…
Manufacturing and building things seems to be trendy these days. Reality/documentary shows like How It’s Made, Myth Busters and American Chopper have large followings of people fascinated by the industrial arts in a similar manner to the cooking enthusiasts who religiously watch the Food Channel. The difference between those programs however, is that the aspiring chefs can conveniently go into their kitchens and try to create the risotto they’ve just seen prepared, but the average American Chopper viewer can only imagine the experience of customizing a motor cycle, because he or she usually does not have the tools, the space…
Is it always a good idea to admit your mistakes preemptively in business? Recalls are the thing to do these days—the latest one is from Southwest Airlines, who now must double check the fuselages on all its planes after cracks were found in three of them. Toyota’s recall over a year ago started the recall craze. After its media explosion, everyone wanted to know what their own car brand wasn’t telling them about the potential rattles under their hoods. I bought a Hyundai Sonata a year ago, not too long after the infamous Toyota recall. Since then, my car has…
I just interviewed Eric Golden, CEO of Equipois Inc. Equipois, whose slogan is “Defy Gravity,” just introduced the x-Ar, an exoskeletal arm that attaches to a human arm providing it dynamic support throughout its natural range of motion. A person puts his arm inside the x-Ar, which looks like a long mechanical arm attached to a chair or wall. The mechanism is entirely powered by springs (no motors, hydraulics or pneumatics). Inside the mechanical arm one has the ability to easily hold an arm up steady in one place for long periods of time, or hold and move objects up…
A recent article on thestreet.com discussed a study, done by TrueCar, of retail car buying behavior in the U.S. 50 states in 2010. The study shows some intriguing trends that shed light on cultural/political differences and commonalities throughout America. The study found that America truly does have a national vehicle. Ford’s F-Series truck was the No. 1 selling vehicle in 35 of 50 states, while the Chevrolet Silverado was No. 2 to the F-Series in 20 states. It ranked first in Arkansas, Iowa, Maine and North Dakota. Twelve states had all five top selling vehicles made up of either pickup…
Wednesday, NPR interviewed Dr. Robert J. Baker, biology professor at Texas Tech University. In 1994, Dr. Baker began a research study on the effects of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster on the wildlife surrounding the nuclear plant. His team studied the genetic effects of radiation exposure on small mammals specifically. They discovered that the 30-km zone, since being evacuated by all humans after the disaster, has become a wildlife preserve. Baker reported that mammalian populations were vibrant and species diversity did not appear to be reduced, in even the most radioactive environments. Baker also reported that during his visits large…
I went to the PMPA Management update in Orlando the last week of February, and one of the speakers was an expert demographer named Ken Gronbach. The lecture made me feel quite grateful to be an American, and bullish about America’s position as a future global economic power. Gronbach says that the labor force of United States has a bright future because we have a positive birthrate and a steady influx of Latinos coming into the country which keeps the U.S. population growing. Latinos have a strong work ethic, and assimilate relatively well into American culture. Spanish and English languages…