“Without data you’re just a person with an opinion.”
– William Edwards Deming
1. Super Plastics
Not to be confused with Superplastic. Don’t Google that. It’s nothing bad – unless you’re a geek like me, expecting to learn something in material science. If you like NFTs, however, search away! This super plastic takes “little energy” to produce (by whatever metric that was extrapolated from), is twice the strength of steel (by whatever grade they’re comparing it to), and because of this, less of the super plastic is needed to make high-performing parts, so it’s environmentally friendly too! Shut up and take my money! Still a better investment than NFTs, but hey, it’s your money.
2. 2021: All-Time High for Robots in North America
We’re coming for South Korea! No, really – we’re pumping up those rookie numbers! 2021 sales figures for the number of robots sold in the United States rose 28% compared to 2020. The automation advocacy organization, the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), reports 39,708 units sold at a value of $2 billion. Sales rose 9% in the fourth quarter alone.
3. Legacy Automation
This is a walk-through to getting started with automating your existing machine tools! I know #youpeople don’t like these remedial articles as much as I do, but if I had a nickel for every time I heard somebody ask something along the lines of “How do I I4.0?” in the relatively short six-plus years I’ve worked in this industry, I’d be retired by now.
4. Go Nuts for Doughnuts!
Krispy Kreme, a beautiful American company, produces one of the most delectable American delicacies: deep fried dough. Now Krispy Kreme will do it in the most American way possible: full auto, baby! What will we call these robot-made doughnuts? Robot doughnuts, hmmm … robonuts? Ronuts? Nope. No. We’ll just leave it be.
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