Post: Oct. 13, 2016
This year, six of the scientists receiving the Nobel Prize were associated with American universities. All of them are immigrants. In a year that has seen a surge in nativism in the U.S. (as well as abroad) the ordinarily mundane fact that none of America’s Nobel Laureate’s this year were born in America takes on a political subtext. Already some are using their newfound platform to speak out about the importance of open borders. The Christian Science Monitor reports:
“I think the resounding message that should go out all around the world is that science is global,” Sir James Fraser Stoddart, a winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry and a professor at Northwestern University, who was born in Scotland, told The Hill. “It’s particularly pertinent to have these discussions in view of the political climate on both sides of the pond at the moment…. I think the United States is what it is today largely because of open borders.”
The laureate told The Guardian that his research group at Northwestern University has students and scientists from a dozen different countries and that bringing in international talent raises the bar overall.
“I got colleagues saying ‘Don’t you know that our people are better?’ ” he said of his early career in Britain. “When you get people from Messina or Madrid moving to a cold place like Sheffield, they’re serious about science…. It’s better for everyone.”
Post: Oct. 11, 2016
Despite the rebound in sentiment and activity seen in other measures, manufacturing employment fell for the second month in a row, NAM Reports. There was some hope that job growth might stabilize in this report. Instead, manufacturers lost 13,000 workers on net in September, extending the loss of 16,000 from August. More importantly, and more troubling, manufacturing employment decreased by 58,000 year-to-date, suggesting continuing cautiousness among manufacturing business leaders to add workers in light of lingering weaknesses in the global economy.
Additional data was less pessimistic, but not particularly celebratory. Durable and nondurable goods firms shed 11,000 and 2,000 workers in September, respectively. The largest declines were seen in the food manufacturing (down 4,300), transportation equipment (down 4,200, including a 3,100 decline for motor vehicles and parts), furniture and related products (down 1,700), wood products (down 1,600), computer and electronic products (down 1,500) and fabricated metal products (down 1,500) sectors. In contrast, there were employment gains in September for miscellaneous nondurable goods (up 1,300), nonmetallic mineral products (up 1,300) and textile product mills (up 1,200), among others. Despite the drop in hiring for the month, average weekly earnings in the manufacturing sector moved higher, up from $1,058.85 in August to $1,064.71 in September. On a year-over-year basis, average weekly earnings have increased from $1,031.65 in September 2015, up 3.2 percent for the 12-month period. Average weekly hours were also up slightly, rising from 40.6 hours to 40.7 hours, with average overtime hours unchanged at 3.3 hours.
Post: Oct. 6, 2016
Tomorrow is Manufacturing Day, our favorite day of the year!
Manufacturing Day is a nationwide event organized each year by the National Association of Manufacturers, NIST and other affiliates. It’s goal is to promote the great benefits of a career in manufacturing and demonstrate our industry’s value to the U.S. economy. You can read more on our website.
And don’t forget to check out the official Manufacturing Day website. We’ll post pictures of some of the events. Good luck to everyone who’s participating!
Post: Oct. 4, 2016
Google is one of the most valuable companies on Earth, it’s become so synonymous with internet searches that its name is now a verb for the procedure, its future would seem secure. But in this high tech world nothing is certain, and Google is bracing for the possibility that its core business of internet searches might be displaced by the growing popularity of apps. To counter this the company is developing a number of new devices, including a new type of AI that the company hopes will develop into something like the talking computer from Star Trek, an all purpose digital assistant. Read more about it at the NY Times.
Post: Sep. 29, 2016
Marketplace.org recently spoke to Matt Turpin, a small electronics manufacturer in Baltimore. The reason for the interview was Turpin’s company Zentech has bucked conventional wisdom and actually relocated manufacturing work from Asia to the US:
“We’ve brought back probably four projects in the past two years,” he said. There are “probably 30 people associated with those projects.”
How’d he do it? First, “the level of automation has increased dramatically,” Turpin said. “What used to take two to three hours to build now can be built in under 10 minutes.”
So if products don’t require much labor, then cheap Chinese labor isn’t that important.
Second, labor in China isn’t so cheap anymore.
Those two factors mean the number of manufacturing jobs leaving the United States now equals the number of jobs coming back, roughly, and it’s been holding constant for the past year or so.
Read more
Post: Sep. 27, 2016
Imagine needing a new pair of shoes, only instead of heading to the mall you pick out your customized design online and then use your smartphone to scan your foot’s dimensions and send them to a manufacturer who will then run a made to order pair of sneakers, sized and designed perfectly just for you, off their 3D printer. It sounds a little like the Jetsons, but that’s exactly what a startup is trying to do with an app and 100 printers. It’s called Feetz, and you can read more about it and the woman running it here.
Post: Sep. 22, 2016
The weekend’s just around the corner, so for today’s blog post we thought it would be fun to make a Top 5 list of movies focusing on STEM topics that can inspire interest in the topic in viewers young and old alike. So, in no particular order:
Apollo 13: From director Ron Howard, this dramatization of the failed Apollo 13 lunar mission stars Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Bacon as the three astronauts on the ill-fated expedition. A love letter to American ingenuity and space exploration, it offers an inspirational tale of what scientists and mathematicians can accomplish.
Jurassic Park: Steven Spielberg’s dinosaur epic still packs a wallop more than 20 years later. The much imitated story about an exclusive theme park where guests can see real living dinosaurs can raise interest in two different STEM fields. All the talk of cloning dinosaurs can inspire an interest in genetics, while the two archaeologist leads have captured many viewers’ imaginations. Laura Dern’s down-to-Earth Dr. Ellie Sattler has already become something of a role model for women in the field.
A Beautiful Mind: Another from director Ron Howard. This biopic of the esteemed mathematician and Nobel laureate John Nash from his college years through his cryptology work for the Pentagon to his recieving the Nobel Prize in Economics, all while suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. This movie deserves praise just for making complex mathematics engrossing for average viewers.
Big Hero 6: It’s hard to think of a better advertisement for robotics than this charming Disney film. Focusing on a team of kid and teen scientists who, along with the lovable healthcare robot Baymax, become superheroes to save their city, this is bound to inspire audiences of all ages.
Temple Grandin: Claire Danes won an Emmy for her portrayal of the world renowned inventor and advocate. Diagnosed with Autism at a young age, the film follows Grandin’s life as she works towards a degree in Animal Science, developing more humane ways of handling livestock, and ultimately becoming an advocate on behalf of the autistic.
Post: Sep. 20, 2016
Business activity decreased in New York State, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Empire State Manufacturing Survey for September 2016. The headline general business conditions index held below zero, and was little changed at -2.0. The new orders index fell eight points to -7.5 and the shipments index fell eighteen points to -9.4—developments that pointed to a marked decline in both orders and shipments. The labor market took a beating as well, with both employment levels and the average workweek reported as lower. On the brighter side, indexes for the six-month outlook suggested that firms generally expect conditions to improve in the months ahead. Read the full report.
Post: Sep. 15, 2016
For decades now China has loomed over America’s manufacturers, seemingly pulling away jobs, orders, and business with its promises of cheap, productive labor. That might be beginning to change, at least according to an Op-Ed in the Washington Post by Vivek Wadhwa, a Distinguished Fellow and professor at Carnegie Mellon University of Engineering. Wadhwa argues that China’s advantages have been undercut by technological advantages. Robots cost the same in China as they do in America, but China faces a shortage of skilled laborers who are needed to run the new manufacturing technology. This gives the US and Europe an opening to reclaim manufacturing jobs, provided they are able to adapt to the new demands of the industry faster than China.
“China has made this a national priority and is making massive investments. Just one province, Guangdong, committed to spending $150 billion to equip its factories with industrial robots and create two centers dedicated to advanced automation. But no matter how much money it spends, China simply can’t win with next-generation manufacturing. It built its dominance in manufacturing by offering massive subsidies, cheap labor and lax regulations. With technologies such as robotics and 3-D printing, it has no edge.
After all, American robots work as hard as Chinese robots. And they also don’t complain or join labor unions. They all consume the same electricity and do exactly what they are told. It doesn’t make economic sense for American industry to ship raw materials and electronics components across the globe to have Chinese robots assemble them into finished goods that are then shipped back. That manufacturing could be done locally for almost the same cost. And with shipping eliminated, what once took weeks could be done in days and we could reduce pollution at the same time.”
Read the full piece.
Post: Sep. 13, 2016
Could companies be unintentionally undermining some of their most potentially valuable employees? According to this recent article in The Economist, it seems likely. The problem, it argues, is that corporate culture disproportionately favors extroverts by focusing on group work and rewarding outgoing employees with promotion. The article cautions that this is a simplistic one-sided approach that undervalues the many benefits introverted employees bring to a company.
“The recent fashion for hyper-connectedness also reinforces an ancient prejudice against introverts when it comes to promotion. Many companies unconsciously identify leadership skills with extroversion—that is, a willingness to project the ego, press the flesh and prattle on in public. This suggests that Donald Trump is the beau idéal of a great manager. Yet in his book “Good to Great”, Jim Collins, a management guru, suggests that the chief executives who stay longest at the top of their industries tend to be quiet and self-effacing types. They are people who put their companies above their egos and frequently blend into the background.
Many of the most successful founders and chief executives in the technology industry, such as Bill Gates of Microsoft, and Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, are introverts who might have floundered in the extroverted culture of IBM, with its company songs and strong emphasis on team-bonding. In penalising other people like them, firms are passing over or sidelining potential leaders. At all levels of company hierarchies, that means failing to take full advantage of employees’ abilities.”
Read the rest.
Post: Sep. 8, 2016
Job openings in the manufacturing sector grew in July for the second month in a row, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Postings in the sector jumped from 361,000 in June to 379,000 in July, even as openings remained below April’s all-time high of 397,000. The increase in job openings stemmed from a pickup in activity for durable goods firms (up from 200,000 to 227,000); whereas, postings for nondurable goods entities (down from 160,000 to 152,000) declined for the third straight month.
Net hiring was also encouraging, with positive growth for the second consecutive month following four straight months of net declines. This was true in July despite declines in both hiring (down from 281,000 to 274,000) and separations (down from 264,000 to 258,000). Hiring increased for durable goods firms (up from 161,000 to 167,000), but this was offset by reduced hiring among nondurable goods manufacturers (down from 119,000 to 106,000). At the same time, total separations – which include quits, layoffs and retirements – fell to a 12-month low. Overall, net hiring (or hiring minus separations) equaled 16,000 in July, off slightly from 17,000 in June. Read the full report.
Post: Sep. 6, 2016
Despite widespread fears and outrage over the decline of factory work in the United States thousands of such jobs are going unfilled across the country. Labor department data shows that the number of open factory jobs has been rising since 2009, and this year reached its highest level in 15 years.
The gulf between public perception and the reality is caused by the fact that the sort of laborers people associate with factory work, and who have seen the greatest losses in the sector in recent decades, are not qualified to do the sort of jobs that are available. The factory work of 2016 is tech driven and requires certain skills that laid off factory workers simply haven’t been trained for. Factory jobs now require college degrees. Read more on the so called “upskilling” and its implications for the economy at the Wall Street Journal.
Post: Sep. 1, 2016
The Department of Homeland Security last week proposed a rule change to America’s immigration laws that would allow foreign born entrepeanurs building new companies in the United States temporary legal entry for up to five years. To qualify an applicant would have to show that they play a central role, and hole a significant ownership stake, in an American company founded in the last three years. The rule change would not require congressional approval and it marks the latest move by the Obama Administartion to expand America’s immigration policies in the face of congressional inaction on the issue. Read more via the NY Times.
Post: Aug. 30, 2016
Our annual Golf Outing was held yesterday, August 29, at the Powelton Club in Newburgh. The weather was excellent and everyone had a wonderful time. Some photographic highlights of the event are below. Thank you to all who participated!
Post: Aug. 25, 2016
Manufacturers across all vertical industries are poised to dramatically ramp up investments in smart products, digitized processes and related technologies, skills, and training over the next four years, significantly altering the competitive landscape and putting at risk manufacturers that fail to keep pace, according to a research report recently released by Pricewaterhouse Coopers. The study, “Industry 4.0: Building the Digital Enterprise,” predicts that manufacturers across verticals such as automotive, aerospace, electronics, and chemicals will invest on average five percent of revenues between now and 2020 on sensors, connectivity devices, software applications including manufacturing execution systems, training, and the hiring of digital specialists. That will account for $906 billion in annual spending on digitization activities related to Industry 4.0 (also known as Manufacturing 4.0.).
47% of respondents said they expect digitization of their existing product portfolios will generate more than 10% of their companies’ revenues over the next five years, and 42% said new digital services delivered to customers will do so. 72% said they expect their use of data analytics related to M4.0 initiatives will improve their customer intelligence and their relationships with customers. The study also found that, “At least a third of companies in every sector expect to secure efficiency gains and cost savings of more than 20%, and many anticipate that these will be accompanied by additional revenues of the same magnitude.” The majority of respondents said they expect a two-year payback on the investments they are now making.
The Council has written about this “Internet of Things” before in our magazine. You can read a full summary of the study here.
Post: Aug. 23, 2016
New York State’s private sector job count increased by 36,200, or 0.5% in July 2016, according to preliminary figures released by the New York State Department of Labor. According to the department, this represents the state’s largest monthly private sector job gain since September 2013. The statewide unemployment rate was unchanged from June’s level of 4.7%, and remained below the comparable U.S. rate of 4.9% in July 2016, this is its lowest level since August 2007. The good news did not extend to New York’s manufacturers however, as the Labor Department also reported that over the past 12 months manufacturing lost the most jobs (-4,200) of any major industry sector in New York. Job losses were focused in durable goods (-5,400), especially fabricated metals (-6,00). Read the full press release.
Post: Aug. 18, 2016
There’s been much talk over the past few years of how to make STEM fields more appealing to young students. The latest theory holds that they key is to connect students to the sciences by personalizing them. That is, telling them the stories of scientists to help them understand why STEM is so important. Research suggests that context and history play a strong role in connecting science and engineering theory with practice, but students often know only little about the history behind great scientific discoveries. If all students know about the history of science stops when the apple fell on Newton’s head how can they be expected to grasp why their lessons are relevant in the fast-paced modern world? Teaching who Marie Curie was can do a lot more to inspire students than simply teaching what she discovered. Read the full piece in US News and World Report.
Post: Aug. 16, 2016
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has released the results from its August survey of New York’s manufacturers. The headline general business conditions index fell five points to -4.2, indicating business activity decreased for the second consecutive month. The new orders index remained near zero, a sign that orders were largely unchanged, while the shipments index climbed eight points to 9.0, signifying that shipments rose. Labor indicators suggest that there was little change in employment levels and hours worked. The prices paid index edged down to 15.5, reflecting the fact that input price increases remained moderate. Meanwhile, at 2.1 the prices received index indicated a small increase in selling prices. The survey also suggests that firms expect conditions to improve over the next six months, although the level of optimism reported diminished for the second month in a row.
Post: Aug. 11, 2016
Anyone who’s spent some time in the Hudson Valley knows it is filled with historic buildings. Unfortunately, not all of these are well maintained, fortunately some are being saved from ruin by enterprising businessmen.
One such building is a red-brick structure straddling the Quassaick on upper Broadway in the City of Newburgh. The former mill was once deemed so unsafe that firefighters had a standing order to avoid entering, developer Victor Cappelletti said. Now, drawn to the potential of its “good bones” and massive size, Cappelletti is in the process of resurrecting the long-vacant, 100,000-square-foot structure, which is designated as 639 Broadway but actually combines four addresses. Find out more about this development.
Post: Aug. 9, 2016
If you’re reading this blog post then you probably are so used to your high speed broadband internet that you take it for granted. While to most Americans easy internet access has become as common as indoor plumbing, there is still a significant number of Americans in remote and rural areas who have been slow to catch up. The main reason for this is that because these people live so out of the way in scarcely populated areas, there just isn’t a strong enough profit incentive for the usual internet providers to make a significant push in the area. But with internet access becoming as essential as electricity many local communities, and the FCC, are taking a page out of New Deal era efforts to bring rural areas onto the electric grid, and sometimes even using the same laws. With government grants and community owned co-ops in place of traditional providers high speed internet is coming to more Americans, bringing our country further into the 21st century. Read more about these efforts.
Post: Aug. 4, 2016
On this day in history in 2007 NASA launched its Phoenix spacecraft on a mission to Mars. The Phoenix mission was the first chosen for NASA’s Scout program, an initiative for smaller, lower-cost, competed spacecraft. Named for the resilient mythological bird, Phoenix used a lander that was intended for use by 2001’s Mars Surveyor lander prior to its cancellation. It also carries a complex suite of instruments that are improved variations of those that flew on the lost Mars Polar Lander. Phoenix landed farther north than any previous mission, in an effort to find evidence of water on Mars. During the course of its three-month mission, Phoenix checked samples of soil and ice for evidence about whether the site was ever hospitable to life. Read more about the project.
Post: Aug. 2, 2016
The United States reported its ISM Manufacturing Survey figure for July was 52.6. The ISM Manufacturing Index is based on surveys of more than 300 manufacturing firms by the Institute of Supply Management. The Index monitors employment, production, inventories, new orders and supplier deliveries. Any number greater than 50 indicates expansion in manufacturing. While this month’s report indicates that the manufacturing sector is still expanding nationally, it was notably below last month’s figure of 53.2. It was also lower than experts had expected, with some predicting a figure of 53. Read more on the report.
Post: Jul. 28, 2016
The New York State Department of Labor released the preliminary local unemployment rates for June 2016. These rates are calculated based on methods from the federal Department of Labor. The Department’s payroll survey of 18,000 New York employers found that the State’s private sector job count had increased by 120,700 from June 2015, bringing the number of private sector jobs in the State to an all time high of 7,918,400.
Post: Jul. 26, 2016
Who among us hasn’t wanted to disappear for a little while, to avoid that obnoxious Ex, or sneak into a sold out concert, which of us haven’t wanted to be invisible?
Science isn’t there yet, but in a recent breakthrough researchers have hit a breakthrough in electromagnetic wavelengths. While it’s not anything like Harry Potter’s cloak, this new invention could make certain types of objects disappear, at least as far as electromagnetic waves are concerned, by causing curved surfaces to appear flat. Researchers at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) coated a tennis ball-sized curved metallic surface with a nanocomposite medium consisting of seven distinct layers with varying electric properties depending on their positions. The effect of the layered nanocomposite medium, or as it’s also called “graded index nanocomposite,” is that electromagnetic waves, which normally would scatter when striking the object, pass right over it without disruption, almost like it isn’t even there. So while actual invisibility is still a long way off, researchers believe this new development will have “a great industrial impact.” Learn More.
Post: Jul. 21, 2016
We ask that our older readers hold all Gilligan’s Island jokes until the end. While that 1960s TV staple was widely mocked for presenting an assortment of elaborate bamboo-made gadgets used by the main group of castaways, it now looks like it might not have been too far off. Designers Albrecht Birkner and Kenneth Cobonpue have crafted their own car made out of bamboo. The goal was to create a new lightweight, economically viable, and totally green car. Bamboo-cane has been used in the construction of furniture for centuries due to its high tensile and impact strength as well as the ease in which it can be shaped to the designer’s wishes.
