Industrial Automation

With the rising economic stature of Asia, which is now assuming many of the manufacturing roles formerly performed in the U.S., some are nervous that manufacturing in the U.S. will disappear, writes David Greenfield of Control Engineering magazine. The sheer numbers of engineering graduates boggle the mind: China produces 200,000/yr and India 120,000 vs the U.S.A.'s 70,000. How can the U.S. maintain its leadership position in face of such overwhelming odds? What do you think can be done?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

Let's face it, people don't like using public transportation, so let's not continue with the mass transportation myth that cities like to say will resolve environmental problems, says Leland Teschler, Machine Design editor. Instead, to save energy and go easier on the environment, do something counterintuitive: build more freeways. Traffic congestion forces drivers to waste billions of gallons of gas, producing tons of carbon dioxide each year. More freeways would help.

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

The ISA's Automation Standard Compliance Institute is rapidly expanding its resources to include wireless, security, plus ISA88 and ISA95 compliance. That sounds good, but the trouble is, vendor and end-user companies have been asked for huge annual fees ($50,000) to join, so what's to prevent a major vendor from dominating the process? With volunteer oversight, there are no direct controls, which means the people who write the standards have little or no say in how the compliance system works. Should the management structure be changed?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

Some say e-mail is breaking down the barriers and bringing the world closer together. But is it really doing that? People in the same office send e-mail messages to each other rather than talk. E-mail is replacing the telephone for the most simple business requests. We are now inundated with e-mails from complete strangers. Perhaps communication technology is doing just the opposite of what most people think: it is increasing the distance between people.

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.

The U.K. government has come up with a brilliant idea to encourage more students to take up engineering careers — ask engineers to switch their jobs and start teaching in the classroom! The "Pass on Your Skills" initiative aims to recruit hundreds of engineers who can help to inspire young people through real practical experience of the workplace and bring subjects such as math and science to life. Should engineers get involved in teaching?

The preceding article is a "sneak peek" from Industrial Automation, a newsletter from GlobalSpec. To stay up-to-date and informed on industry trends, products, and technologies, subscribe to Industrial Automation today.