Tek Starz, Jonesboro's summer manufacturing camp, was held June 1-5, 2015.  Thirteen 7th and 8th graders built projects using manufacturing processes and learned about careers in industry.  Huge thanks to Best Manufacturing, Hytrol Conveyor Company, ASUN Jonesboro, the Workforce Trainng Consortium, TrinityRail Maintenance Services, Nice-Pak Products, Camfil APC, the Jonesboro Public Library, Arkansas Manufacturing Solutions, Howell Safety and Training Solutions, Arkansas State University, Northeast Arkansas Career & Technical Center, Post Foods, and Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs.  Thanks also to Chad and Pam Niell, John Sawyer, and Linda Wofford.

Jonesboro Company - A "Cool Vendor"

Rural Sourcing, Inc. in Jonesboro, Arkansas, has been named to the short list of "Cool Vendors" for 2013 in Application Services by Gartner Inc, the world's leading information technology research and advisory company.  RSI, the leader in domestic sourcing, is a cost-effective alternative to the traditional model for IT outsourcing and employs approximately 50 at the Development Center in Jonesboro.  Click here for more.

Colson Rewarded for Energy Efficiency

Colson Caster’s Monette, Arkansas facility was recently rewarded over $28,000 from Entergy for installation of energy saving barrel blankets.  Read Colson Caster's press release.  Click here to see photo.

Camfil APC Celebrates 50th with a SHAKE!

Camfil APC, a global company headquartered in Jonesboro, Arkansas, manufactures industrial dust collectors and fume collection equipment to clean up manufacturing processes.  Last week they celebrated their 50th anniversary with a lunch followed by a "shake."  Watch The Camfil APC Shake!

Why Reshore?

Representatives from two large manufacturers shared their experiences with reshoring at IndustryWeek's Best Plants Conference.  Reasons for leaving the U.S. for China or other foreign areas years ago may have changed, and may be overshadowed by considerations of time to market, innovation and shortening the supply chain.  Click here for article.

Why Manufacturing Matters!

The argument that manufacturing in the U.S. doesn't really matter because the sector only accounts for 11 percent of our economy and manufacturing job growth is slow, is short-sighted and incomplete, according to authors of the attached article published by The Brookings Institution.  Click here for more.

Augmented Reality & The Production Floor

Technology allowing manufacturers to work virtually in an industrial environment can support product launches and reduce decision-making time.  A new Google product, Glass, is close to release and merges the physical world with the digital world.  Click here for more.

Internet on the Manufacturing Floor

Read how manufacturing facilities are utilizing an industrial internet: sensors are spread across the plant floor and connected to a high speed internal Ethernet that provides a wide range of data.  Click here to read more from MIT Technology Review.

The 10 Principles of Additive Manufacturing

Additive manufacturing, or 3-D printing, can make a remarkable improvement in cost, time and complexity challenges over traditional manufacturing processes like milling, molding, cutting, drilling, etc.  3-D printing is achieved by using an additive process, where successive layers of material are laid down in different shapes.  Click here for more.

Getting the Most Out of Waste Elimination

"Lean" is often defined as "do more with less" but this author's perspective is to focus on the "do more" piece of the definition, i.e. add more muscle not just trim the fat.  Click here for more.

The Smart Factory

Integrating product lifecycle management, manufacturing execution systems, and industrial automation is the key to the future of manufacturing.  By bringing these three critical manufacturing technologies together into one system, companies can realize top line growth.  Read entire article.

Robots in Manufacturing - Job Creator?

The United States seems to be alone in its anxiety that further automation in manufacturing will cost jobs; Japan and Europe do not have the same fear.  As a matter of fact, evidence suggests that it will boost jobs because it will allow the U.S. to "compete against increasingly advanced global competitors."  Click here for The New York Time article.

U.S. Manufacturing: Skills & Wages

The New York Times recently published an article about the future of manufacturing in the U.S. and the much lamented skills gap.  The author looked at the issue from several angles: from low wages, to the educational system, to the advanced skills required for today's manufacturing environment.  Click here for more.

Re-shoring: Advantage?

According to IndustryWeek, Scott Rickert of Nanofilm Ltd. believes that bringing manufacturing back to the U.S. makes sense in order to protect intellectual property.  Keeping a close eye on your high value ideas protects them - and along with savings in transportation, labor and energy, re-shoring looks like a win.  Click here for entire article.

Camfil Farr APC: The Remembering Tree

The Jonesboro community proudly joined Camfil Farr APC on October 24, 2012, to celebrate the dedication of The Remembering Tree.  The sculpture is an extraordinary product of leadership, artistic vision and craft, and is located on the front lawn of Camfil Farr at 3505 Airport Road in Jonesboro, Arkansas.  Click here to watch the story of Camfil Farr APC's Remembering Tree.

Hytrol's 50th Anniversary in Jonesboro

(Jonesboro, AR) October 16^th, 2012 – Hytrol Conveyor Co., Inc. hosts event to celebrate 65 year anniversary of being in business as well as its 50^th anniversary in the Jonesboro community.  Read more........

Manufacturing & Workforce Development

Manufacturing.net published a two-part interview that discusses findings recently set forth in a white paper about challenges ahead for our workforce and the manufacturing industry.  The study included a panel discussion of approximately a dozen consumer packaged goods manufacturing executives, who talked about training, finding and retaining talent, etc.  The interview further enhances the information provided in the white paper.  Click here for entire article.

YaleGlobal Online Magazine published 7 Reasons to Expect US Manufacturing Resurgence, which discusses factors currently coming together that lead some experts to forecast a revival of U.S. manufacturing.  Click here for entire article.

Celebration for Post Foods in Jonesboro

Post Foods celebrated their 20th anniversary in Jonesboro by recognizing their workforce and in particular those employees still with them who were from the original 54 hired when the facility opened in 1992.  Employees were treated to a ride in a big, red hot air balloon located on the facility grounds.  Click here for full information sheet.

Blog from NAM

Shopfloor is a manufacturing blog that may be of interest to those connected to industry and those who follow U.S. manufacturing news.  Connect to blog.