Earlier this year, AIAG released updated APQP and Control Plan reference guides, available at www.aiag.org. This release includes the stand-alone control plan document for completing control plans.

In a world grappling with climate change, the push for sustainability has made electric vehicles (EVs) a popular choice. Some states are even phasing out gas engine vehicle sales by 2030/2035. However, considering the total impact of producing and operating EVs reveals a more complex picture.

The 1894 Horse Manure Crisis revealed the negative effects of rapid industrialization. Today, we can learn from past strategies to address the current climate crisis and promote a sustainable future.

Plant engineers and quality departments often struggle with zero point drift during air leak testing, where the initial zero reading shifts over time, leading to frequent adjustments of the leak test instrument. This article addresses the causes of zero drift, commonly attributed to changes in shop floor temperature, and provides strategies to minimize or eliminate this issue for improved efficiency in quality control processes.

UTM is versatile and cost-effective, evaluating physical properties while adhering to industry standards. They test durability and establish load thresholds for functionality, safety during use, and minimum loads for usability, improving the quality of the final product.

I started my career in quality assurance and configuration management in 1963. On April 10th of the same year, the USS Thresher SSN 593 sank during its sea trials, leading to the tragic loss of 112 Naval Personnel and 17 civilians.

Rugged data acquisition technology helps a manufacturer design more reliable rock-crushing equipment.

When discussing material strength, a material only needs to be as strong as necessary. Other properties like lightness, manufacturability, and sustainability also matter. Paper can be the ideal choice with resourceful processing and innovative design, despite being seemingly weaker as a raw material.

This article introduces materials testing for metal powder and parts made using metal additive manufacturing. It covers types of testing and their objectives for characterizing printed metal, aimed at non-experts new to metal printing and testing.

VICTOR, NY—New Scale Robotics has been named an authorized systems integrator (ASI) for FANUC America Corp., enabling the company to more effectively use its Q-Span automated gauging technology in conjunction with FANUC’s collaborative robots.

EVs could represent 45 to 58 percent of all vehicles by 2030, with the lithium-ion battery market expected to grow over 30 percent annually. The question is whether battery quality can keep up with this surge.

Time series analysis enables manufacturers to track quality data, revealing patterns, trends, and anomalies to maintain consistent production standards. This method can be applied to daily production output or hourly quality measurements.

In March 2013, Lululemon, a billion-dollar Canadian athletic apparel company, made headlines after the media got wind of an unusual story. The Vancouver-based company recalled its popular black yoga pants after customers complained that the active wear was too sheer.

The President announced new steps with the private sector to strengthen the manufacturing sector, boost advanced manufacturing, and attract the good paying jobs that a growing middle class requires.

The solar cells that have a conversion efficiency of 21 percent.

Regulations could cost the U.S. economy $3.4 trillion.

Eclipse Automation is offering employees bicycles to promote environmental impact awareness.

Company to reduce carbon footprint 25% by 2025, launch STEM scholarship program.

Tariq Masud sat down with Quality to explain why this topic is so important. He will be presenting at The Quality Show on Tuesday, October 24.

Learn how design controls can help quality managers assess medical devices.

The single most important thing manufacturing leaders can do to engage their employees is to share the ‘why’ behind their daily work, says Kathleen Skarvan, CEO at New Prague, MN-based Electromed—Quality’s 2021 Plant of the Year.

Ensuring stringent medical part quality is challenging, but with the right vision system, manufacturers can utilize powerful technology to help determine that the challenges are being met. 

Measurement devices must be calibrated regularly to ensure they perform their jobs properly. While calibration covers a wide range of applications and scenarios, the goal is simple: ensure your device is measuring to your standards.

For their dedication to quality, Larsen Manufacturing (Mundelein, IL) has earned our 2022 Quality Plant of the Year award.

We review essential software specifications and cover how those attributes can be leveraged when considering computer-controlled physical product testing equipment in the lab or on the shop floor.

What level of quality do you feel is required in orthopedic implants, pacemakers and other critical, life-sustaining medical devices? The highest quality, of course!

As the industry continues to trend toward a more patient-centric approach, we see an increasing buzz around the development and utilization of wearable injectors, also known as on-body delivery systems (OBDS)—the next evolution in needle-based drug delivery products.

Traditional machine vision used rule-based programming for controlled environments but struggled in less controlled settings. Edge learning AI, operating directly on vision systems, enhances machine vision's power and usability, revolutionizing quality assurance and manufacturing processes.

Torque testing raises unique challenges, and here we highlight varied examples in sectors where health and safety are paramount.

In the medical device industry, reliability is critical. Manufacturers conduct extensive testing to ensure devices meet required standards, such as 95/95 or 95/99 confidence and reliability, assessed using Minitab Statistical Software.

Automating testing and inspection requires careful consideration of tools, including robot type, end-of-arm tooling, and ancillary systems. While cobots are popular for quality tasks, their full collaborative capabilities may not be utilized in some applications, leading to higher costs without maximizing benefits.

System integration strategies vary by industry and project scale. Success relies on thorough planning and execution, especially in machine vision technology. Here are key integration elements for success with vision technologies.

Reverse engineering is the process of taking apart a product to understand its design and functionality. This knowledge is helpful for creating similar products or improving existing designs.

Labor shortages continue to pressure manufacturers, with some dedicating up to 20% of their workforce to manual inspection. Embracing Quality 4.0 with automated in-line inspections and AI process analytics could provide significant value.

Discovering, evolving, and sometimes unsettling, artificial intelligence mirrors our human learning. Yet, as it integrates further, questions arise: Can it handle quality assurance? What's in the future? And crucially, how much control are we comfortable relinquishing to it?

AI is revolutionizing quality control in manufacturing, driving us into Industry 4.0 and beyond. Manufacturers can streamline processes, boost efficiency, and deliver top-notch products globally. Embracing AI isn't just advantageous; it's essential for thriving in today's economy. Businesses must invest in AI to empower their workforce and stay ahead in the rapidly evolving manufacturing landscape.

Quality managing editor Michelle Bangert talked with Justin Newell, CEO of Inform North America, who recently wrote an article for Quality on trustworthy AI.

Quality spoke with David Dechow of Machine Vision Source following his recent presentation at The Quality Show South about vision solutions for quality applications and integration that drives application success with current and emerging technologies.

In a world where AI vision technology is setting new quality control standards across industries, machines can now detect even the smallest defects in car parts and ensure that every packaged product meets health standards.

Industry solutions and products rely on common standards and interfaces, enabling seamless collaboration and increasing efficiency.

The growing use of AI in manufacturing has revolutionized quality control. Traditional inspection methods struggle to keep pace with complex production processes, but AI augments accuracy and efficiency, upholding high-quality standards.

As businesses increasingly rely on machine vision to enhance quality, improve productivity, and increase the bottom line, technology providers are relying more on industrial computing solutions that enable faster processing speeds and higher efficiency, or that support new tasks altogether. 

79% of organizations are still managing shop floor quality processes with spreadsheets and paper. But the truth is, to remain competitive and reduce risk across your operations, it's time to modernize your programs and say goodbye to the spreadsheets.

The aerospace industry is known for manufacturing parts with critical dimensions and tight tolerances. Despite the high-demanding inspections they are required to perform, important players in the industry have managed to reduce bottlenecks and detect problems early in the manufacturing process.

How can a QMS help your organization to achieve a strategic culture of quality? What can you learn from the unique challenges other organizations face in different industries? 

Where rule-based machine vision has not been attempted or has reached its limits, there is a high potential for deep learning algorithms to support employees and drive forward automation.

In manufacturing, the slightest deviation can have significant repercussions. This guide presents solutions, in the form of best practices, that will help quality and production managers solve their productivity issues and implement near-line and in-line automated dimensional inspections.

Download the ebook, How to Create a Quality Product Roadmap, to learn how to develop a quality plan based on customer-driven metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) that will help you establish a reputation as a trusted supplier for years to come.

Download the whitepaper to learn how Business Intelligence can be the catalyst to help your organization rebound and excel on quality during the second half of 2020.

While x-ray inspection of electronics has existed for several decades, the continuous shift in electronics design and manufacturing to smaller, more dense products, is driving x-ray technology forward.