Interesting Facts That You Didn’t Know About Manufacturing

There are so many interesting facts you didn’t know about manufacturing. Factories have produced a lot of what we use in our day-to-day lives. The machinery and techniques they use have changed over the years, but the purpose remains the same: to provide us with a variety of products that we need.

Automated Packaging

Did you know that a lot of the packaging you see on products is automated? Factories have machines that fold and seal boxes, attach labels, and more. This helps to speed up the packaging process and get products to you faster. Many manufacturers also utilize cartoner equipment to automate the process of putting products into boxes. Packaging is just one of the processes involved in manufacturing apart from designing, production, distribution, and marketing. Packaging is necessary to protect the product from damage during shipping or storage. Automating this process can make it more efficient and less expensive for manufacturers which will allow them to focus on other areas of their business such as design, production, and distribution. 

Robotics

Did you know that robots have been used in factories for a long time now? Factories use robotics as a way to automate tedious tasks. Robots are being used more and more in manufacturing to speed up the process, but also because they can handle heavy lifting that humans just can’t do. They help manufacturers reduce labor costs by taking over jobs which means manufacturing work can be done cheaper overseas where labor costs less. Because of this, many people equate manufacturing with going abroad which is not completely true. As technology advances, it allows manufacturers to make great products at a much lower cost locally. The economy has played a big role in these changes as well! 

Assembly Lines

Assembly lines are another interesting facet of manufacturing. They help to streamline the production process by breaking it down into small tasks that can be performed quickly and efficiently by robots or humans. The first assembly line was built in 1913 by William “Pa” Klann at the Ford Motor Company. It was used to build Model T’s which helped to cut production time from 12 hours down to an hour and a half! This allowed Ford to lower the price of their car, increasing sales numbers even further due to affordability. Assembly lines are still used today in factories across various industries. Some products that use assembly lines include cars, footwear, beverages, electronics, textiles, etc.

Mobile Manufacturing

Because manufacturing has begun to move overseas (mostly because labor costs are cheaper) manufacturers now rely on technology to keep things local again! They do this by using mobile manufacturing techniques. These techniques rely on various forms of shipping to get products from one location to another. For example, containers are used by manufacturers to move goods around the world more efficiently than ever before. This means that products don’t have to be produced locally where you live anymore because they can be shipped directly to you!

Pressurized Water Technology

Have you ever gone swimming in a public pool? If so, there is a good chance it was cleaned with pressurized water technology! PWT has become widely popular in factories and other locations where water needs to be recycled or reused for hygiene purposes without discoloring the equipment or leaving hard-water stains behind. The first reported use of this technique happened at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) in 1954 where they used it to clean the inside of the particle accelerator. Since then, PWT has been used in a variety of applications such as car washes, dairy farms, and food processing plants. It is also increasingly being used in the medical field to clean and disinfect equipment and surfaces. 

Diamond Drills

Would you believe that diamond drill bits are being used in modern-day manufacturing? These types of drills can cut through any material without experiencing wear or breakage, including various metals and hard surfaces. They are used in drilling applications for tasks such as oil extraction, mining, farming, etc. The first diamond drill was made in the late 1800s. Diamond drills are used to drill holes into hard substances, such as metal. They work by rotating a cylindrical core barrel around a center axis at a high speed, which engages the cutting end of the bit with the object being drilled and effectively saws through it using the edge of an ultra-hard steel or diamond-coated tungsten carbide segmented blade. In addition, diamond drills can create holes in tough materials, such as concrete. 

The Future of Manufacturing

Many people think that the future of manufacturing lies entirely overseas because they assume that labor costs will always be cheaper elsewhere. That might not necessarily be true anymore! As technology advances at rapid rates, it provides manufacturers with everything they need to make high-quality products in every region. The only thing standing in the way is outdated equipment which can be replaced with more modern equipment allowing us to bring jobs back to our local economy!

3D Printing as The Future of Manufacturing

Since the 1980s, 3D printers have expanded to the point where they are used in manufacturing facilities all over the world. They can quickly create prototypes of plastic parts and assemblies. These technologies use various types of feeds such as plastics, adhesives, waxes, metals, rubber-like materials, etc., which are spread out layer by layer until an actual physical part is produced! The first 3D printer was invented in 1984 by Chuck Hull. Today there are many different types of 3D printers including powder bed fusion (using metal), electron-beam melting (using metal), fused deposition modeling (using plastic filament), and laminated object manufacturing (LOM). 

There are many interesting aspects to manufacturing that you may not know about. These are just a few examples that illustrate how diverse the industry is. As technology advances, so does manufacturing. This means that there are always new and innovative ways to produce products faster, cheaper, and more efficiently. So the next time you go shopping, take a closer look at the products you are buying and think about how they got from the factory to the store. You might be surprised!

Cover photo by Minkus on Unsplash