Manufacture Smarter Blog

8/25/2017 - BY: CHARLIE WESTRA
Nothing increases website engagement, generates sales and connects with customers like video. Why? The right videos can turn your boring, static, day-old doughnut website into an engaging, interactive destination. Videos are the perfect way to communicate your company’s own unique story, explain your product’s value, cultivate existing relationships and introduce yourself to prospects.

8/18/2017 - BY: SHELLY STOBIERSKI
Knowledge is power, and it’s truer today than ever before. Simply consider our rapidly-evolving manufacturing environment. Revolutionary new technologies in 3D printing have emerged—shortening the amount of time it takes to develop new products. The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) has brought more intelligence to manufacturing operations and is enabling manufacturers to improve production processes at an impressive pace.

8/11/2017 - BY: ROGER TOMLINSON
A manufacturer’s focus each day must revolve around increasing production, reducing costs and generating profits—while simultaneously minimizing the risk of errors. This can be a delicate balance for manufacturers to achieve. That’s why implementing lean manufacturing is a critical component for success.

8/4/2017 - BY: ELLIOT FORSYTH
Cybersecurity is no longer optional—it’s a necessity for business survival. As cyber-attacks have become increasingly sophisticated and the frequency continues to escalate at breakneck speed, it’s imperative that your business has a plan to combat these dire threats. After all, it’s no longer a question of “if” a cyber-attack will occur, it’s now a matter of “when.”

7/28/2017 - BY: CHERYL BURT
The goal of any manufacturer is simple—be successful. This can be measured in many ways (happiness, money, health), but in terms of running a business, profit is essential for survival. Fortunately, there are four simple steps that any manufacturer can take to help ensure that their company avoids money troubles.

7/21/2017 - BY: GEORGE SINGOS
Most small to mid-sized manufacturers think they’re doing enough to help their business thrive, but the reality is—they aren’t. So, how can you tell if you’re doing your part to maximize your organization’s success.

7/14/2017 - BY: DAVID BRADLEY
ISO 9001:2015 blends documents and records into a single concept called “Documented Information” and no longer requires any documented procedures. If you’re still in the ISO transition phase, you might be thinking that certain procedures for handling documents and records got a lot more complicated—but did they?

7/7/2017 - BY: RON QUINKERT
Align Your Mission, Vision and Strategic Plan. Most businesses are formed because of an owner’s vision. But, what happens when that vision isn’t conveyed to the employees, and it doesn’t evolve into a carefully drafted mission statement and strategic plan? Unfortunately, this is a common problem—and it sets up the business to fail.

6/30/2017 - BY: ANDY NICHOLS
Since ISO 9001:2000, it’s become increasingly common to consider that an organization’s Internal Quality Audits be performed using the so-called “Process Approach.” At the time of publication, that particular version of the International Standard for Management Systems contained no description of what the process approach was. The recently introduced 2015 version makes the “Process Approach” a lot clearer.

6/23/2017 - BY: CHUCK WERNER
When teaching a new group of Continuous Improvement (Lean and/or Six Sigma) students, it’s always critical to emphasize the importance of the first “team” activity of any project or kaizen— the process map. There are many benefits to process mapping. One is its highly visual nature.