Thursday, June 27, 2013

IMTSTV - Steve Fritzinger's Manufacturing with Darwin, Moore and Metcalfe Interview at [MC]2 2013


Thanks to long time friend Steve Fritzinger who gave the opening keynote, as well as this interview with Penny Brown at [MC]2 2013 MTConnect: Connecting Manufacturing Conference.

This is interview is a little under six minutes in length and is a must watch.

This is from AMT - The Association For Manufacturing Technology's IMTSTV site:

IN BRIEF: Manufacturing with Darwin, Moore and Metcalfe

June 21, 2013

IMTSTV's Penny Brown got a chance to speak with Steve Fritzinger, NetApp's Virtualization Alliance Manager, Java Author and Economics Writer, about competition and technology driving the manufacturing industry's pace, and why companies must adapt to this change if they want to survive. He cites MTConnect as one of the leading factors for the pace change, and how it has allowed the entire industry to achieve and maintain a greater level of efficiency.
Steve also speaks about the future of manufacturing jobs in America. He offers a solution to student debts and 4-year degrees that provide few benefits. As the industry continues to evolve, Steve predicts that thriving in manufacturing, for both companies and workers, will be based primarily on intellect and innovation.

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Congratulations to the winners of the first phase of the MTConnect Challenge!

Congratulations to the winners of the first phase of the MTConnect Challenge!  

Here is an article at AMT Online on the winners of phase one.

Below is a snippet from the above article with the winners and a brief description of what they proposed.


  • Integration with Microsoft Visio – James Finn — International TechneGroup Incorporated
    Uses data acquisition stencils and display objects to virtually connect shop floor equipment, to Visio templates, providing users the ability to develop their own real-time shop floor manufacturing data up-load and visualization programs.



  • MTConnect TeamEngage – Peter Laird
    Functions as a plant operations collaboration system that allows ad-hoc groups within an operations team to initiate and control conversations revolving around a snapshot of MTConnect data.

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  • sim.MTConnect.org | A 3D, Web-Based, MTConnect Simulator – Scott Lininger
    Simulates and visualizes MTConnect interactions against a 3D map of your factory through an elegantly-simple Web site. Uses a drag-and-drop library of virtual equipment to simulate equipment activities. 

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  • Interactive Work Instructions – Donovan Buckley & Arvind Rangarajan – GE Global Research, PARC
    Uses real-time MTConnect tool path data to automatically scroll to the right page in a set of PDF work instructions, bring real-time simulation corresponding to the feature being machined, and flag any drifts from the intended tool path for operator intervention or material review board action.



  • AugMT: Augmented Vision with MTConnect – Nick Tullos & Jeb Baugh – Praeses, LLC
    Combines processed information from MTConnect data streams with augmented reality technology available through Google Glass technologies. The system will also feedback video and audio information to departments of address production needs.
  • Facebook Visit on the Old Sun Campus




    That is John on the left who is now a software developer at Facebook.  We are on the Facebook Campus which used to be the old Sun campus.  John is in a unique category of someone who used to work at Sun Microsystems (as Virginia Tech's Sun Campus Ambassador - which was a paid position) and now works at Facebook.  I keep asking to let me know if he runs into another former SUNWer at Facebook.  I do think I was the oldest person that visited Facebook that day :-)

    I found a remnant of my blog post on an Oracle archive that I thought I should re-post here: 

    John Edstrom Campus Advocate of the Month For Sun

    Congratulations to my oldest son, John, who was selected to be Campus Ambassador of the Month for Sun Microsystems.  Increasing the number of Campus Ambassadors is one of Jonathan Schwartz's most brilliant strategic investments since he became CEO.  John is doing lots of very interesting Tech Talks, on topics such as Chris Melissinos discussing GamingSolaris with Dr. Harry Foxwell at Virginia Tech that have been extremely well attended.  There are many other activities that John has been doing (such as the NetBeans 6 demo he did for students and faculty) and you can read more about that here at his Sun blog.

     John gave a nice interview about his activities as a Campus Ambassador at VA Tech.

    Facebook has really spruced things up.  It is great to see the old campus with a lot of talented young people doing cool things.  Lots of memories for me there.  I had to wear my Sun Ten Year Reunion  (1982 -1992) t-shirt :-)

     Above is the sign you see from the road in front of the Facebook Campus.   Network Circle Drive was renamed to Hacker Way.

    Below is what all Facebook employees see when they drive out if they look off to their left.  Facebook did this to remind their employees what can happen if you stop innovating AND executing.
      

    John pointed out the only remnant on outside door.  Not sure why they left this up.  Maybe it is another reminder, or maybe the mother of all super glue was used and they can't get it off

     


    Below is a 360 degree view standing in the middle of the old Sun MPK Campus that is now Facebook.  Lots of changes - all for the positive!




    Tuesday, June 25, 2013

    Visit to the Computer History Musem

    I used to work at Burroughs, so I had to take a photo of this old adding machine.




    Above is a punch card machine just like the one I learned how to program on as well as what I used when I worked for the Bureau of Economic Analysis under the Department of Commerce back in the late 70s.




    Tim and Julie listening to the story on ENIAC










    That Radio Shack TRS-80 Model 100 was REALLY popular back in the day.  Very simple notebook computer with a built-in word processor and no disk drive.  32 KiloBytes of memory for $1400.  Ran for about 20 hours on 4 AA batteries.  Writers and journalists loved this because it also had a built-in modem.




    I remember the day the Robert Tappan Morris worm was released on the Internet.  It was a security eye opener around the globe.






    My first computer I bought - I still have, but it is in a museum.  Yes, I am old!



    In front of IBM's Watson exhibit.



     The google car below.


    Monday, June 24, 2013

    Alcatraz Tour with Tim



    My youngest son Tim said he enjoyed the Alcatraz tour the best, so I thought I better put some photos up of our visit.