Engineering Industry Insights & Trends

US Workers Ponder the Threat of Robotics

Tue, 28 Oct 2025 09:00:00 -0400

The march of automation and manufacturing has always been associated with the fear of job loss. The rapid advancement of industrial robotics in the last 20 years has created a cottage industry of speculation over the economic and societal shift caused by a reduced need for workers on the assembly line. US manufacturing workers live in a high wage nation, and are especially vulnerable…do they fear the rise of the machines?

The Pittsburgh Robotics Network has just released the results of a new national survey that examines US worker attitudes toward our AI-driven automation revolution, and Executive Director of the organization Jennifer Apicella, joins engineering.com’s Jim Anderton to talk about the apparent mismatch between worker perception and reality.

* * *

engineering.com produces a number of video programs for the engineering professional found exclusively on engineering.com TV such as Designing the Future, Manufacturing the Future, and The Engineering Roundtable.

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Italian machine tech and why it endures in uncertain times

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 09:00:00 -0400

The Trump Administration’s tariff regime has sent shockwaves around the manufacturing world, and has made ”re-shoring" the new word in American manufacturing. Machinery, however, is a global commodity, and some of the highest technology machinery is from European and Asian sources that previously enjoyed an open trading relationship with the US.

Dr. Carlo Angelo Bocci is the Italian Trade Agency Trade Commissioner based in Miami and is the Trade Commissioner for Canada. He met with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton at the Canadian Manufacturing Technology Show in Toronto. Dr. Bocci is a trade veteran with experience in Asia, the Americas and Europe, and he discussed the outlook for the Italian machine industry, and that of European machine builders in general.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Robots, drones, AGVs: it’s all about navigation

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Self-driving cars, drones, humanoid robots. They are all over the news and popular culture today and are technologies that need a critical capability: navigation. It’s been true for thousands of years, and for most of human history, dead reckoning was a rare skill, and a black art. “Shooting” stars with the sextant is still an option for sport sailors, but today, repeatability and accuracy have never been more important.

It’s been a story of rapid technological development for the last 75 years, from the gyro compass, accelerometer driven inertial navigation systems, to stellar tracking, and terrain following. GPS is of course the lowest cost method in widespread use today, but even its significant capability isn't enough for many of today’s demanding applications.

Advanced Navigation Senior Application Engineer Matthew Suntup describes the challenges and capabilities of this critical technology in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Drone helicopters with multiple applications

Fri, 19 Sep 2025 14:00:00 -0400

Drones are everywhere today, from suburban backyards to battlefields. In between these extremes is a huge market for useful pilotless aircraft for remote inspection, payload delivery and remote sensing. SwissDrones is one of a new breed of small aerospace companies that use advanced design and development tools to deliver complex projects quickly and cost effectively.

Their medium payload drone helicopter has multiple commercial applications, and Pol-Victor Gisquet, Team Leader, Mechanical Systems Integration with SwissDrones, discussed the technology in conversation with Jim Anderton at AU 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

One tool, to make everything?

Fri, 19 Sep 2025 08:00:00 -0400

Manufacturing engineers call it the “death zone”. Some call it the “scaling conundrum”. Once a design is finalized, and a prototype made, it’s frequently expensive and difficult to create the pilot runs and small volume production that’s essential to test market and validate a new product. It’s far too expensive to tool up for mass production of a part or device based on only a single prototype, but how can an innovator bridge that gap?

At AU 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee, Autodesk Fusion Community Manager Jonathan Odom demonstrated a short run manufacturing platform that allows innovators to program and control multiple production technologies, from multi-axis machine tools to 3D printers, and significantly, to share designs with contract manufacturers that offer both manufacturing capacity and useful design expertise of their own. Is this the universal tool for making anything and everything? Odom explains all to Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

AI powered mass collaboration for engineering

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 13:30:00 -0400

COVID 19 generated an unprecedented demand for remote work and created a demand for mass collaboration tools that let designers work as unified teams, without a physical presence. For many tasks, it’s relatively simple, but in the architecture, engineering and construction space, substantially different systems, designs and skills must be sequenced correctly to deliver a project on time and on budget. Effective project management of an already difficult task, along with simultaneous mass collaboration, is highly challenging.

Autodesk Workshop XR Senior Director and General Manager Nikolas Fonta talks to Jim Anderton about how the power of artificial intelligence allows widely dispersed engineering and design teams to work cohesively to deliver projects on time and on budget.

* * *

An AI first: building electrical layout

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Building engineering is a unique form of craft and science, blending multiple materials, processes and design methodologies. Cabling a modern structure means coping with power and signal conductors which must be routed efficiently through complex structures, a 3D puzzle which challenges even the most experienced engineers.

Toronto-based Augment is an AI powered generates optimized layouts without tedious and time-consuming at the design level. Augment co-founder Aaron Szymanski discusses this design first with Jim Anderton.

* * *

The future of artificial intelligence isn’t what you think

Wed, 17 Sep 2025 15:00:00 -0400

Few emerging technologies have generated as much interest, research and concern as AI, and in the engineering space, it’s no different. It is now clear that AI represents a tool of unprecedented power to streamline engineering workflows, but at the rapid pace of development, it is quickly evolving into something more.

The art and science of engineering is now changing in real time, as agentic AI not only performs the singular design and development tasks, but collaborates with other AI systems in ways which aren’t fully understood by the people using them.

It sounds scary, but the actual future is exactly the opposite, according to Autodesk Senior Director of AI Research, Few emerging technologies have generated as much interest, research and concern as AI, and in the engineering space, it’s no different. It is now clear that AI represents a tool of unprecedented power to streamline engineering workflows, but at the rapid pace of development, it is quickly evolving into something more.

It sounds scary, but the actual future is exactly the opposite, according to Autodesk Senior Director of AI Research, Dr. Tonya Custis. She is a true AI tech insider, and she discusses this important topic in conversation with Jim Anderton.. She is a true AI tech insider, and she discusses this important topic in conversation with Jim Anderton.

* * *

Why the future is mechatronic

Wed, 10 Sep 2025 12:00:00 -0400

Mechatronics blends mechanical engineering, electronics, control systems, and computing into one intelligent system. Without it, self-parking cars, smart thermostats, and precision robotics simply won’t work reliably in the real world. This blend of mechanical systems, electronics and software has blurred the lines between traditional engineering disciplines, especially with the rapid and ongoing development of artificial intelligence.

Dr. Hoe Seng Ooi, Chief Technology Officer at Taipei-based NexAIoT, thinks that mechatronics is the key to unlocking “physical AI” on the street and in our homes, and he joins Jim Anderton on the podcast to explain why.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

What happens when edge computing with AI comes to the shop floor?

Mon, 11 Aug 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Edge computing is the logical extension of the smart sensor technology which drastically improved control of manufacturing processes in the 1980s and ‘90s. Moving the computational burden down to the plant floor has multiple benefits, but it has also created new challenges. Where does artificial intelligence fit in? What does process control really mean when human interaction in manufacturing technology is limited? What’s the future for data in manufacturing?

Digi International Principal Engineer Kevin Johnson discusses the issues in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Why gallium nitride is the next big thing in semiconductors

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Wide band gap semiconductors like gallium nitride appear to be a case where you can have your cake and eat it too. With a high breakdown voltage, and a higher switching frequency compared to silicon, the technology would lend itself to multiple applications, but GaN devices also offer higher power density and high thermal conductivity, making them uniquely adaptable to both power and signal applications.

EEworldonline.com editor-in-chief Aimee Kalnoskas explains how and why it works in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

New materials for safer, better surgical procedures

Tue, 15 Jul 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Minimally invasive, catheter-based surgical procedures have drastically improved outcomes and recovery times in critical procedures such as heart valve replacement, and as the technology advances, new procedures are evolving which promise the same benefits enjoyed by cardiac patients to patients suffering from renal, prostate and other diseases.

The shape memory alloy nitinol is a key technology in this revolution, and Medical Design and Outsourcing Managing Editor Jim Hammerand describes how it works, and why it’s effective, in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Still waiting for that personal humanoid robot? It’s coming.

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 09:00:00 -0400

In 1962, an animated sitcom debuted on television called the Jetsons. It predicted a future with extensive automation of every aspect of life, from cleaning the floors to operating factories. Much of it has come true, with extensive robotic operation now commonplace in manufacturing, supply chain services and increasingly, in medicine. But that humanoid robot as personal servant remains elusive. Why?

The Robot Report’s Editorial Director, Eugene Demaitre, tracks automation industry trends in industrial, commercial and residential applications and he discussed the current state-of-the-art, and future prospects including those of humanoid personal assistants, in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Electric actuators were predicted to replace fluid power. What happened?

Mon, 16 Jun 2025 09:00:00 -0400

20 years ago, many mechanical engineering experts predicted that hydraulics were dead. Rapid advancements in electric linear and rotary actuators promised an oil-less future, with cleaner, quieter and more energy efficient equipment, with lower overall cost of ownership and operating costs.

Despite considerable advancements in electric actuator technology, hydraulics haven’t gone anywhere, and don’t appear to be even close to obsolescence. How did the fluid power industry stand its ground, and even grow, in this high-tech age?

Fluid Power World editor-in-chief Mary Gannon monitors global trends in the industry closely, and she explains why hydraulics are more relevant than ever in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Electrification delivers sustainability to off-highway applications

Mon, 12 May 2025 09:00:00 -0400

This episode is brought to you by Parker.

Sustainability is no longer marketing hype, it’s a fundamental part of the way machines are engineered in the 21st century. The electric vehicle revolution is in full swing in the automotive industry, but internal combustion engines power a lot more than on-the-road vehicles. Equipment in the mining, construction and agriculture sectors is big, powerful and emits both pollutants and CO2 from internal combustion engines.

It’s a segment that is ready for electrification, and Electrification Product Manager for Parker Hannifin, Jonah Leason, explains how in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

How digital is digital manufacturing in 2025?

Mon, 05 May 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Computer-aided manufacturing has been around in one form or another since the 1960s, but the ability to program CNC equipment was only the beginning. Today, manufacturers are expected to aggregate, integrate and act on vast amounts of data generated on the shop floor, as well as from multiple departments within the organization, and on down the supply chain. Low-cost general-purpose robotics is widely regarded as Step in the evolution of the digital factory, but there will be risks and challenges along the way. And in the new era of US tariffs, the stakes have never been higher.

Mastercam president Russ Bukowski discusses these issues in conversation with engineering.com’s Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

The truth about AI in manufacturing

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Engineering.com senior editor Michael Ouellette covers global manufacturing, including the hottest topic today, artificial intelligence. But is it all it’s cracked up to be? Ouellete is skeptical, and pulls no punches in conversation with host of the Industry Insights & Trends podcast edition, Jim Anderton.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

Will simulation replace engineers?

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 09:00:00 -0400

Today’s advanced design software often includes the capability to do advanced computational tasks that ere traditionally done by physical testing. The original engineering methodology was always iterative. Design, test, break and redesign has been the hallmark of engineering for millennia, but a new generation of advanced tools suggest a future where the physical fit and test functions are replaced by software. Will real-world testing disappear in the future? And with artificial intelligence, will the role of the engineer change into something more akin to graphic design, or even art?

Podcast host Jim Anderton discusses the future of computer-aided engineering with senior editor Michael Alba.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.

What’s the state-of-the-art in additive manufacturing?

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 09:00:00 -0400

It’s been said that additive manufacturing is the newest 25-year-old technology in industry. The science-fiction quality of complex part making from powder or liquid precursors does seem like magic, but it has evolved from a laboratory curiosity to a serious manufacturing technology.

The aerospace industry has fully embraced 3D printing, and many components are now designed for it, and can’t be made in any other way. Widespread adoption in high-volume part making however, is still limited by factors such as capital cost and machine throughput, although advances are underway which should expand additive throughout manufacturing.

Podcast host Jim Anderton explores the complexities with senior editor Ian Wright.

* * *

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay current with the latest in engineering trends.