Austin Weber

After a nearly 20-year hiatus, supersonic passenger travel is about to make a comeback. One of the companies leading the charge is Boom Supersonic Inc.

South Bend, home to the University of Notre Dame, has a long history of manufacturing. In the past, the city in northern Indiana hummed with large factories belonging to companies such as Bendix Corp. (automotive and aircraft brakes), Oliver Chilled Plow Works (agricultural equipment) and Studebaker Corp. (cars, trucks and wagons).

If the adhesives world had a track team, cyanoacrylate would be Usain Bolt, the three-time Olympic sprinting champion. That's because it is a versatile, super-fast material that cures much quicker than other types of adhesive.

Many automotive engineers have nightmares about noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) issues. Ironically, one of those pests, vibration, is widely used to assemble many types of plastic auto parts.

One of the stumbling blocks to widespread acceptance of electric vehicles is lack of a recharging infrastructure that’s convenient, easy to use, fast and readily accessible.

Dispensing two-part adhesives to assemble electric vehicles can be a challenge, particularly if the mix ratio is wide or the two components have different viscosities.