John has been with ASSEMBLY magazine since February 1997. John was formerly with a national medical news magazine, and has written for Pathology Today and the Green Bay Press-Gazette. John holds a B.A. in journalism from Northwestern University, Medill School of Journalism.
After Day 1 at the 28th annual Assembly Technology Expo, it looks as if the strategy of co-locating the show with the Electronics Assembly Show, Quality Expo, National Manufacturing Week and Plastec Midwest is, indeed, producing the “synergies” that the show organizers expected.
We’ve seen plenty of interesting equipment at the show so far. Topping my list are a nifty press setup from PennEngineering and a new way to attach wires to circuit boards.
As the UAW continues contract negotiations with Ford, GM and Chrysler, the union may want to take note of an automotive labor agreement signed recently in Europe.
The workforce at Audi’s assembly plant in Brussels, Belgium, agreed to measures that will lower the German automaker’s labor costs. More than 62 percent of blue-collar workers and 94 percent of salaried staff voted in favor of the agreement.
Hot-plate welding is one of the simplest and most versatile methods for joining two plastic parts. The technology can weld small parts or large ones, flat parts or contoured ones.
ASSEMBLY magazine is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, we are publishing a series of articles examining the past, present and future of various assembly technologies.
Whenever my family gets together for dinner, the men at the table invariably talk about sports, and the women inevitably complain about our sports-mad culture and the outrageous salaries paid to professional athletes.
That someone could get paid millions of dollars to throw, catch or hit a ball is debatable. What I find ironic, however, is that no one ever complains about the salaries paid to corporate CEOs. Yet, according to a recent study conducted by the Associated Press, the compensation granted to America’s top CEOs has vaulted to the level of pro athletes and movie stars. Half the CEOs of companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 make more than $8.3 million a year, and some make much, much more.
Although cordless tools and DC electric tools have become increasingly popular on assembly lines today, there’s still a place for pneumatic screwdrivers and nutrunners.
ASSEMBLY magazine is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, we are publishing a series of articles examining the past, present and future of various assembly technologies.