Manufacturers of automated machinery often receive requests to feed and orient ordinary plastics caps, but even an ordinary cap can have features that can cause part "behaviors" that present challenges during the feeding process.

Seiuemon Inaba, Ph.D., the founder of FANUC Corp., who turned a fledgling startup into a global manufacturer of robots and machine controls, died Oct. 2. He was 95.

A gentle nudge is often a more effective way to bring out the best in a worker than a firm push. Two common scenarios where this approach applies are just-hired workers and veteran ones that need to learn a new task.

Based in Wichita, KS, H&R Parts Co. Inc. has been producing aluminum parts and assemblies for the aerospace industry since 1955.