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1 month ago | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
More factories now use laser measurement systems to improve quality control on production lines. These automated systems replace manual inspection methods, measuring parts faster and more accurately. Laser trackers, laser radars, and other optical measurement devices have gained adoption across several industries. These technologies use laser beams to precisely measure the position, dimensions, and features of manufactured parts.
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1 month ago | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
AutomationManagement Engineers use published industry standards as rulebooks that tell them what’s considered safe. These standards provide specific measurements, limits and requirements they must follow. However, these standards typically require years of development. And with today’s smart production technologies iterating at rapid speed, standards might not be able to keep up.
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Feb 13, 2025 | 
assemblymag.com | Genevieve Diesing |Austin Weber |In manufacturing |Jim Camillo
Manufacturing automation is increasing and becoming easier to use, and experts say it gives quality control workers who adopt it a significant advantage in their careers. Manufacturers’ use of automation is growing year-over-year, and every year automated systems become easier to use, making it easier for new quality control workers to learn how to use a robot or deploy new software, says Stefan Friedrich, marketing manager, New Scale Robotics.
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Feb 12, 2025 | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing |Michelle Bangert |Dale Norwood |Greg Cenker
Manufacturing companies must now document and disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, energy usage and hazardous materials handling as regulators implement new sustainability requirements. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Climate Disclosure Rules represent one of the most significant changes to reporting requirements, requiring public companies to report greenhouse gas emissions in SEC filings.
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Dec 31, 2024 | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
Prepare for a transformative shift in quality management as sustainability becomes essential. Major updates are set for 2026 with ISO 9001, integrating AI into quality systems, followed by a significant overhaul of ISO 14001 in 2028.
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Dec 2, 2024 | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
Despite their small size and relative obscurity, probes and styli are helping to lead the shift to smart manufacturing. These tiny, often unseen tools are evolving from simple mechanical devices into sophisticated, data-generating sensors — generating data that enables automation and improves quality control. As probes and styli evolve, they allow factories to make more complex products with higher precision.
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Oct 4, 2024 | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
The increasing quality and accessibility of 3D scanning tools, particularly computed tomography, are giving quality control experts much more information about the parts they look at, experts say. These tools are changing how industries design, make, and check their products. Software companies are building Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T) into their design products, and companies are moving towards digital product definitions.
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Sep 10, 2024 | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
Fatigue testing is changing. While its technology is mature, and recent improvements may only be incremental, it’s still developing in subtle ways, experts say. Organizations are increasingly adopting linear electric motor-driven actuators over hydraulic ones, as they offer more cleanliness and precise control of small forces — both of which are mission-critical in biomedical testing laboratories, said Pete Bailey, principal scientist, Instron Dynamic Systems.
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Aug 11, 2024 | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
Automation relies on precise and accurate data at each step to function correctly. As manufacturing becomes more automated, tracking measurement uncertainty becomes more important. This monitoring requires careful attention and ongoing effort on the part of metrologists, especially in longer processes with less human involvement. If uncertainties are not properly managed, small errors can accumulate and lead to significant issues in a manufacturer’s final product.
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Jul 10, 2024 | 
qualitymag.com | Genevieve Diesing
There are several advantages to using liquid penetrant testing (LPT) for surface defect detection, experts say. LPT is versatile, portable, simple, and sensitive, and can be used on a wide range of materials and even very complex parts. The liquid penetrant testing process is excellent at finding surface discontinuities such as surface defects, porosity, lack of fusion on a surface, or surface-breaking cracks, said Cheri Stockhausen, product applications manager, Magnaflux.
