Alex Violassi has one message for Michigan workers: “Manufacturing is cool,” he says, standing in front of a 3D printer in his office. “It’s not the dingy, oily place it once was. It’s amazing.”
The machine, no bigger than a standard inkjet printer, can print almost anything with a 3D model including toys, machine parts and hair combs.
As director of Automation Alley’s new Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Center at Oakland University, part of Violassi’s job is to promote the new face of manufacturing.
PLM – a process of digitally managing the performance of a product throughout its entire lifecycles – uses data and virtual models to remove a lot of the dirty work. It’s the wave of the future not just for giant manufacturers but for production on any scale, he says.
“Tier 1 companies get it because they are forced to. We have to force technology down the tiers,” Violassi says. “A lot of these small businesses, they don’t know what’s coming.”
PLM is essential in building a product with a virtual 3D model. Today, many smaller companies still are putting 2D design prints on the plant floor, which needs to change, Violassi says.
In the manufacturing phase of PLM, it’s all about “bits before atoms,” according to Michael Grieves, a PLM expert and author of the book “Product Lifecycle Management: Driving the Next Generation of Lean Thinking.”
That means you can test a tool or product before buying any of the parts and correct failure at a fraction of the cost, Grieves says.
For instance, General Motors Corp. now uses 3D models for virtual crash-test simulations, saving $350,000 for each physical crash test it replaced. If a competitor were still using 2D design sheets, they would be in the dust.
Of course, none of this could happen without the right people. And by now it’s no secret: As more companies of all sizes and industries are embracing technology driven models, more technology workers are in demand.
To help measure Michigan’s tech rebound, a recent report from Automation Alley, Michigan’s largest technology business association, shows the state gained 31,536 technology-related jobs from 2010 to 2011.
That’s still down nearly 70,000 jobs from pre-recession days, but Metro Detroit is second only to Chicago for Midwest technology job growth, putting the region on a path to regain and surpass its former highs, the report states.
In the meantime, experts say it’s crucial that everyone – not just academics and industry leaders – understand the nuances of the employment shift that is taking place.
Despite the state’s diversifying economy, the automotive industry is still the single most driving economic force in Michigan. And that’s not a bad thing according to economist Jim Jacobs, president of Macomb Community College.
Source: Corp! Magazine
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