Production Machining's November 2024 News Highlights

Edge Technologies Moves to New Facility

Source: Edge Technologies

Edge Technologies announces its plans to move to a new, modern facility located at 15703 Westport Commerce Drive, Maryland Heights, Missouri. Located 7.4 miles west of the company’s current headquarters, Edge Technologies says its new facility will offer easy highway access.

Spanning 113,500 square feet, the facility will support the company’s continued growth by centralizing storage and distribution, and enhancing operational efficiency.

Edge Technologies says the facility is designed to maximize productivity. It features:

• 40,000 square feet of production space, including a 20-ton crane with a 270-foot run linking the shop floor with the inside dock facility
• About 60,000 square feet of dry storage space, with 40-foot ceilings to rack the product higher in a smaller footprint
• Modern office space encompassing 13,500 square feet, including a collaborative floor plan, noise reduction features and multiple meeting spaces.

Overall, Edge Technologies will pick up about 67% additional floor space.

ABB Robotics Sponsors MassRobotics to Accelerate Automation Innovation

Source: MassRobotics

ABB Robotics has announced its sponsorship of MassRobotics, a leading innovation hub and startup accelerator for robotics in the United States.

As part of this sponsorship, ABB Robotics will donate several of its GoFa 5-kg cobots and licenses to its RobotStudio simulation programming software to MassRobotics, providing emerging companies access to technology to drive innovation and development.

MassRobotics says it is dedicated to fostering the next generation of robotics companies by offering a collaborative workspace, advanced facilities and comprehensive support programs. ABB’s contribution of the GoFa cobots will enhance these resources, enabling startups to develop their products and solutions with the backing of ABB’s robot arms and software. By equipping MassRobotics with its advanced cobots, ABB intends to facilitate the creation of new and impactful solutions that address real-world challenges across various industries.

Rego-Fix Opens Manufacturing Technology Center in Indiana

Source: Rego-Fix Corp.

Rego-Fix recently held a grand opening celebration of the company’s Center for Machining Excellence (CME). The event took place at the company’s North American headquarters in Whitestown, Indiana.

The 12,000-square-foot manufacturing educational and advancement facility houses a wide range of technology and serves as a hub for industry innovation that is accessible to manufacturers and industry thought leaders worldwide.

National manufacturing leaders and decision-makers, state and local officials and the first wave of CME partners gathered for an official ribbon cutting ceremony. Afterward, attendees toured the facility for live technology demonstrations. 

The CME’s initial roster of manufacturing partners includes Swiss-based Tornos machine, German-based Kern Microtechnik and SolidCAM and Japan-based Kitamura Machinery. In addition to furthering industry technology and advances, Rego-Fix’s CME manufacturing partners have direct access to customers, prospects, training opportunities and markets throughout the country. The facility also provides local universities and technical schools with an opportunity to partner with Rego-Fix and its manufacturing partners for hands-on learning experiences.

ASTM International Selected to Lead Standardization Center of Excellence

ASTM International has been selected to launch a center of excellence focused on supporting standardization of critical and emerging technologies (CETs). The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology tapped ASTM to lead the standardization center of excellence (SCoE) along with several other partners in the standards development environment.

According to the NIST announcement, the $15 million grant awarded to ASTM will support the development of the SCoE to focus on standards for CETs that support U.S. competitiveness and national security. To accomplish these objectives, the SCoE will focus on four areas that include:

• Pre-standardization engagement to ensure private sector participation;
• Workforce development aimed at creating a pipeline of standards development professionals;
• A program with NIST to identify gaps and accelerate standards development for key CETs; and
• Creation of a data hub with tools and resources for all stakeholders involved in standards development for particular CETs.

“We are confident ASTM is the right place for the Standardization Center of Excellence,” says ASTM International President Andy Kireta. “We’ve been on the forefront of deploying an integrated approach to advance CET standardization by creating an ecosystem that links standards development and technology roadmaps and embeds standards early in the process. We look forward to working with NIST and our partners on such a consequential initiative that can build on this model and spur public-private collaboration to accelerate the development of industry-driven CET standards.”

Smithers Achieves Authorized C3PAO Status

Source: Smithers

Smithers announces that it achieved authorized CMMC Third Party Assessor Organization (C3PAO) status from the Cyber Accreditation Body (Cyber-AB). This enables Smithers to provide third-party assessments and certifications for companies for whom the Department of Defense requires CMMC level 2 certification.

Smithers Quality Assessments successfully completed the authorization process that includes a license agreement, organizational background checks and an assessment by the Defense Industrial Base Cybersecurity Assessment Center (DIBCAC). To become an authorized C3PAO, Smithers established a high-security enclave for any Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) requiring isolation and protection during assessments.