Happy New Year from Worthy Hardware

Green Manufacturing

Going green is going viral. The benefits of incorporating eco-friendly initiatives into manufacturing processes are becoming increasingly clear; not only can this allow for reduced costs and higher efficiency, it also boosts your reputation, positioning your company as a responsible corporate citizen — which is especially important today, as more and more consumers seek out environmentally friendly products and packaging.

Plus, the reality is that resources and raw materials are dwindling, and the need for sustainable, renewable materials and methodologies is on the rise across all industries. Companies are now seeking ways to become a part of the circular economy — a “take, make, and dispose” alternative to the traditional economy. In the circular economy, companies keep resources as long as they can, extract maximum value from them, then recover and restore materials wherever possible — minimizing waste and shifting the focus of renewable resources.

And regardless of who’s in office, the move toward sustainability isn’t going anywhere. Companies will continue to benefit from tax incentives promoting green efforts, and eventually, this will be a matter of compliance.

Growth of the IoT

The Internet of Things. What does that even mean? To put it simply, the IoT is the network through which devices embedded with internet functions — anything from home appliances to “smart” apparel — can “communicate” with one another and share data. Research has shown that 8.4 billion “Things” are on this network today — a 30% increase from last year.

One of the biggest challenges manufacturers face today is determining how best to implement IoT to achieve operational goals such as reducing costs, improving efficiency, increasing safety, supporting compliance or spurring product innovation.

Automation

Automation is a simple way of streamlining almost any part of our lives – we have self-drive cars, smart homes, even voice-activated phones. It’s about removing steps to reach a goal faster and with less effort. This is happening across the manufacturing world. Automating common tasks not only saves time, it also ensures a high level of accuracy – there is no human error. With the growth in technology, the tasks that can be automated are limitless, from placement within environments that are dangerous for humans, to re-creating complex tasks that take many man-hours. Expect to see more automated processes come into the manufacturing assembly line over the next year.