You’re a Manufacturing Engineer looking to stay ahead of the curve. What technologies should you learn next?

Learning new technologies 👨💻 & Keeping up with advancements ensures stay competitive, enhances skill set, and positions as an industry expert. Adapting to emerging technologies, like additive manufacturing, allows to contribute to innovation within field, potentially improving efficiency and production processes. Continuous learning is key to staying ahead of the curve in the dynamic field of manufacturing engineering.

With additive manufacturing or popularly known as 3D printing, you can design parts with software like PTC Creo or SolidWorks and then print them by generating G-codes. However, it's not straightforward. You need to understand how to adjust settings for different materials, which requires research. This technology is now mainly used for polymers and selected metals. What's exciting is that you can create really strong structures and print entire parts without any seams.

En este momento de mi carrera apuesto enteramente por la tecnología de AM con polvos metálicos. Con una buena compactación y sinterización se pueden obtener piezas metálicas de gran complejidad a muy bajo coste.

Adopting and understanding 💡the IIoT as a manufacturing engineer is immensely beneficial while industries are rolling out on 4.0. IIoT can optimise production processes, improve efficiency, and enable predictive maintenance. Embracing this technology enhances your ability to design and implement smart manufacturing systems, ultimately contributing to increased productivity and competitiveness in the rapidly evolving manufacturing landscape.

Robotics, automation, machine learning, these things are the fundamentals for the future, having enough knowledge of these would mean that you have enough edge or weapon and you are future proof.

Si bien es cierto, algo que considero se debe enfatizar es que la automatización no siempre va ligada con los avances tecnológicos más nuevos y costosos, pues en ocasiones un poco de creatividad puede dar una solución con el mismo impacto y a un bajo costo.

Los algoritmos de IA para la fabricación en las grandes empresas se encuentran en un estado primigenio. Aún se siguen necesitando profesionales para realizar las tareas rutinarias que una máquina educada podría hacer con facilidad. Pienso que las grandes empresas aún se resisten a aplicar estas tecnologías por falta de fiabilidad y porque trabajan en entornos muy cerrados.

In my POV 👀 By staying proactive, continuously learning, and strategically leveraging AI and ML technologies, manufacturing engineers can position themselves at the forefront of innovation and drive transformative change in the industry.

Now Opting AR/VR can be highly effective when you are working on projects ,These technologies offer immersive training, design visualization, and remote collaboration capabilities. By leveraging AR/VR, you can enhance product development, streamline maintenance processes, and improve overall efficiency, contributing to a more advanced and innovative approach in manufacturing engineering.

La realidad aumentada es un punto fuerte para proyectos maduros en su estado de fabricación ya que permiten una rápida interacción entre los operarios (blue collar) y los elementos de fabricación. Una tecnología por la que ya apuestan la mayoría de las grandes empresas.

Ignore the rest of the article. It's a bunch of buzzwords. All of these have their niches, but none are critical. If you want to stay ahead of the curve, get real good at talking to people. Your operators, your suppliers, your clients. Everyone. Respect the knowledge each person brings and keep learning.