A few years back, Apple made headlines when it introduced the world to Siri, the talking personal assistant who came standard with every iPhone 4S. Siri was an artificial intelligence program that could answer simple questions such as the temperature outside or help you make a phone call or send a message to other iPhone … Read more
Students from the Institute for Advanced Architecture, in Barcelona, Spain, are developing a new type of building that can grow larger or smaller based on external stimuli such as heat, humidity and light. The project, called Translated Geometries, uses a composite material known as Shape Memory Polymers (SMPs) that can deform and return to its … Read more
Baseball has Cooperstown. Football has Canton. Hockey has Toronto. But where in the world is the Hall of Fame for the packaging industry? It might be in Reston, Virginia, home of the headquarters for the packaging trade association PMMI, which recently announced its six newest inductees into the Packaging Hall of Fame: Mel Bahr, MGS Machine James … Read more
Thanks to the growing popularity of online retailing and direct-to-customer shipments, practically everybody is always looking for a faster, cheaper and more efficient way to ship parcels. And with online retailers such as Amazon announcing plans to provide delivery within 30 minutes of customers ordering products from their website, the race to increase delivery efficiency … Read more
In his groundbreaking science fiction series, author Isaac Asimov outlined his now-famous Three Laws of Robotics: 1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. 2. A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict … Read more
An increasing number of cargo container ships heading for West Coast ports have been diverted to the East Coast due to concerns about ongoing contract negotiations between West Coast port operators and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. While container traffic at ports in Los Angeles, Long Beach and other West Coast locations saw near-record … Read more
During the first quarter of 2014, 390 trucking companies using 10,650 tractors went out of business. Another 335 trucking companies using 7,775 trucks went belly up in the fourth quarter of 2013. Combined, all those trucks that are no longer on the road were bigger than Werner Enterprises, the third-largest trucking company in the US … Read more
A cleaner, “green” excavator that substantially reduces pollutants is being used by a company in England that is expanding London’s rail network. The Caterpillar 311F Euro Stage 4 Engine Excavator is one of the first pieces of heavy equipment to be compliant with the European Union’s new legislation that mandates a reduction in Oxides of … Read more
The amount of cargo moving through the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach was down slightly in July as retailers braced for a possible strike by dockworkers this fall. The ports were bustling in May and June as retailers rushed to shore up their inventories in preparation for back-to-school shopping. But by July, the … Read more
The conveyor belts and rollers that make production lines and manufacturing facilities run efficiently also present a potential to hazard to workers. Even slow-moving conveyors or rollers can catch clothing, fingers and even limbs inside their moving parts, often resulting in crushing or mangling injuries. But a UK engineering firm has designed a new roller … Read more
