by Gary Mintchell | Oct 8, 2024 | Commentary, News, Podcast
I’ve been swamped with a project for the past 10 weeks. It ends next Tuesday (supposed to end Saturday, but you know how projects go).
The travails of Google with the US DOJ and Apple with the European Union focusing on the issues of monopolistic mature market and openness spurred some thoughts on similarities with the control and automation market. Those thoughts coalesced around the podcast.
Gary on Manufacturing.
Gary on YouTube.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 16, 2024 | Commentary, News, Podcast
Podcast Audio and Video Posted
Many times in my career I have hired into a company during the initial surge of a market. Good jobs. Excitement. Opportunity to work on new things. Then the market matured or collapsed usually due to external forces such as technology changes or consumer behavior.
I hit recreation vehicles at a high point followed by high inflation and gasoline price surges. Then a consumer product company where Consumer Reports published a poorly researched article—but the external market also changed. Then PC peripherals. The latest was automation where a few of us started a magazine to cover it. The market was good for about 10 years. Then we went into brief cycles of IIoT, edge, networks, collaborative robots, IT companies looking at the manufacturing market.
This podcast began life in 2007 as Automation Minutes. I morphed it into Gary on Manufacturing to make it more general. That was more than 10 years ago. Must be time for another change.
That all is quite mature now.
Where do you think the offsetting new technologies or customer behavior will lead now? Or, is the market just going to begin to either consolidate further or split? What do you think?
by Gary Mintchell | May 30, 2024 | News, Podcast
Process Improvements: Benefits of Flexible and Customizable Manufacturing Solutions on the Shop Floor
I recently participated in a podcast interview with SME relating to its Smart Manufacturing Experience coming up in Pittsburgh June 4-5. The podcast is called Advanced Manufacturing Now and can be found on popular podcast apps. It’s a pretty cool conversation.
Anthony Offredi, director of customer advisory for Quickbase, and Gary Mintchell, founder of the Manufacturing Connection, join Smart Manufacturing contributing lead editor Amy Bryson for a discussion about how user-friendly, scalable software solutions are changing the game for manufacturers to connect disparate systems and unlock insights from data.
by Gary Mintchell | May 2, 2024 | Leadership, Podcast
Gary offers observations on the continuing saga of former GE executives running Boeing changing the culture from engineering-driven to Wall Street-driven. Also thoughts on good manufacturing leadership.
Some people have nothing to lose in the game. They have no skin in the game.
The Milton Friedman school of economics says top executive need to have stock in the company so that they have skin in the game. Of course, that led to excesses like Jack Welch at GE and his protogés at 3M, Boeing, Home Depot who all ruined thriving companies by playing financial games in order to maximize their stock options in short term gains. Did they have skin in the game? Well, would they lose anything if the stock didn’t perform? Probably not much since they also negotiated large salaries and golden parachutes.
Skin in the game would have been if Elon Musk had sat inside the Cybertruck when they shot at it to test the bulletproof construction.
Soul in the game is when you care. Robert Pirisig writing his essay on quality in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance talked of the mechanic who cared about the quality of his work. Obviously the executives at Boeing had no soul in the game.
by Gary Mintchell | Apr 5, 2024 | Marketing, Podcast
This is from my recent newsletter. You can sign up for delivery by clicking on the envelope icon in the right sidebar.
Several colleagues have traveled close to my new location, and we’ve shared some good meals with great conversation. Inevitably they asked for my observations on the state of the automation market.
Part of my answer, in short, would be to quote from a recent Seth Godin blog post, The Drift to Normal. As an organization grows in scale, the idiosyncrasy and distinctiveness that was originally informed by the taste of the founders moves toward the mean. Over time, things get more average.
He continues, “That’s because each new customer, each new supplier and each new employee wants or needs something a little more normal, at least sometimes. The drift to normal can only be countered by persistent effort, usually at the cost of some element of short-term scale.”
Here are a few points that capture my thinking:
- Mature Market
- We’re building few or no new plants—and the USA seems to be declining in activity with European and Asian automation companies for the most part showing reduced interest
- Customers are not switching systems
- Automation supplier consolidation
- Innovative startups look for lucrative buyouts as their end game
- Technology is stable
- Technology is also consolidating
- Effects of the changes:
- Automation companies have reduced need for outside marketing partly due to spread of technology
- Primary emphasis is on sales and service—keeping present customers satisfied, if not happy
- Technology development involves tweaking current products and innovating through acquisition
- Geographical retrenchment
For example, let us look at a brief history of National Instruments, nee NI, nee Emerson Test and Measurement. Three technical innovators created a startup with a vision of software defined instrumentation. They created a creative, entrepreneurial culture. For several years there was great energy, growth in business, growth in technology development.
Then one year I noticed that the technology keynote at the annual user conference sounded more corporate. Less, “Gee Whiz” technology. People started to trickle away—either encouraged or seeing the changes. The leaders deliberately changed the culture toward corporatism preparing for an eventual sale. Then the sale happened to the epitome of corporate management in the market.
Note: not a criticism, but an observation. And it’s happening all through the market.
I have released a couple of podcasts on my platform at automation.libsyn.com. You can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Overcast (my favorite), direct download, or from your podcatcher of choice.
Check out some thoughts on Standards and on Slow Productivity. My just released podcast includes a number of thoughts about the current state of the automation market.
I have arranged a special deal with energy drink makers Magic Mind. Listeners can visit https://www.magicmind.com/garym and get up to 56% off your subscription for the next 10 days with my code GARYM20. After 10 days, you can still get 20% off for one time purchases and subscriptions.
by Gary Mintchell | Mar 6, 2024 | Podcast, Standards
I have published a new podcast thinking about standards and interoperability.
I’ve seen successes of industry standards. I’ve also seen industrial standards struggle to break through the logjam of large companies drive to lock customers into their ecosystem. What is the latest of OPAF and what is the meaning of Schneider Electric’s announcement of a product built with with Red Hat and IBM and development of a new computer communication standard?
I have arranged a special deal with energy drink makers Magic Mind. Listeners can click here and get up to 56% off your subscription for the next 10 days with my code GARYM20. After 10 days, you can still get 20% off for one time purchases and subscriptions. That’s magicmind.com/garym with the code GARYM20.
This podcast is sponsored by Inductive Automation.