The thirteenth edition of Machines Italia magazine, titled "Next-Gen Manufacturing Targets Smart Data, Automation, and Up-Skilled Workers," is being edited and will be published by October 2020. The magazine is produced in collaboration with the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, SME, the North American-based international association that organizes leading events for the advanced manufacturing sector such as IMTS, Fabtech, Rapid, CMTS, and publishes industrial newspapers.

Distribution of the magazine, in print format, will be through Manufacturing & Engineering (to 20,000 subscribers) and Smart Manufacturing (to 10,000 subscribers), and in electronic format to approximately 255,000 executives and managers of U.S. manufacturing companies identified in SME databases. The new volume will also be disseminated via Machines Italia social channels and published in the special section of the website where all the various editions are collected: www.old.machinesitalia.org/magazine

Machines Italia Magazine Vo. l XIII intends, as usual, to promote Italian machinery and technologies to North American manufacturing industries, focusing on excellence, the innovative content of made-in-Italy offerings, intelligent management of production resources and workforce, and overcoming operational challenges in automation and production processes. In the background will be the reorganization that Italian industrial machinery manufacturers are pursuing to cope with the new complexities of the post-Covid-19 market in North America. In addition, the magazine will illustrate concrete cases of North American end users successfully employing advanced technological tools provided by Italian companies in the various mechanical sectors covered by Ice's Machines Italia program. Specifically, the contents of the magazine will be divided into the following thematic groups:

Operator training on advanced equipment: workforce problems are the issues at the forefront of the North American manufacturing industry, and equipment manufacturers play a key role in maintaining the basic skills of the workforce by training on new advanced equipment and solving problems in the operating system. Our work is to examine how Italian manufacturers of advanced equipment collaborate with their North American customers, to develop and improve key workforce skills, taking into account technological challenges and market developments.

Robotics and automation: Robotics and automation-related industries are advancing rapidly, with new technologies and strategies that can help manufacturers improve productivity and require lower labor inputs. Italian manufacturers of automotive components, pharmaceutical glass container manufacturing, glass furnaces, thermoforming, smart packaging, PET plastic, and sheet metal parts are all industry leaders.

Developing Effective Data Strategies for Productivity Improvement: manufacturers need Data Strategies that not only improve productivity but are easy to use for workers, engineers, and are useful in business management. We then examine how Italian manufacturers are providing their customers with the latest tools to manage and use the data generated by their machines.
The future of machine tools: today's machine tools must be energy-efficient and able to handle multiple applications and provide information about their operation. Italian manufacturers, to achieve these goals, are integrating new technologies with products that are more agile, easier to use, and able to integrate with other machinery.

Post COVID-19: Manufacturing Industry Recovery Plan: as challenging as it may be, it is critical to outline a recovery plan for the next phases of the post-COVID manufacturing industry. Issues such as operator safety, ease of adapting equipment to different tasks, and remote machine servicing are even more important issues after the pandemic outbreak. How are Italian industrial machinery manufacturers addressing these challenges? How will they position their product range in the new competitive environment? How will sales or production decisions (sales presence vs. production presence) in the North American market be affected?

For more information about the initiative, contact chicago [at] ice.it (subject: Machines Italia E-newsletter)