

Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast
Endeavor Business Media’s Manufacturing Group
Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast offers news and information for the people who make, store and move things and those who manage and maintain the facilities where that work gets done. Manufacturers can listen for critical insights into the technologies, economic conditions and best practices that can influence how to best run facilities to reach operational excellence.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 11, 2024 • 21min
Reshoring Manufacturing: Pharma, Trucking, Plastics Insights [Production Pulse]
The podcast explores the trend of companies reshoring manufacturing from Asia to the United States in industries like pharmaceuticals, trucking, and plastics. Topics include job flows, new facilities in the US, challenges in Mexico for the plastics industry, and the impact of anti-China sentiment on reshoring decisions.

Jul 9, 2024 • 11min
The Psychology Behind Safer Workplaces [Talking EHS]
In this “Talking EHS” podcast episode, you’ll learn about the new tools and strategies companies are using to foster psychologically safer workplaces.
About the Article
The Psychology of Safety
New tools and strategies emerge to foster psychologically safer workplaces.
Written and read by Adrienne Selko
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Jul 6, 2024 • 19min
Why Everyone Is Faking Their KPIs (But Shouldn’t Be) [Ask a Plant Manager]
Joe Kuhn, CMRP, former plant manager, engineer, and global reliability consultant, is now president of Lean Driven Reliability LLC. He is the author of the book “Zero to Hero: How to Jumpstart Your Reliability Journey Given Today’s Business Challenges” and the creator of the Joe Kuhn YouTube Channel, which offers content on starting your reliability journey and achieving financial independence. In our monthly podcast miniseries, Ask a Plant Manager, Joe considers a commonplace scenario facing the industry and offers his advice, as well as actions that you can take to get on track tomorrow. This episode offers insight into why fake numbers fake real progress.

Jul 4, 2024 • 5min
Best Practices Are Boring. Hop on the Fad Bandwagon to Make Your Facility More Exciting.
Captain Unreliability is a satire of the state of the manufacturing industry in ’Merica today and is written by an industry professional known for using humor to get the point across. In his columns, The Captain covers a range of topics, including the art of avoiding work, creating a culture of unreliability, and why a reliability program is like a toilet. In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Alexis Gajewski, senior content strategist for Plant Services, shares The Captain’s thoughts on fads and why all complex problems can be solved by embracing The Next Big Thing as the solution.
About the Article
Why chasing fads is the key to corporate success
Captain Unreliability thinks that you can tackle all complex problems by embracing The Next Big Thing as the solution.
Written by Captain Unreliability
Read by Alexis Gajewski
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Jul 2, 2024 • 14min
Reviewing the Mid-Year Manufacturing Reviews
Exploring slow demand and revenue growth in manufacturing businesses in 2024. Insights on equipment financing, concerns of manufacturing leaders, and impact of economic challenges on strategic planning.

Jun 29, 2024 • 11min
Our Top New Product Picks From This Month
Join Alexis Gajewski as she discusses the latest innovative products in manufacturing, including blower motor technology, micro-automation robots, stability in positioning, fuel transportation, and order picking safety. Dive into the advanced features of a lift truck for enhanced efficiency and safety in industrial settings.

Jun 20, 2024 • 23min
The Intersection of Maintenance and Microbrews
Corey Dickens, CMRP, is a senior solutions consultant at Brightly, and describes himself as a maintenance practitioner and CMMS super user. Hs career has taken him into a wide variety of plants and industrial facilities, and recently he presented on maintenance best practices to the Craft Brewers Conference. In this conversation with chief editor Thomas Wilk, Dickens explains why some brewers refer to it as "equipment caretaking" and the hunger among brew pubs and micro breweries for maintenance knowledge.

Jun 18, 2024 • 15min
How Smart Metering Helps Manufacturers Save Big, Helps Preserve the Planet
Satish Saini, who is utility industries specialist for HEXstream and head of the United Nations Transmission & Distribution Energy Efficiency Working Group as well as the Chair of IEEE Smart Grid Technical Activities Committee, joins Smart Industry’s Scott Achelpohl as a follow-up to a February article Satish wrote on “smart” or advanced metering, which can help manufacturers cut energy costs, enhance reliability, and bolster conservation and sustainability.
According to Satish and HEXstream, investing in energy efficiency provides companies and organizations with opportunities well beyond energy savings. These techniques and technologies such as advanced metering can optimize and increase productivity at manufacturing companies while also reducing operating and maintenance costs and creating safer and more welcoming environments for their employees and customers.
Plus, governments and utilities welcome these advancements in industry because they help the environment and provide a way to measure energy consumption and power requirements, especially in areas where industrial activity is higher.

Jun 13, 2024 • 26min
What's New in Industrial Safety [Production Pulse]
Keeping workers safe on the job should be the top priority for every business, so how is industrial America doing? Join IndustryWeek's Robert Schoenberger, EHS Today's Dave Blanchard and Chemical Processing's Traci Purdum as we discuss how companies are reducing worker risk and avoiding workplace accidents.

Jun 11, 2024 • 9min
Supply Chain Basics: Outsourcing Logistics
In this Supply Chain 101 “explainer” podcast, you’ll learn how outsourcing logistics allows companies to free up resources and focus on their core competencies.
About the Article
Supply Chain 101: Outsourcing Logistics
Outsourcing logistics allows companies to free up resources and focus on their core competencies.
Written by Jagan Reddy
Read by Adrienne Selko
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