Breaking the Bottleneck | Issue 33
[12/4/2023] Open Source CAD, Deloitte's 2024 Manufacturing Outlook, 10 New Funding Announcements, & Semiconductor Supremacy
Breaking the Bottleneck is a weekly manufacturing technology newsletter with perspectives, interviews, news, funding announcements, and a startup database. For a discrete and continuous manufacturing market map click the link here!
Content I Enjoyed This Week 🏭🗞️🔬
News:
Global Automakers Turn To China for EV Lessons [WSJ]
Global automakers, including Volkswagen, Nissan, and Toyota, are learning from China's electric vehicle (EV) industry to adapt to the growing shift towards electric vehicles in the Chinese market. Western automakers are looking to streamline their manufacturing processes, reduce development times, and enhance digital capabilities to compete with agile Chinese counterparts. This shift has broader implications for the global automotive industry, as China's manufacturing methods and digital technologies may influence manufacturers worldwide. Volkswagen, for instance, is focusing on agility, local decision-making, and collaboration with Chinese suppliers to accelerate its vehicle development process. Other global automakers like Nissan and Toyota are also adopting strategies learned from their Chinese joint ventures to stay competitive in the evolving automotive landscape.
Deloitte’s 2024 Manufacturing Industry Outlook
Deloitte’s annual manufacturing industry outlook explores the following trends: the persistent talent obstacles, smart factory and the journey toward the industrial metaverse, supply chain digitalization for enhancing performance and resilience, aftermarket services as a potential differentiator, and product electrification and decarbonization. Check out the Aerospace & Defense and Chemicals industry outlooks as well!
The Red Herring of Open Source CAD [Emanuel Moshouris]
The post challenges the notion that restrictive licensing is the primary obstacle hindering CAD use in the manufacturing sector, arguing that the real issue lies in usability. Despite the availability of free and affordable CAD packages, the three-decade-long emphasis on parametric modeling has resulted in complex, resource-heavy, and fragile assemblies, making CAD software generally unusable. Emanuel advocates for open-sourcing the components that hinder software companies from creating effective CAD offerings, with a particular emphasis on improving the backend infrastructure. By making backend components open source and robust, developers would have the freedom to build software that addresses the needs of users in the manufacturing industry. However, he does clarify that open source alone should not be seen as a solution, and the focus should be on improving usability for engineers, machinists, analysts, and others involved in the manufacturing process.
Boosting Rocket Reliability at the Material Level [MIT News]
While SpaceX's Starship and Blue Origin's next-generation reusable rockets hold the potential to significantly reduce launch costs and enhance space accessibility, recent failures, such as the explosion of SpaceX's Starship prototype, indicate notable reliability issues. The Cordero Lab at MIT is actively working on addressing these challenges via AM, processing science, materials engineering, and structural design. The goal is to enhance the reliability of reusable rockets at the materials level, particularly focusing on components like turbopumps, thrust chambers, and nozzles. The lab is exploring the use of AM to develop novel materials that improve reliability and enable more intricate designs. One of the key challenges is the oxidizer compatibility in propulsion devices, which often leads to high-temperature, high-pressure oxygen environments that can cause metal fires and rapid failure. As a result, the lab is working on projects involving oxygen-compatible ceramic coatings with metallic ductile phases to withstand rapid thermal transients and developing friction-resistant alloys for components prone to frictional ignition.
NVIDIA CEO Estimates It Will Take Two Decades for US Chip Independence
Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, has stated that the United States' goal of achieving chip manufacturing independence, particularly in light of distancing from countries like China and Taiwan, is a long-term process that could take 10 to 20 years. He emphasized the global nature of the semiconductor industry, making it challenging to concentrate all production in one country. Despite significant efforts and investments by major players like Samsung, Intel, and TSMC in establishing manufacturing facilities in the US, complete self-sufficiency remains a distant goal. Huang acknowledges the potential for the US to become a stronger competitor in chip manufacturing, but he highlights the time and challenges involved, citing TSMC's upcoming factory in Arizona, expected to be operational by 2025, as an example that will still rely on resources from Taiwan.
AWS and Siemens OT-IT Integration [AWS Industry Blog]
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced that AWS IoT SiteWise Edge, an on-premises software for collecting and processing equipment data, can now be deployed directly from the Siemens Industrial Edge Marketplace. This collaboration aims to bridge the gap between Operational Technology (OT) and Information Technology (IT) in the industrial sector, facilitating the integration of machine data into the AWS cloud. The goal is to simplify, accelerate, and reduce costs associated with sending industrial equipment data to the cloud. The integration is crucial for achieving digital transformation in the manufacturing sector, breaking down data silos, and enabling benefits such as enhanced efficiency, data-driven decision-making, improved security and compliance, cost savings, and scalability. The deployment leverages Siemens Industrial Edge infrastructure, facilitating a more efficient and cost-effective data pipeline between machines and the cloud.
Research:
Energizing American Battery Storage Manufacturing [SEIA]
The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has released a report highlighting barriers to building a robust energy storage manufacturing sector in the U.S., despite the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) strengthening competitiveness. The report identifies challenges such as cost competitiveness, access to raw materials, technical expertise, and the need for a diverse workforce. While the IRA supports domestic production, the report suggests that without strategic action, the U.S. may face a shortfall in energy storage supply by 2025 due to growing global demand, driven by the IRA's incentives for solar investment. The main challenges include the cost and availability of raw materials, with a focus on graphite and processed materials. The report emphasizes the importance of federal incentives and outlines potential reductions in energy storage costs. It also highlights the need for longer development times, workforce training, and effective state regulations to support domestic energy storage production as a strategic imperative for U.S. energy security.
Manufacturers Go All-In on AI [MLC Survey]
Results from the Manufacturing Leadership Council’s 2023 Transformative Technologies survey point towards increased interest in AI & machine learning and robotics & digital twins being the technologies that companies believe will have the greatest impact on manufacturing operations.
Podcasts:
Digitizing Institutional Knowledge [The Manufacturing Executive]
Generative AI in Operations [McKinsey]
Chart of the Week:
The manufacturing capacity required to meet 2030 targets
Manufacturing Deals
Braincube - An IIOT platform with various AI apps for manufacturers
€83million [Venture] - Led by Scottish Equity Partners and Bpifrance
Candex - A fintech consolidation platform to help make purchases from one-time, irregular and low risk suppliers using existing P2P processes
$45 million [Series B] - Led by Goldman Sachs and joined by joined by WiL, Altos Ventures, NFX, Craft Ventures, JPMorgan, American Express and Edenred
One Click LCA - Building a decarbonization platform for the construction and manufacturing industries
€40 million [Series B] - Led by PSG Equity and InfraVia
PhysicsX - An AI and simulation engineering platform reinventing the design and operation of machines and products
$32 million [Series A] - Led by General Catalyst and joined by Standard Industries, NGP Energy, Radius Capital and Henry Kravis
Kahuna Workforce Solutions- A company building of skills management software for frontline workers
$21 million [Series B] - Led by Resolve Growth Partners
Immensa - A company building an additive manufacturing and digital inventory platform for the energy sector
$20 million [Series B] - Led by Global Ventures and joined by Endeavor Catalyst Fund and EDGO
Squint - An AI and AR platform to automate data entry, generate custom procedures, and make every operator an expert
$13 million [Series A] - Led by Sequoia and joined by Menlo Ventures
Retrocasual - A computer vision and process improvement platform for discrete manufacturing
$5.3 million [Seed +] - Led by Glasswing Ventures, One Way Ventures and Indicator Ventures
Generative Engineering - A new platform that radically increases the efficiency of engineers and the entire engineering proces
€4 million [Seed] - Led by EQT Ventures and joined by Join Capital
Weekly Planned Downtime
The Race for Semiconductor Supremacy [FT]
Marques Brownlee’s CyberTruck Review