Biggest U.S. Steelmaker Sees Growth Aided by Import Squeeze

By Joe Deaux

October 4, 2016 – 1:22 PM CDT Updated on October 5 , 2016 – 10:50 AM CDT

Nucor Corp. sees its growth ambitions getting a tailwind from U.S. trade cases that limit imports from countries, especially from China.

The largest U.S. steelmaker is seeking new platforms in different products and countries, Nucor Chief Executive Officer John Ferriola said Tuesday. The company has breathing room to expand thanks to the success of trade cases, but its strategy isn’t dependent on the cases advancing.

For the rest of the story visit Bloomberg.com.


NASA Marshall readies Test Stand 4697 for extreme SLS tests

Made In Alabama News Center

October 4, 2016

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Workers have completed the construction of a critical test stand at Marshall Space Flight Center that will be used by NASA engineers to push the limits of the fuel tanks for the Space Launch System (SLS), the most powerful rocket ever developed.

Structural Test Stand 4697 is now being outfitted with special equipment and instrumentation. At this stand, the 196,000-gallon cryogenic liquid oxygen taken in the SLS’s giant core stage will be subjected to the extreme stresses of a deep-space mission to Mars.

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Obeya: The Brain of the Lean Enterprise

Jill Jusko | IndustryWeek

Sep 30, 2016

If you are a manufacturing organization striving for excellence – and what manufacturing organization isn’t – “obeya” is a concept you may want to add to your repertoire. Analogies have been drawn between an obeya and the bridge of a ship, or a war room and even a brain, but the straightforward definition is much simpler. Strictly speaking, “obeya” – sometimes spelled oobeya – is a Japanese word that simply means “big room.” In practice, it’s much more.

Obeyas provide dedicated space as well as time for coordination and problem solving, and are designed to minimize organizational barriers, explains Sam MacPherson, executive director of the Lean Leadership Academy.

For the rest of the story visit IndustryWeek.