Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast

Yes, AI has a place in lean and continuous improvement, but don't jump off the deep end. Try experimentation and remember: Respect for people prevails. In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Jill Jusko sits down with Eric Lussier to explore the intersection of artificial intelligence and lean manufacturing. Their conversation examines where AI can genuinely support continuous...

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....

Traditional safety metrics often miss the human factors contributing to serious harm, emphasizing the need for human-centric approaches that address stress, fatigue, and psychological risks. In this "In Case You Missed It" podcast, you'll hear why Jonathan English, CEO of  Evotix , believes that 2026 is the time for a complete system rebuild to help companies reach meaningful SIF reduction.

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Laura Putre sits down with Mike Jackson to reflect on how suppliers navigated a turbulent 2025 and what the outlook looks like heading into 2026. Their conversation explores shifting trade policies, tariffs, and the evolving role of USMCA, alongside ongoing uncertainty around electrification and EV adoption. They also dig into nearshoring...

How do you know when a scraper strainer makes more sense than a basket or backwash filter? In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, New Equipment Digest chief editor Laura Forbes breaks down the real-world differences between industrial strainer types and what engineers should consider when specifying filtration for high-solids applications. This episode is based on an article b...

Artificial intelligence is not coming for jobs in the abstract. It is coming for tasks, and the maintenance and reliability world sits directly at this crossroads.  On one hand, AI can process years of work orders, interpret patterns in vibration and oil analysis, map failure precursors, and generate predictive recommendations faster than any human analyst. On the other hand, no algorithm can yet...

There are interesting and encouraging data points amid all the confusion, with some trends emerging about job shop activity, high-demand industries, and manufacturing employment. New orders for CNC machines are a reliable indicator of near-term growth in manufacturing activity - in nearly every major manufacturing sector - because those purchases mean operations are preparing for new business comi...

AI is getting better at predicting potential outcomes, but the technology still isn’t as reliable as humans at coming up with predictions that put everything into context for what it all means. In this podcast, Material Handling & Logistics ’ chief editor, Dave Blanchard, takes listeners on a fast-paced tour of predictions for what the supply chain will look like in 2026 and beyond, featuring...

We've all heard someone say it recently: Nobody wants to work these days. It's the refrain of a stressed manager who's short-staffed and losing production capacity because the company can't recruit people.  Even if it's true (and really, has anyone ever really wanted to work? Isn't that why we pay them?), complaining won't fill your plant vacancies. Blaming other industries won't help either as th...

Smart Industry content chief Scott Achelpohl wraps up the annual prediction series with highlights from SI's roster of subject-matter experts, who had a lot to say about how AI was moving well beyond the hype and coming to a production line near you.

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....

Fall protection violations remain the most cited OSHA issue, emphasizing the need for continued focus despite some recent decreases in violations. In this interview with Phil Jacklin, continuing education program manager with Diversified Fall Protection , you'll hear that progress is being made through increased awareness, proactive safety practices and better data tracking, but challenges persist...

This year-end wrapup episode collects clips from three of the most popular Plant Services episodes from the past 12 months. In these clips, Plant Services chief editor Thomas Wilk talks about: "How oil analysis can boost equipment reliability, but only if you use the data," with Mike Holloway, 5th Order Industry "How PM optimization improves reliability and reduces unplanned downtime," with Brian...

In our monthly podcast miniseries, Ask a Plant Manager, Joe Kuhn , CMRP (former plant manager, engineer, and global reliability consultant) considers commonplace scenarios facing the industry and offers his advice, as well as actions that you can take to get on track tomorrow. This episode collects three of our favorite moments with Joe over the past year: Maintenance vs. reliability engineers — k...

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Plant Services chief editor Thomas Wilk and UL Solutions Senior VP of Industrial Testing, Inspection, and Certification Jeff Smidt explore the growing role of independent sustainability certification in the industrial sector. Their discussion centers on ECOLOGO and how it evaluates materials, manufacturing practices, and full product life...

Could a dual-layer metallic coating be an innovation in jet-engine design? There is a line of innovation from product design to metallurgy, to production, and to product performance. For aerospace and defense systems, precision parts that operate under intense heat and high pressure are critical to performance and reliability. In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, American Ma...

Industrial exoskeletons are gaining traction in manufacturing and logistics, but misconceptions still overshadow what they actually do. New Equipment Digest chief editor Laura Davis breaks down the biggest myths with insights from HeroWear’s Matthew Yandell, PhD, to reveal the truth behind this fast-growing technology. To learn more, visit: https://www.newequipment.com/55325220

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....

Caroline Johnson shares some of the lessons she learned about leadership from her time in the U.S. Navy and how her fellow officers continue to inspire her as an executive advisor and coach with DEKRA .

Mike Payne , president and owner of Hill Manufacturing & Fabrication loves data and metrics. If he can pull information from a machine, he's doing it. Mike talked with IndustryWeek's Dennis Scimeca about why he collects all of that data, what he does with it and why, despite all of this technology, succeeding in manufacturing is still all about relationships and performance, not technology. Pa...

Ben Wynne of Intrepid Automation helps Smart Industry 's Scott Achelpohl veer from the M&A soap opera and get into the weeds about what industrial 3D printing is doing for aerospace, defense, automotive, health care and semiconductor production.

Industrial AI software heavyweight IFS chose its New York show to debut virtual agents equipped with 50 skills that autonomously manage high-volume tasks. For this episode of the Great Question podcast, Smart Industry's Scott Achelpohl and Plant Services' Tom Wilk were there to chat about the product, IFS Loops , with its CEO, Somya Kapoor .  

Discussion around mental health is still rare among industrial workers. It's a cultural issue that needs to be re-examined and made a workplace priority, says podcast guest Stephen Dummit , founder of  Tradewinds Leadership.

Join Matthew Dixon, Swagelok’s global technical lead for grab sampling, as he talks about the complexities of gas grab sampling—a critical, yet often misunderstood process in industrial operations. From the science behind phase changes to the design of safe and accurate sampling systems, Matt will share insights that help demystify the challenges of capturing representative gas samples. Whether yo...

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Plant Services editor in chief Thomas Wilk speaks with ICML CEO Bryan Coggins and ICML Marketing Director Paul Hiller  about the evolving culture of reliability and maintenance within industry. The conversation explores how ICML is strengthening its role through training, certification, and real-world case studies that demonstrate measura...