The Thomas Blog

What Does The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Mean For The Supply Chain?

Late Sunday evening, the United States, Mexico, and Canada finalized the parameters of a new trade deal — the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA. The USMCA, which still needs to be formally ratified by each country, would replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

While it is not expected to go into effect until 2020, manufacturers and buyers in North America will undoubtedly begin to feel its effects very soon.

Video: Soldiers Will Get A Boost With Exoskeletons

Soldiers are about to get a big upgrade courtesy of engineers at the U.S. Army Research Lab. The engineers are creating a DARPA-funded exoskeleton suit that will help soldiers carry heavier equipment, march longer distances and improve mental acuity. 

The suit is made of pulleys and gears that help prevent and reduce musculoskeletal injuries, which is a common occurrence for many soldiers. The suit is already making major impacts as servicemen and women have reported improved endurance and reduced stress on their joints during tests. 

Video: Space Tourism Gets Closer To Becoming A Reality

Zero 2 Infinity, a space tourism company headquartered in Spain, just unveiled the final design of its Bloon pod, which will launch people to the edge of the Earth's atmosphere.  

Video: Fruit And Animals Will Pave The Way For Safer Industrial Equipment

Safety on the shop floor is about to get better, and you can thank fruits and animals for their help. Groundbreaking research from BMW's Bio-Inspired-Safety Systems (BISS) Consortium is leading the way to create new safety prototypes based off of natural models. 

Video: The Best Metro Areas For Manufacturing Jobs

Think it's tough to get a job in the manufacturing industry? While that may be the common perception, the truth is that the manufacturing job market offers more opportunities than you think. 

In fact, Forbes recently looked at the state of the hiring within the industry and found that all but 18 of the country’s 70 largest metropolitan regions have seen an uptick in industrial employment since 2011. They also ranked all 357 metropolitan areas to determine the locations with the best, most thriving manufacturing employment situations.

Video: Autonomous Airbus Helicopter Flies For The First Time

The latest aircraft from Airbus is hitting the skies, but in an unexpected way. The company recently announced at the 2017 Paris Air Show that it will begin flight trials on a helicopter that makes pilots optional. 

Video: How American Is Your Car?

The auto industry makes a massive contribution to the well-being of the U.S. economy, accounting for approximately 3.5% of the U.S. GDP and employing more than 2.5 million workers.

To discover which auto companies make the biggest impact on the U.S. economy, American University's Kogod School of Business released their 2017 Made in America Auto Index. 

Video: Stratasys Builds A Wall Of 3D Printers

The latest creation by Stratasys could change the additive manufacturing industry. The 3D Demonstrator, an automated, multi-cell 3D printing concept, is designed for low-volume production and mass customization. 

Video: Tesla Is Shaking Up Its Manufacturing Process

Tesla's latest move on the shop floor is causing quite a stir in the industry. To adhere to their lofty production goals, the company is skipping the soft tooling stage and jumping straight into the production tooling stage for their Model 3 automobiles.