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DARPA Pays $3.5 Million For New TechShops and Secret Reconfigurable Factories
pacopico writes "Businessweek reports that DARPA will pay for the creation of two new TechShops in Washington D.C. and Pittsburgh. The $3.5 million deal includes 2,000 TechShop memberships for military veterans and will have DARPA employees performing top secret work at night. 'The project is called iFab. For a month, a given factory might use dozens of machines to make parts for helicopters. Then you reboot the software controlling the machines, and out come the parts for the drive train system in a tank. The Darpa workers at TechShop will try to figure out which tools and methods can be used to rewire factories in this fashion.' Maker mayhem."
Is this a hedge in case China decides to stop making shit for the US? Or plain ol' pork?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
Always link to the printable version in the future please! http://www.businessweek.com/printer/articles/26828-techshop-paradise-for-tinkerers (still have the splash, but then it's one page not 5 or whatever).
"Factories like this" being quickly reconfigurable to manufacture a variety of products? You don't see any potential commercial uses for that? Do you really not understand the push toward manufacturing on demand?
Nowhere in the article is any mention that the DARPA employees would be doing TS work.
Periods processing of the sort required to do TS work at night in a facility used by civilians during the day is basically impossible...
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
"The only time you need factories like this is n preparation for a global conflict."
If there were a prize for "Absurd Asserted Conclusion", your post would win it.
Foxconn reconfigures by issuing orders to hordes of expensive workers.
US manufacturing could reconfigure taking advantage of technology, and negate the Chinese labor advantage.
"This post is an artistic work of fiction and falsehood. Only a fool would take anything posted here as fact."
The only time you need factories like this is n preparation for a global conflict.
Is the DoD expecting WWIII?
That's kind of their job. Expect the worst, hope for the best.
These are the guys who make contingency plans for just about everything, so on some level, yes, they probably are expecting WWIII.
"My God...it's full of trolls!"
So...a factory that can more quickly and efficiently adapt to changes in demand? That can, instead of needing mass layoffs or closing up shop entirely, reconfigure their processes and retrain employees (increasing their skill sets if they ever need different future employment) to produce different things? Moving suppliers one level closer to being able to swiftly and effectively respond to the economic climate?
And all this research is only going to cost $3.5 million or so?
If they can make this work, and can be spread to other US suppliers, that $3.5 million investment will be paid back in no time in economic development. Hell, if it's a significant enough improvement, it could eventually help revitalize the US manufacturing industry by significantly upping our competitive advantage.
Foxconn reconfigures by issuing orders to hordes of expensive workers.
Expensive workers? When did Foxconn leave China?
Have gnu, will travel.
It's more than a bit concerning that the most flexible, agile, and innovative part of the economy is the military.
Any one else think we need CARPA - the Civilian Advanced Research Project Agency? Preferably one that has nothing to do with the government.
Sounds like standard CNC capabilities.
When I was working for Boeing, a decade ago, they were transitioning from fixed jig assembly to laser coordinate measurement driving floor mounted hydraulic positioning equipment.
The benefits were:
1) No more huge jigs. Need to adjust a setting? No need to mod the jig, just tweak the s/w.
2) Eventually, each assembly line could handle any model. Just punch a button and the jacks position themselves to hold any body section.
3) Everything was modular, floor mounted and relatively compact. Union problems? Just load your production equipment into a couple of shipping containers and move it to a more hospitable environment. Any large building with a flat floor will do.
Have gnu, will travel.
The human COST is far more then the sum of wages.
Good-bye
No, it's more like if you want to make a tank part you load the file, tools, and stock for the tank part. CNC machines are general purpose by nature. I've programmed and run parts for medical, military and aerospace all on the same machines one right after another. To a job shop (machine shop that will take work from anyone) a part is a part no matter what it's for. Would you change operating systems on your computer because you want to visit a different website?
I have a TechShop membership, and have spent a lot of time there. What goes on there is mostly not all that high-tech. Most of it is hobby artwork. Some people are repairing cars. Others are making furniture. The electronics facilities are basic and little used. Much of the machine shop usage is by pros from companies nearby that need some machining done.
At times, it's rather pathetic. iPhones and iPads are made in China. Here in Silicon Valley, we have people making bamboo cases for them, and cheap plastic things to hold them on dashboads with suction cups.
Quite a bit of work was done on this back in the mid 1980s. The versatile factory capable of quick redirection came along with the concept of inventory taxes. The notion being that if a factory could convert from making fishing reels to brake assemblies or whatever in a few hours then many product lines could keep going with almost no inventory in storage. It was going fairly well back then but there was an issue with the price of the help needed to keep everything in order back then. That was mostly due to very inadequate computer systems. The machinery involved was also costly but it did work.
This does come up against something I've been trying to work out the numbers on:
- what's the $ per hour figure for running such a machine?
- how does that balance against the efficiencies of ganging up elements (when possible) for production?
I've begun making wooden cases for my archery gear, and have the tools to do all the cuts efficiently (save for routing out the stopped dado / groove in the end pieces):
http://www.3riversarchery.com/images/Contest2010/WilliamAdamsTakeDownCase.jpg
It doesn't take long to cut a set of dovetails once one is practiced at it (and one can clamp multiple boards together to cut several sets of tails at a time --- pins need to be referenced off the matching tails and cut individually), and drilling some holes in the right place is just a matter of a template/jig which can be flipped over --- if I get an electric router then each stopped groove is a quick pass w/ the router (once I build a jig to place it in).
Will I be able to make a machine like a Shapeoko pay for itself for straight-forward work like this?
- how long does it take to mount a piece for cutting?
- how long does it take the machine to make the cuts?
- how much clean-up will said cuts require?
I'd love to have a CNC machine to try out, but am still a bit dis-heartened that Shapeoko's envisioned $300 price point comes to $649 for a full kit at www.inventables.com
William
Sphinx of black quartz, judge my vow.