TRAM Visit Brings AMRC to Light

A major part of my week-long tour of England included a stop in Sheffield. Here, I attended TRAM, which is an acronym for Trends in Advanced Machining, Manufacturing and Materials.

This was its fourth edition, and the second TRAM held in the U.K. Over 2 days, 24 world-class presentations rolled across the stage. Sessions were grouped into topics that included manufacturing in the future, assembly and metrology, materials, additive manufacturing and reconfigurable flexible manufacturing. I've attended few technical conferences that have been as comprehensive. While the main focus was on aerospace, many of the topics are germane to all aspects of the manufacturing sector.

At the heart of this industry-sponsored conference is AMRC, an acronym for Advanced Manufacturing Research Center. With Boeing, AMRC specializes in helping manufacturers of all sizes become more competitive by introducing advanced techniques, technologies and processes.

While in England for TRAM, I toured the AMRC campus, which was established in 2002 as effort among the University of Sheffield, industry sponsors and the government. It is currently composed of seven centers, each specializing in an aspect of advanced manufacturing. There is also a training center that is exposing the next generation of manufacturers to potential careers in manufacturing.

With its 80-plus industrial partners, AMRC has become a global source for solutions to manufacturing challenges. They are problem solvers.

The next edition of TRAM will be held during IMTS 2016 on Sept. 14-15. Consider attending during your visit to Chicago for the show.