Advertise on podcast: Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast

Manufacturing leaders face a hidden cost: fragmented data. This sponsored podcast episode, recorded with guest Keith Dunnell, VP, Global Head of Manufacturing Industry GTM at ServiceNow, is for operations leaders, security teams, and plant managers who know fragmentation is slowing them down but aren't sure how to fix it. This podcast is sponsored by ServiceNow.

In a few weeks, the 2026 IndustryWeek Operations Leadership Summit brings together manufacturing leaders responsible for turning strategy into measurable performance. The Summit, held in Spartanburg SC from Oct. 20-22, will deliver practical, real-world insights on the challenges that matter most, from building stronger teams and sustaining continuous improvement to adopting AI and emerging technologies, strengthening safety cultures, and achieving operational excellence. In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, IndustryWeek editors Thomas Wilk and Jill Jusko as well as Smart Industry's Scott Achelpohl preview the highlights, including plant tours at BMW and Spartanburg Steel, and the presentation of the 2026 Best Plants Awards.

Recently, over 91,000 manufacturing professionals roamed vast exhibit halls in pursuit of technologies to make their enterprises more efficient, productive, competitive, or connected. Whether they realized it or not - all of them were looking for “manufacturing technology.” Why is this label so elastic? At IMTS 2026, 1,788 exhibitors filled 1.17 million square feet of floor space with new applications in machining, programming, software, toolmaking, automation, plus networking, product design, market development, and more. In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, American Machinist's Robert Brooks talks with IndustryWeek's Thomas Wilk about the insights collected by our visit to IMTS 2026, and what our impressions indicate about new technology and manufacturing trends.

The yard is no longer just the space between transportation and warehousing. It's where safety, execution, and business performance intersect. In this episode, YMX Logistics' Adam Buttgenbach discusses why yard operations are becoming an increasing focus for EHS leaders and how companies can move from reactive risk management to a more coordinated, proactive approach. This podcast is sponsored by YMX Logistics.

Manufacturing Extension Partnerships, state organizations that help small and medium-sized manufacturers, have been in the news in recent months as some saw their federal funding suspended or delayed. Things are looking better in the latest round of awards, however, as the funds have been delivered on time, and suspended funding was restored to Ohio. In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Carrie Hines of the American Small Manufacturers Coalition talks about the future of the MEP program and the services that these centers provide.

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Smart Industry's Sarah Mattalian and Nancy Majure, the head of product for Adaptive ERP at QAD, explore how manufacturers can scale AI without adding headcount by improving real-time visibility, data quality and workflow integration. They discuss the role of ERP as a foundation for governed AI, along with the risks of fragmented data, shadow AI and bolt-on tools. The conversation also looks ahead to how contextualized data and AI-driven decision-making could help manufacturers optimize operations and manage complex trade-offs.

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Chuck Orzechowski and Josh Renicker of the COO Forum discuss how operations leaders are navigating AI-driven disruption and workforce change. They explore the importance of human-centric leadership, strong teams, and culture as new technologies reshape manufacturing. The conversation also examines how closing gaps between engineering and production can support operational excellence at a moment where the post-AI age is on the horizon.

By focusing on the fundamentals, workplaces can build a safer environment from the ground up, says Kevin Weaver of U.S. Compliance, and author of Building a Strong Safety Culture: The 5 C’s of Workplace Safety, 2nd edition.

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Anna Smith explores the growing skilled labor shortage facing U.S. manufacturing. She examines data on the 1.3 million-worker talent gap, an aging workforce and rising demand driven by reshoring and data centers. Smith also looks at how upskilling, education partnerships, apprenticeships and AI can help manufacturers expand their talent pools. The discussion highlights strategies for developing the skilled workforce needed to support continued domestic production growth.

On this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, New Equipment Digest Editor-in-Chief Laura Davis rounds up four products worth knowing about — a coupling and brake system built for e-mobility test stands, an AI-powered platform for warehouse data capture, a connected AI forklift platform, and a pair of high-output rechargeable flashlights. Whether you're chasing measurement accuracy on the test bench or trying to close visibility gaps on the warehouse floor, this episode has something worth your time. Products Featured: ROBA-DS 9120 Peak Automation Intelligence NobleOne AI Forklift Platform LEO 10000 FLEX and Nebo LEO 12000 FLEX

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. In our monthly podcast miniseries, Ask a Plant Manager, Joe considers a commonplace scenario facing the industry and offers his advice, as well as actions that you can take to get on track tomorrow. This episode is our rapid-fire series where Joe tackles five diferent scenarios and provides five quick fixes. Listen to Joe discuss the traps of too much data and too weak a culture. First, I make him laugh, but tune in to see which scenario gets Joe all riled up!

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, EHS Today's Adrienne Selko talk with safety expert Camille Oakes, who says improving emotional intelligence skills for safety managers helps create stronger outcomes in complex workplaces.

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, IndustryWeek technology editor Dennis Scimeca and Smart Industry head of content Scott Achelpohl discuss the evolving cybersecurity challenges facing manufacturers. They examine recent attacks targeting PTC product lifecycle management software and Siemens S7 PLCs, highlighting the complexities of patching vulnerabilities across industrial environments. The conversation also explores how AI is accelerating cyberattacks and shortening the time available for organizations to respond.

IMTS 2026 is just weeks away, and the show floor will be packed with new equipment worth tracking down. In this episode, Laura Davis highlights four machines making their case at McCormick Place this September. Here's where to find each one, and what makes it worth the walk. A 5-axis mill-turn center built for aerospace engine components A compact CNC turning center for small high-volume parts A flexible cylindrical grinder A high-torque 5-axis horizontal machining center for large structural parts.

In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, chief editor Robert Brooks takes a look at how manufacturers that implement supply-chain management technology frequently face the “go-live gap”. It’s what separates a technically successful implementation from an operation that is truly prepared to use the new platform, follow the new processes, make the right decisions, measure and capture the value that justified the investment in the first place.