The NDTA Defense Travel and Government Transportation Meeting

摘要

Over the last five to ten years, additive manufacturing, robotics, and open source design have moved from interesting design tools into mainstream production technologies that are reshaping factories and the entire supply chain. A simple model of the supply chain consists of buying raw material, making something from the raw material, then moving, storing, and selling what was made. Henry Ford taught three basic rules of manufacturing-that it is better to use standardized parts, modules rather than individual parts, and digital controls instead of mechanical ones. This model of the supply chain and basic rules of manufacturing have governed product design and the global supply chain for nearly a century. However, Mr. Brody felt that these ideas are about to become relatively obsolete due to the advancement of three technologies: 1) 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, 2) intelligent robotics, and 3) open-source product design. These technologies combined create something called a software defined supply chain (what used to be complex and difficult can be done through software).