Editor’s note: Welcome to So That Happened, our editors’ takes on things going on in the manufacturing world that deserve some extra attention. This will appear regularly in the Member’s Only section of the site.
C’mon—Our EV Charging Infrastructure Isn’t That Bad
A new study on global electric vehicle charging by management consultancy Roland Berger shows that while the U.S. public vehicle charging system is lagging, the U.S. (score: 70) is on par with Germany (70) and the Netherlands (69) in its charging-facility readiness to meet market demands. Only China scored higher in its readiness (82).
Although its public charging infrastructure is lagging, the U.S. has the highest vehicle-to-charger ratio in the world (1.7) because of all the home charging. Ninety-six percent of U.S. EV drivers charge their vehicles at home, compared to 86% globally. This makes sense: The U.S. has a higher percentage of single-family-home dwellers than most of the developed world. Sixty-two percent of EV owners globally who don’t privately charge say it’s because their living situation doesn’t permit home charging.
But home chargers won’t deliver on road trips and lengthy commutes. The U.S. public charging infrastructure is still falling short, the study says. EV adoption has grown more quickly in the U.S. than the charging infrastructure, with the EV-to-public-charging ratio increasing from 17.1 to 24.5.
The fragmented system of putting individual states in charge of applying for and distributing EV-charging funds has created more bureaucracy and slowed progress. But the study authors hope that now that we’re three years into the Inflation Reduction Act, states have figured out the funding quirks and can improve on the current one public charger for every 26 miles of highway in the U.S.
—Laura Putre
Context-Free IMTS
The largest manufacturing technology trade show in North America continues this week in Chicago. For those of you unable to attend, here's a minute of random sights and sounds from the show floor.
— Robert Schoenberger
Neopanamax Sets New Record
With a maximum capacity of 17,640 TEUs, the MSC MARIE container ship set a record on Aug. 30 as the largest capacity Neopanamax vessel to cross the Panama Canal, says the Panama Canal Authority (ACP). The previous record was held by the EVER MAX vessel with a capacity of 17,312 TEUs in August 2023.
Completed in 2016, the Panama Canal’s expansion program, which added a new shipping lane for large Neopanamax vessels, doubled the Canal’s cargo capacity. The expanded locks are 18 feet deeper and 70 feet wider than the original Canal locks, and the program was the biggest expansion project by the Canal since its opening in 1914, according to the ACP.
This new record paired with recent transit increases may indicate that the Canal is bouncing back after a drought plagued the waterway with low water levels in 2023, leading to a significant reduction in transit slots.
— Anna Smith
Infrastructure Spending Slack? Highly Unlikely, Says Martin Marietta CEO
The arrival of election season means even more rhetoric than usual about government spending, which has included former President Donald Trump discuss cutting back on outlays under the aegis of the Inflation Reduction Act outlays. But when it comes to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, one prominent materials CEO said recently he doesn’t see a risk that the spigot gets turned off.
Speaking to analysts last month after he and his team reported second-quarter results, Martin Marietta Materials Inc. Chair and CEO Howard Nye said he expects that any reauthorization of the IIJA will be either at its current funding levels or even higher.
Playing into that calculation is the fact that recent inflation has taken a bite out of the spending power of what was designed a few years ago. But major demand tailwinds—think bridge upgrades or load growth on electric utilities’ networks—and work being done to catch up to an era of lower infrastructure spending are likely to provide “a nice extended period of time” for the supplier of aggregates, cement and other building materials.
“I don't think IIJA is a one-hit wonder. In other words, I think we simply changed the floor in the way that the United States Congress and the government will continue to invest in infrastructure,” Nye said. “Keep in mind, we went one-and-a-half decades with woefully underfunded infrastructure.”
— Geert De Lombaerde
Managers See Things Differently and Microchip Dodges a Cyberbullet
Leadership and those in the trenches have almost always had different perspectives on the overall state of things. Maybe wholly employee-owned businesses are an exception? I think everyone understands the (usually frustrating) disconnect generally and the question is whether and to what degree the disconnect affects operations.
Software company Epicor on September 3 released a report titled “Future of Work in Manufacturing” that draws data from Epicor’s own “Voice of the Essential Manufacturing Worker” and “Voice of the Manufacturing Manager” reports from 2023 and 2024.
The new report concerns differences in perception between manufacturing leaders and operators. Some of the larger discrepancies:
- 57% of managers felt their workplace was “very modern,” compared to 39% of operators.
- Half of both managers and operators don’t see their workplace as “very modern” owing to the lack of AI, IoT or 3D printing, among other examples.
- 91% of managers indicated their companies prioritize upskilling; only 70% of operators agreed.
- 61% of managers reported sustainability as a high priority versus 45% of operators.
- 12% more managers than workers felt morale was “very high.”
- 11% fewer operators than last year believed their jobs would change due to automation. The report suggests the bursting of the AI hype bubble may play a large role in this.
On the cybersecurity front, semiconductor manufacturer Microchip Technology on August 20 disclosed that multiple plants were affected by a cyberattack discovered on August 17. The attack prevented Microchip from filling some orders, after the company isolated the breached systems by shutting down others.
On September 4, disclosed via (surprise) a Form 8-K filing with the SEC, Microchip reported that “operationally critical” IT systems are back online, operations have been “substantially restored” and “the company does not believe the incident is reasonably likely” to have material effects.
I haven’t reported on this formally because details are slim and reaction from cybersecurity experts fall along expected lines, the traditional “train your employees against phishing” refrain. I can only hit our readers over the head with the same frying pan so many times before it feels less like making sure you’re all aware of the dangers of not taking cybersecurity seriously and more like scolding.
It also seems that the cyberattackers mostly got away with employee contact information including encrypted passwords. Microchip identified no customer or supplier data lost in the breach. An increase in spam emails and phishing attempts against Microchip employees will hopefully be the largest long-term ramification of this particular incident.
— Dennis Scimeca
No More Soup for Campbell's
No, the Campbell Soup Co. isn't giving up on soups as part of its portfolio, but the Camden, N.J.-based food company announced Sept. 10 that it would be changing its name to the Campbell's Co. to better align the moniker with the company's "evolution and transformed portfolio."
“This subtle yet important change retains the company’s iconic name recognition, reputation and equity built over 155 years while better reflecting the full breadth of the company’s portfolio,” said CEO Mark Clouse.
The full breadth, and truth, is that Campbell Soup's brands extend well beyond the familiar side dish to grilled cheese sandwiches. They include Snyder's of Hanover, Prego and Pepperidge Farm, to name a few.
Mick Beekhuizen, president of the Meals & Beverages division, said that while soup remains important, it now occupies a smaller portion of the company's portfolio.
“Our Meals & Beverages transformation story is far from complete, as we challenge ourselves to unlock the potential of our portfolio of iconic and distinctive brands,” Beekhuizen said.
The name change is not quite a done deal, yet. It is subject to shareholder approval at Campbell's annual meeting of shareholders in November.
— Jill Jusko
