We scoured leading blogs and websites dedicated to engineering topics and identified 5 articles we found to be particularly valuable and think you will too.

1. Space Engineers Needed: Nat Geo documents our mission to 'Mars'

National Geographic Channel (NGC) is launching a new TV series, “Mars,” in November. The six-part miniseries brings together some of the best minds in modern science and innovation, illuminating how research and development are creating the space technology that will enable our first attempt at a mission to Mars. And it is leading the way, along with Elon Musk at SpaceX, in making engineering fun again for generations to come. Read article

2. Automation Fair Pre-Show Program

Automation Fair 2016 is November 9-10, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. Browse the program packed full of presentations, forums, hands-on labs and technical sessions. Access Program

3. Can 3D Drawing Bring Shoe Manufacturing Back to America?

Reebok’s Liquid Factory is an example of the kind of technological advancement that can bring manufacturing back to America. The Liquid Factory uses a combination of software and robotics to “draw” shoe components  in three dimensions. The technique, which the company calls “3D Drawing,” uses a proprietary liquid material created by BASF to draw shoe components in three-dimensional layers, eliminating the need for traditional molds. It’s a bit of a mystery why Reebok didn’t call this process what it looks like: additive manufacturing. Read article

4. McKinsey Energy Insights Predicts Oil Market Oversupply Into 2017

The oil and gas industries and the automation industies are closely linked. More than six months is needed for the oil markets to fully rebalance. That is the forecast from data and analytics provider McKinsey Energy Insights (MEI). In its latest research, MEI suggests that the pace and timing of an oil price recovery depends on four key drivers in the short-term: GDP growth, decline in producing fields, slowdown in US light tight oil (LTO) production and OPEC Gulf state behavior, in particular, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Read article

5. Technologies for the Smartest Machines in the IIoT Era

What does it mean to make something smart? Consider the scope of this industry catch phrase and what it means for a machine to be smart and to provide advantages for increased use of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) design strategies. Read article