Crossing the Streams

In the original Ghostbusters film, Egon Spengler (played by Harold Ramis) warns his fellow ghostbusters “don’t cross the streams” – allowing the energy streams from the proton packs to intersect would reverse the polarity and unravel the space time continuum or something like that. Basically, it would be bad — there would be chaos. Later in the movie, as the ghosts were unleashed on Manhattan — the fault of politicians who didn’t care to learn the science of ghost containment — chaos ensued anyway, as chaos does. Crossing the streams was suddenly the only viable solution.

What’s my point, besides just wanting to write about Ghostbusters? The point is that we should be conscious of when we’re doing things a certain way only because “we’ve always done them that way.” We should give some thought to the silos that we’re working in and figure out a way to get out of them. Focusing only on what’s right in front of you can keep you from seeing the bigger picture.

I recently traveled to the Precision Machining Technology Show (PMTS) and took some time to walk the show floor. Machining is not really my area of reporting, but it was great to see the ways in which finishing touches these parts — the bridge between these manufacturing arenas largely being in the cleaning and preparation of machined parts for finishing. The Parts Cleaning Conference, co-located with PMTS, explored the latest in cleaning technologies, regulatory developments influencing the industry, sustainability and environmental concerns, and much more. And, because parts have to be clean for platings or coatings to adhere correctly, these issues are all finishing industry concerns by association. Trends affecting various areas of manufacturing have a ripple effect. When I look across all of the brands that Products Finishing’s parent company Gardner Business Media encompasses, I’m faced with a conundrum of where an application story that touches on multiple processes or technologies really belongs in our storytelling — it often seems like it should be of interest to multiple audiences. And, I know for a fact that my fellow editors are thinking the same things.

In April, I traveled to Baltimore with my colleague Stephanie Hendrixson of Additive Manufacturing to visit RePLiForm, a company that specializes in electroplating 3D printed plastics and non-conductive materials. The visit was a culmination of occasional AM/PF collaborations initiated by Stephanie on the topic of finishing of 3D printed parts — check out the AM Radio podcast episode: apple.co/3OcgOnb. That episode turned into a continuing conversation with RePLiForm, which is an interesting topic for both AM and PF, and a great opportunity for collaboration and cross-brand storytelling.

During the same time frame, I had an exciting meeting with the editorial leaders for all of Gardner’s brands to discuss ways we could further collaborate, get out of our silos, and tell broader and more encompassing stories about the applications that the processes and technologies our various brands explore and seek to give a sounding board.

This kind of work is filled with potential and it’s exciting. No matter the industry, one’s day-to-day can be filled with so much narrowed focus, and getting outside of what we do allows us to see the important connections between our areas of focus and the larger world. That kind of thinking is where the big ideas lie.

As I look at the remainder of the year and weigh the opportunities for tradeshows, conferences, webinars, educational and networking events that are on the horizon, I find myself thinking increasingly about the ones on the periphery of finishing. Where the different areas of the manufacturing process chain connect. After all, I expect that’s the way PF’s readers are thinking: Who are the next customers they’ll be working with? Which manufacturers and fabricators have some new part that requires finishing? What new materials will be used in the creation of these parts and how will finishing them be different from working with legacy materials used for similar applications?

Investing the lion’s share of your effort on the markets you serve and the capabilities that make your business thrive is only natural and there will always be value in being the expert in any given area. But it’s also important to occasionally take stock of how all sectors of manufacturing work together and the consumer trends that are driving various markets. I’m not suggesting anyone should become a jack of all trades — trying to specialize in too many things can cause you to lose focus. Yet, devoting more energy to exploring the trends in sectors that touch your immediate business can help you find new opportunity. And, the key to those opportunities lies in collaboration — in recognizing your strengths and weaknesses and finding the right partner who can make you stronger in the areas you want to explore for your business.