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.
It’s Supposed to Look Messy
Sometimes, you want paint to clump and unevenly stick to surfaces. In the grand tradition of Pee Wee Herman saying, “I meant to do that,” Toyota subsidiary Toyoda Gosei has developed a painting process to make surface coatings look intentionally sloppy.
Meteocoat “adds uneven texture to painted surfaces of plastic exterior parts as a decorative variation to meet the diverse tastes of automobile users,” the company says. The company developed it for offroad racing enthusiasts who abuse their vehicles. With a crisp, clean paint job, every nick and scratch stands out, drawing attention to the damage. Meteocoat hides those trail-earned flaws by offering lots of texture of surfaces that get the most wear – bumpers mainly.
Engineers adjusted the viscosity of paint to get it to clump, something I generally achieve without taking any extra effort when using rollers to paint rooms.
—Robert Schoenberger
Five Years of STEM Scholarship
Supply chain automation company Dematic, in partnership with global nonprofit FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), has awarded 12 students $20,000 in scholarships through the annual Dematic FIRST Scholarship program. The program, now in its fifth year, honors students pursuing STEM education by awarding two recipients with $5,000 scholarships and 10 recipients with $1,000 scholarships.
“Every year, I’m inspired by the innovation, drive, and leadership potential I see in these students,” says President of Dematic and KION Group Executive Board Member Mike Larsson. “Investing in STEM education is not only an investment in individual leaders but also a strategic commitment to advancing technology and shaping the future of the industry.”
Program applicants are required to submit transcripts, a letter of recommendation and an essay. The prompt for this year’s essay was to propose a solution to water resource issues that uses existing or emerging technologies. Prior participation in a FIRST Robotics Competition or FIRST Tech Challenge was also a requirement for applicants.
After a panel of Dematic leaders reviewed applications from across 12 states and Canada, Sarah Milligan and Harish Pravin were selected to receive the $5,000 awards, and the following students were selected to receive the $1,000 awards:
- Oishik Auddy
- Melody Barnhart
- Cabot Clark
- Andrew Creswick
- Nicholas Donatelli
- Maddox Gannon
- Sanvi Kainth
- Jacob Mazelin
- Orion Ramirez
- Quinn Stephenson
“As a student attending an out-of-state college, the cost of my education is immense. This scholarship is helping fund my dream education while honoring my growth and contributions within FIRST,” says recipient Sarah Milligan. “I am incredibly grateful for the many opportunities that FIRST and Dematic have given me and look forward to giving back as my education enables me to reach new heights.”
—Anna Smith
Another Venture into Vessels
The race is now well and truly on to earn the billions of dollars of federal funding that have been earmarked for unmanned ships.
Six months ago, we relayed news that the aspiring autonomous ship builders at Saronic Technologies had landed $600 million in funding to scale their plans. This week, a Boston-based rival startup said it, too, has taken a big step toward building long-range, full-sized autonomous ships.
The leaders of Blue Water Autonomy said they have secured $50 million from investment firm GV (the former Google Ventures) and other backers who put to work an initial $14 million this spring. CEO Rylan Hamilton, a veteran of the U.S. Navy as well as Amazon Robotics and other logistics tech ventures, says the new cash will let his team move from testing and buying materials to actually building its first medium-sized ship and deploying it next year.
“This funding gives our team the resources to build long-range autonomous ships from the keel up that will operate on the open ocean for months at a time," Hamilton said. “Blue Water Autonomy is laser-focused on perfecting a single platform class. This intentional strategy ensures unmatched quality, speed to market, and reliability from day one.”
As for Saronic, which is aiming to build a broader line of at least six types of vessels: Its executives earlier this year acquired a Louisiana shipyard spanning nearly 100 acres and plan to spend at least $250 million on upgrades to allow the facility to deliver up to 50 unmanned ships annually.
—Geert De Lombaerde
25 in 2025 Tallies a #26
Editor’s note: For IndustryWeek’s Manufacturing Gamechangers: 25 in 2025 series, we asked readers for their take on the events, people and innovations that have changed manufacturing in the past 25 years. Supply-chain expert and IndustryWeek contributor Ji Li suggested this addition to our list:
#26: Cross-Border E-Commerce Platforms Break Global Barriers for SMEs
How did a marketplace idea dismantle century-old gatekeepers of global trade? The launch of Amazon's third-party marketplace in the early 2000s, followed by the rise of cross-border e-commerce platforms like DHGate in 2004, broke down trade barriers for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with integrated logistics and payment systems.
This shift disrupted traditional multi-layered supply chains—dependent on exporters, importers, wholesalers, and retailers—that had long obscured demand visibility, squeezed manufacturer margins, and inflated consumer costs. For the first time, SME manufacturers could bypass these intermediaries and sell directly to the world. For U.S manufacturers, it was an opportunity to leverage and grow, but also a risk from intensified global competition.
The manufacturing impact was profound. Factories around the world pivoted from large-volume, single-customer production to smaller, diversified runs. This new reality demanded investments in agile manufacturing, flexible automation, and real-time data analytics.
These platforms transformed global manufacturing economics, enabling direct factory-to-customer relationships that generated $2.83 trillion value in 2023 (9.2% of global trade)—permanently rewriting how goods flow from the factory floor to the customer's doorstep.
–Ji Li
Honeywell Exec to Take Timken Reins
The question of who will be the next CEO of engineered bearings and industrial motion manufacturer Timken Co. has been answered. Lucian Boldea, most recently with Honeywell, has been appointed president and CEO as of Sept. 1.
Boldea succeeds Richard G. Kyle, who has been serving in the role on an interim basis since March. It is a position he is very familiar with, having previously served as CEO of the Canton, Ohio-based company from 2014 to 2024. Kyle stepped back into the leadership position temporarily following the departure of Tarak B. Mehta, who left Timken after approximately seven months for personal reasons.
At Honeywell, which he joined in 2022, Boldea most recently led the industrial giant’s $10 billion industrial automation segment. (Earlier this year, Honeywell reported that it would split into three separate companies, one of those being its industrial automation unit.) Timken, by contrast, reported 2024 sales of $4.6 billion.
In announcing the new Timken CEO, board chair John Timken said, "He shares our values and has the vision, experience and leadership qualities to take Timken to new levels of performance."
—Jill Jusko
