NIST Launches Digital Thread Test Bed

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has launched the Smart Manufacturing Systems (SMS) Test Bed. According to the organization, the test bed is an innovative model factory that will facilitate the advanced manufacturing technology known as the digital thread and help manufacturers cut costs, shorten production time, reduce errors and provide higher quality goods.

The test bed consists of three major components:

• A computer-aided technologies laboratory with a suite of standardized software tools for controlling design, fabrication, inspection, data management, and verification and validation testing;
• A real-world manufacturing facility at NIST’s Gaithersburg, MD, headquarters, featuring a variety of computer numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools (such as milling and turning centers) and precision inspection devices (such as coordinate measuring machines and digital micrometers); and
• Online data streaming, collection, storage and publication services that provide real-time, universally compatible data links for experimenting with the digital manufacturing process; a searchable repository of all SMS Test Bed data generated; and preset data packages for model products previously fabricated using the digital thread that manufacturers can try at their own facilities.

“The SMS Test Bed joins the many resources NIST offers to help U.S. manufacturers drive innovation and compete in a global market,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director Willie E. May. “Digital manufacturing represents an exciting advance that is expected to yield significant operational and bottom-line benefits for manufacturers of all sizes.”

For more information, visit NIST.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.