Author: Peggy Smedley
Sustainability in manufacturing and the supply chain is important for many reasons. Today, this linear economy of take-make-waste, where we see material flow directly from resource extraction through manufacturing processes to landfills, has reached its capacity. And quite frankly, sustainability is often good for business and for the bottomline. In my book, Sustainable in a Circular World, I wrote about the change I saw coming, saying, corporate sustainability is on the rise within companies and it is driving significant cultural change within organizations and individuals. We are witnessing it in terms of how actions and behaviors are creating corporate transformation…
Peggy Smedley takes a deep dive into the future of autonomous vehicles and what it will take to get there. She explains how the path to full automation is long—but potentially transformative. Peggy breaks down each level of automation, from manual driving to fully autonomous systems, and where adoption stands today—and where it’s headed by 2030. She also discusses: The role of AI in enabling autonomous vehicle technology and global forecasts for vehicle automation levels. Real-world examples from automakers like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Tesla, and others. The biggest roadblocks—consumer perception, regulation, liability, and trust. peggysmedleyshow.com (7/8/25 – 927) What You Might…
Peggy Smedley and Akli Adjaoute, entrepreneur, founder, Brighterion and author, Inside AI, talk about whether generative AI is threatening humanity—or helping it. They explore whether future generations will trust themselves or rely on AI for life’s biggest decisions. They also discuss: AI risks and consequences such as deep fakes, misinformation, privacy concerns, and inherent biases in AI systems—issues that could have significant societal repercussions. The need to strengthen uniquely human traits, like curiosity and imagination, to ensure future generations remain innovative and capable thinkers. Educational strategies such as how to integrate AI as a learning tool without compromising essential human…
Peggy Smedley and Roza Tapini, VP of people and culture at Epignosis, talk about the emerging workplace trend of quiet cracking and why it is so dangerous. She says quiet cracking is the emotional withdrawal at work, and shares how it is different from burnout and quiet quitting. They also discuss: The importance of training and the likelihood of feeling more job insecure. The traits of people who are quiet cracking. How employers and employees can work together more creatively and collaboratively. epignosishq.com (7/8/25 – 927) What You Might Have Missed: Quiet Cracking The Hottest Labor Trends All about Quiet…
Why is sustainability important, especially in design and construction? And can AI (artificial intelligence) help build more sustainable cities and infrastructure of the future? These are the questions we must be asking as we design and build the cities, homes, and infrastructure of tomorrow. Last week, we kicked off this blog series looking at resilience in construction, defining the term and identifying how technology such as AI, and setting aside all the hype, can help build more resilient cities and infrastructure of the future. Today, let’s look a bit broader, at sustainability in general and in the construction industry. What…
Resilience is something we have talked about in the construction industry for decades, and it was certainly a conversation that came up in spades during the pandemic, especially as it relates to the supply chain. But it is a conversation we need to continue having on a more ongoing basis in all industries, especially in manufacturing. Perhaps it is time to make a shift away from cost and speed being the primary priorities for businesses, and we shift to a greater focus and attention by adding more resilience to the daily mix. It seems Fortune 500 executives agree to some…
Are natural disasters on the rise? Perhaps, the greater question is: How can the construction industry prepare to build more resilient cities and infrastructure to withstand any threat that comes? And then, also, tangentially: How will AI (artificial intelligence) specifically help build more resilient cities and infrastructure of the future? First, let’s start with some numbers. Are natural disasters on the rise? Maybe. The National Centers for Environmental Information found there were 27 confirmed weather disaster events—1 drought, 1 flooding, 17 severe storms, 5 tropical cyclones, 1 wildfire, and 2 winter storms—with losses exceeding $1 billion each in the United…
Technology—more specifically AI (artificial intelligence)—promises so many things: better quality, heightened productivity, greater safety, streamlined supply-chain management, improved product development and design, and greater resilience and sustainability, just to name a few. We are seeing case study after case study of success stories of AI in manufacturing and the supply chain. For example, let’s consider Fedrigoni, which is a global reference manufacturer of specialty papers for packaging and other creative applications, self-adhesive labels, graphic supports for visual communication, and RFID (radio frequency identification). The manufacturer recognized it needed to accelerate digital transformation by leveraging advanced AI, and it started by…
Peggy explores the factory of the future and how AI (artificial intelligence) can help enable it. She says this could help address a core challenge in the manufacturing industry—the labor shortage—and with robots and AI we can catapult our businesses into the next generation of work. She also discusses: Some global statistics and perspectives. The factors driving the need for robots and AI. NVIDIA’s AI factories and how they are similar and different to traditional data centers. peggysmedleyshow.com (6/24/25 – 926) What You Might Have Missed: What’s Driving Data Centers Innovation in Industry 4.0 Employee Productivity in Manufacturing IoT, Internet…
Peggy Smedley interviews Tim Lindner, warehouse automation consultant, Voxware, about the evolution and future of robotics in warehousing and distribution centers. Tim also explores the concept of ‘cobots’, where humans and robots collaborate to improve efficiency, and shares insights on the practical challenges and potential benefits of robotic deployment in various warehouse environments. They also discuss: The transition from manual labor to the integration of automation technologies such as barcodes, handheld scanners, and voice-directed picking systems. The historical context of labor in warehouses and the incremental advancements of robotics. The affordability and future potential of these technologies. voxware.com (6/24/25 -…