Intro to SDM- Scalable Distributed Manufacturing.

It isn't hard to envision a dystopian future in the field of manufacturing. What is hard, is to find a way to prevent one, or if the worst comes, what we will have to do to cope.

Hopefully I have not stolen, or plagiarized the name, or concept. That is certainly not my intent. I do believe the concept itself is mine, SDM being born from my imagination.

We are entering a new era within the information age. Artificial intelligence, carbon taxes, rumors of an end to hard currency and the birth of Bitcoin, self driving cars, advances in robotics...virtual reality. Science fiction has become science fact. But, not many people are talking about the things that won't change...

With current medical advances, people are living longer than ever. The current world population is 7.3 billion and by 2050, 9.7 billion people... So what? Well, unless you have stopped watching the news for about 15 years you probably know pollution is a problem, climate change and other environmental anomalies are on the rise, while demand on manufacturers to provide products for their growing customer base is only increasing, with more manufacturing, their is more waste, it doesn't matter what the facility is, the larger the facility gets, the more damage it does to its environment, and that effect I believe is exponential in nature. Sure, we have the EPA...and as many companies know, it is cheaper to pay the EPA a fine than it is to fix their transgressions on the planet.

The main problem isn't the company, or the regulation. What is really needed is a fundamental shift in how we not only behave as consumers, but HOW we procure our products.

Enter SDM.

To understand SDM, you have to understand what drives the cost of your goods! There are several things and I'm not sure if I even know them all!

1. Environmental impact.

Manufacturing emits several forms of waste, and even in a perfect world where a product was created with zero waste, or "lean" it has still used resources, and there is nothing beyond replacement of what we have taken from nature to offset that.

2. Needs of end users to upgrade or replace when the item in question stops working.

Planned obsolescence in manufacturing has made it a guarantee that producers can sell a similar product again to the same consumer! Many products you own could be designed to last a lifetime, the reason they don't is the work of "reliability engineers".

3. Marketing and advertising.

Marketing and advertisements are what I call "thought pollution", but beyond that, part of the inflated cost of our deceptively cheap products is what it costs just to make you want to buy them.

4. Research and development.

Another hidden cost in our pricing framework, is R&D. Is there really ANYTHING you can do to improve a 1930's stove top coffee percolator? No, and it will last several more lifetimes if it was taken care of, but they don't require engineers or fancy marketing, and so, they don't get reproduced.

5. Costs of testing and evaluation.

T&E can be a very lengthy process, or even non-existent before products end up on the shelf.

6. Returns and QC.

Everyone that makes a product does, or if they want to survive, should factor in the price of returns, and quality control issues, however this can inflate the cost to a point that brings it above its target market, and therefore fails to sell...resulting in even more waste!

7. Emotional costs.

Marketing, and engineering controls in shopping malls and other stores make it sometimes impossible to avoid a purchase, before you know it, you paid too much for something you don't need and it results in buyer's remorse...and when the product is returned, results in yet more waste if it cannot be placed back on the shelf. Which wastes the retailers time, increases turn around, back logs customer service...you get the idea.

What can we do about it? If you truly wish to know, stay tuned for part 2.