Some farms grow food,” says the soothing yet authoritative voiceover in the commercial. “This one grows fuel.” So begins a recent television commercial from ExxonMobil that brings again to the consumer consciousness the idea of growing algae for biofuel production. 

Just as much as New Year’s Eve is a time of new resolutions and beginnings, the end of a year is a time to look back. 

If manufacturing were a person (stick with me here…), it would be the world’s worst control freak. Think about it: knowledge and control are the name of the game in effective manufacturing. 

Summer — the season of family trips to national monuments, lazy days at the beach and camping — will soon be behind us. Besides the end of construction season for the northern one-third of the country, the seasons’ change brings us another welcome sight: tradeshow season.

It’s easy to take the breadth of information available to each of us today. Whether you want to learn more about the benefits of crop rotation, the sleeping habits of Australian shepherds or a refresher on the Reynolds number and the equation for flow in a pipe or tube, the answer is just a click away.

As I wrap up our April issue, I can’t help but hope for more April-like weather by the time you’re reading this. Winter in the upper Midwest may have started late — we had green grass until late December near where I live.

Back in my college days, I was introduced to Peter F. Drucker and his work on leadership, management, labor and economics. One of his famous quotes has stuck with me: “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.” At first glance, that statement seems obvious. But what are those “right things?” What makes a good leader?

One of my favorite things in my early days of publishing was getting a new at-a-glance planner each December. Part calendar, address book and part personal guidebook, each new calendar offered smooth, unmarked pages full of potential.

Have you ever noticed that possibilities are only limited by the ways in which you choose to view them? Perspective is key: It you choose to believe something is possible (or impossible), then it is.

When you make an equipment purchase, what — besides price, of course — influences what you buy and from whom? We’d all like to think that our buying choices, large and small, are based on good research and a judicious weighing of the costs and benefits of each option.