Opinions & Industry Perspectives
Manufacturing and design evolve through cycles of innovation and refinement. Our decades in product development, spanning multiple technology shifts, provide context for examining current industry trends. These insights emerge from direct involvement in reshoring initiatives, automated manufacturing implementation, and evolving design methodologies.
We engage with language models as analytical tools, using their broad knowledge base to challenge our assumptions and explore alternative viewpoints. This approach combines experiential knowledge with systematic analysis, testing industry assumptions against both historical patterns and emerging data. The AI serves as a discussion tool rather than an authority, helping expand the scope of analysis while keeping human expertise central.
Our analysis draws from concrete project outcomes and documented process evolution. When examining topics like reshoring economics or AI implementation in design workflows, we connect historical patterns to current challenges. This approach moves beyond theoretical frameworks to examine practical implications, supported by specific case studies and measured outcomes.
LLM Details
The LLM engagement approach needs careful framing:
- Use AI to pose counterarguments and explore edge cases
- Extract relevant case studies and data points for analysis
- Test assumptions against broad knowledge bases
- Maintain human expertise as the source of conclusions
- Use AI to expand discussion scope while keeping human experience central
For industry dialogue contribution:
Connect historical patterns to current industry challenges
Draw from 20+ years of manufacturing experience
Reference specific projects that demonstrated key insights
Cite concrete outcomes from reshoring decisions
Document evolution of design processes through multiple technology shifts
Each piece aims to advance industry dialogue through critical examination, grounded in hands-on experience with manufacturing processes, design workflows, and technology integration. Our goal is sharing practical insights that contribute to industry advancement, focused on real-world implementation rather than speculative trends.
Like to engage in the discussion? We are on LinkedIn under Stratospheric Industries, each of the posts below should have its own thread.
Design, Precision and Iteration
Navigation Through Design Solution Space Every design brief presents a complex space of potential solutions. Within this space lie countless valid approaches to meeting user needs, manufacturing constraints, and market requirements. The ability to navigate this space effectively combines two critical elements: precision in the iteration process and the developed skill of solution space navigation. […]
Tools vs Systems
The False Equivalence: Why AI Systems Are Not “Just Another Tool” The reflexive defense “It’s just another tool” has become a common mantra among online AI users, particularly in creative fields. This comparison, often made between AI image generators and software like Photoshop, fails on multiple levels and obscures important discussions about how we interact […]
AI and the Sorcerer’s Apprentice
This image from “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” segment of Fantasia provides an apt analogy for current AI image generation technology. Mickey Mouse, like current developers and users, attempts to harness a powerful force (the enchanted broom) to automate labor (carrying water). The broom represents the AI models – capable of executing tasks, but in a relatively […]
AI, Art, and the Risk of Digital Dependency: A Dialog
Q: Is dismissing emotions as “just chemicals in the brain” a form of misanthropy? A: Yes, such reductionism devalues human experience by using “just” to minimize the profound complexity and significance of emotions in human life. Q: What about tech culture’s relationship with creativity and AI? A: I find some “tech-centered” individuals tend to dismiss […]