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Bringing the Shop Floor to the Head of the Class

A conversation with Lance Brown

Lance Brown spent 28 years at CGI, Inc.—a Carson City, Nevada-based manufacturer of precision drive systems founded in 1967 and best known for its work in medical robotics and aerospace, now part of The Timken Company—working his way from the shop floor into design engineering and tackling gear problems across some of the most demanding industries in the world. Now, as MPMA’s first Senior Technical Instructor, he’s channeling that experience into a growing education program at a pivotal moment for the organization. We sat down with Brown to talk about the career that got him here, what he’s seeing in the classroom, and where MPMA’s training offerings are headed next.

The Edge of Efficiency

Atlanta Gear Works receives grinding wheel assist from Weiler Abrasives

Single-Flank Testing for Modern Gear Production

Detecting gear manufacturing deviations through advanced single-flank testing

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Technical Articles

Interchangeability of Gears

An excerpt from Gear Technology Solutions by Dr. Hermann J. Stadtfeld covering when and how individual bevel gear members can be replaced during gearbox service without changing the mating gear.

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Smart Alloying Eliminates Manufacturing Steps in Automotive Gears

20NiMo9-7 alloy achieves up to 48 percent higher fatigue strength than conventional carburizing steels in the as-carburized condition, eliminating the need for shot peening and grinding in automotive gear applications.

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Investigating the Effects of Wear, Lubrication and Material Pairing on the NVH Performance of Plastic Gears

This study systematically evaluates how material selection, progressive wear, and grease lubrication affect the noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) performance of polymer gears, providing new insights for designing quieter, more optimized transmission systems.

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Design Method of System Tolerances in Cylindrical Gearboxes for Cost-Efficient Optimization of the Excitation Behavior

The article proposes a method to optimize cylindrical gearbox tolerances by balancing gear noise performance and manufacturing costs using modeling, analysis, and meta-model-based optimization.

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Design

Grinding

NVH

The arrival of Gleason’s Hard Finishing Cell (HFC) in 2018 represented a paradigm shift in the way automotive transmission gears and gears for e-drives, could be produced in high volumes. Now, for the first time, 100 percent inspection of every gear, and every gear tooth was possible in-process, without impacting the high speeds at which these gears need to be hard finished. Identifying, and correcting for, conditions that create unacceptable noise behavior in these gears, on the fly, was finally a reality too.

Heat Treating

Heat Treat 2023 is the Heat Treating Society’s 32nd conference and expo for heat treating professionals featuring three days of face-to-face networking opportunities with approximately 200 heat treat exhibitors/companies. All the top heat-treating companies will offer the latest research and industry insights during more than 100 technical programs. This year’s show includes a VIP-guided industry tour, as well as student/emerging professionals initiatives, including free college student registration, Fluxtrol Student Research Competition, and the ASM Heat Treating Society Strong Bar Student Competition. Heat Treat 2023 is colocated with Motion + Power Technology Expo 2023 with access to additional exhibitors. The event takes place October 17–19, 2023 at Huntington Place in Detroit.

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Videos

Liebherr Hobbing Machine LC 280 DC with FlexChamfer

​The LC 280 DC gear hobbing machine from Liebherr is designed for precise gear cutting up to module 4.5 mm. It combines high productivity with advanced technology, featuring simultaneous FlexChamfer for efficient deburring and chamfering during the hobbing process.

Industry News

The Motion + Power Manufacturers Alliance (MPMA) today announces new Board, Officers, and other leadership changes for 2026–2027. Joining the Board of Directors are Michael Kapp, General Manager of KAPP NILES and Jared Scott, National Training Manager, SEW-Eurodrive.  MPMA members elected the two leaders at their Annual Meeting, held April 23-26 at the Sunseeker Resort in Port Charlotte, FL.  They will begin their three-year terms at the August 2026 Board Meeting.

Product News

Heimatec recently announced the availability of its u-tec flexible changing system on all live tools in the company’s product line. Tools are now available for the most popular machine tool models in the market, according to Platinum Tooling Technologies Inc. President, Preben Hansen.

Calendar

Furnaces North America (FNA) 2026

Oct 12, 2026 - Oct 14, 2026

FNA (Indianapolis) is produced by the Metal Treating Institute (MTI) with media partner Heat Treat Today. The heat treat-only trade show and technical conference includes the latest products and technologies on industrial furnaces and ovens, atmosphere generation and control, quenching systems and quenchants, induction heating equipment, vacuum furnaces and pumps, heat treat software and controls and more

TPS (Turbomachinery & Pump Symposia) 2026

Sep 22, 2026 - Sep 24, 2026

WZL Gear Conference USA

Jul 15, 2026 - Jul 16, 2026

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