One of the objectives of this — or any — blog is to encourage two-way communication with its readers. Which reminds that Gear Technology Magazine has now been around longer (30 years) than some of those very same readers have been alive. So it is especially important that we engineers and the many other industry contributors learn what the editors want in terms of reader interest (technical articles, case studies, application tutorials, etc.). The magazine is constantly looking for submissions from its readership. In turn, the magazine has a presence at most industry events, seminars, and trade shows through a booth with staff attendance. These venues provide additional exposure for your — and in many cases your employer-sponsored — published work as it appears in the magazine. Amongst the older hands in the gear trade, concern is often expressed about the relative lack of young people afflicted with a passion for gears and machinery. A major contributor to this “problem” is the contraction the industry has gone through (as discussed in a previous posting), but we can’t ignore the tremendous increase in productivity over the same period — reducing the number of people required to prepare routings, calculate change gears, run machines, deburr parts, and inspect finished goods. Simply put, you can get a lot more parts out of a smaller workforce. It is always a treat for me to meet a “gear person” away from their natural environment. While sheltering inside the race team’s trailer during a recent downpour, I got into a conversation with a young man who had just finished restoring a 1920s steam tractor. Turns out he is one of our readers but didn’t connect my name with the publication. The curse of a common name strikes again. If my new friend is any indication of the folks working their way up the ranks, our industry will be just fine. Hard work, a passion for machinery, and an appreciation for history will take you to some interesting places — if you let it. Gear Technology exists to help you on your climb up the industry’s ladder. Between its on-line archive, the Ask the Expert column, and the great technical articles, we try to give you the information needed to do your job. Don’t see what you are looking for in the magazine? Let us know via e-mail or blog comment. Better yet — come see us at IMTS! (Booth No. N-7214)