3M Forward is a system that highlights how supplies science-primarily based innovation at scale can aid society progress amid 3 unstoppable forces shaping our planet: climate alter and resource scarcity, shifting demographics and social alter and convergence of the physical and digital worlds. As portion of 3M Forward, 3M scientists, engineers and authorities share how their options are assisting to construct a brighter future.
Mark Copman, 3M senior vice president, new development ventures, says: “The worldwide forces highlighted inside 3M Forward are disruptive in nature, but we see them as catalysts for new advances in science and constructive societal influence.
“Science has the possible to resolve the toughest worldwide challenges, and 3M’s diverse worldwide portfolio and vast experience make us optimally positioned to think about what’s doable and construct what’s subsequent.”
Climate alter and resource scarcity
Rising prices of worldwide improvement and decreasing levels of organic sources have contributed to negatively impacting the atmosphere and accelerating worldwide climate alter. With no swift options, the effects of climate alter will continue to hit vulnerable persons, economies and ecosystems – when expanding into new geographies.
According to the 3M State of Science Index, original third celebration analysis performed by Ipsos, 93 % of persons globally are concerned about the consequences of climate alter and 90 % think science can aid reduce its effects.
Gayle Schueller, 3M senior vice president and chief sustainability officer, says: “We see the broadening consensus for climate action and expanding demand for revolutionary and sustainable options reaching an inflection point.
“Our robust innovation pipeline makes it possible for us – and our buyers – to accelerate and scale up current science-primarily based options in the essential regions of decarbonization, power transition and circular economy.”
A single way 3M is accelerating the delivery of new climate options to contribute to a low carbon economy is by way of collaborations, reflected in the company’s current partnership announcement with Svante. 3M and Svante will collaborate to create Direct Air Capture (DAC) goods for sale to the Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) business.
In addition, the enterprise is creating an revolutionary 3M Nanostructured Supported Iridium Catalyst Powder that could make the production of green hydrogen much more expense-powerful, effective and obtainable – thereby enabling a much more sustainable fuel resolution for manufacturing and industries exactly where electrification is hard, such as lengthy-haul trucking or steelmaking.
3M is also scaling worldwide availability and applications for its current portfolio of climate options, which are producing power-effective houses and firms, decreasing raw material use and waste, optimizing electric automobiles and modernizing the grid to integrate renewable energy generation in markets about the planet.
Shifting demographics and social alter
Higher worldwide connectivity implies shifts to education, sustainability, equity and technologies. It can have impacts far beyond their geographic origin. These shared social alterations offer you individual and expert possibilities but also present challenges. For instance, urbanization prices continue to develop as the planet redefines the future of function and consumerism with technologies, but a diminishing population in much more rural regions can produce labor shortages and influence provide chains.
Mike Kesti, senior vice president, 3M corporate analysis lab, says: “3M is innovating to meet the shifting demands and values of persons about the planet – no matter whether they need to have options for the evolving nature of their function or inside their houses.
“3M’s collection of technologies platforms, coupled with our robust and worldwide manufacturing infrastructure, allow us to effectively scale and provide impactful options to our buyers and society.”
The goods and technologies that emerge from 3M’s innovation pipeline are as diverse as the persons whose lives they boost. In healthcare facilities, the company’s Clinician Options Portfolio is decreasing the administrative burden on well being care providers so they can far better concentrate on their sufferers and produce far better well being outcomes.
To address labor challenges inside manufacturing when enhancing productivity and top quality, 3M is introducing automated technologies like the 3M Finesse-it Robotic Paint Repair Technique, which performs with third-celebration vision systems to automatically recognize and repair popular paint defects on automotive production lines.
And to empower new techniques of functioning, 3M lately launched The Post-it App for Microsoft Teams. The app gives the technologies to assistance hybrid teams, enabling workers to share hand-written notes with their colleagues and take action on projects, no matter exactly where they reside or function, offering much more freedom and flexibility.
Convergence of the physical and digital planet
Application, sensors, artificial intelligence and human-machine interfaces make up a quick-evolving worldwide ecosystem that powers business, commerce and every day life. In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, persons are much more engaged with these interfaces and much more dependent on them.
Fast technological advancements and connected systems are shaping a new reality exactly where the physical and digital increasingly overlap—an intersectional atmosphere exactly where 3M thrives.
John Banovetz, 3M executive vice president, chief technologies officer and environmental duty, says: “3M technologies provide much more seamless connectivity among the physical and digital worlds.
“At 3M, we are advancing industrial automation to streamline processes and leverage 3M supplies in new techniques, boosting the energy and efficiency of our customers’ goods and optimizing their production processes.”
3M is top the way in optical supplies technologies and enabling expanding sectors such as virtual reality (VR). 3M has been an business leader in effectively demonstrating the viability of pancake lenses in VR headsets. Enabled by 3M’s patented reflective polarizer technologies, pancake optics decrease the size of headsets and drastically boost image resolution.
These rewards are fueling future development and adoption of VR technologies as it promises to come to be much more mainstream. In industrial applications, advancements such as the 3M On Demand Bonding Technique featuring 3M VHB Extrudable Tape blend automation with adhesive science to aid decrease waste and boost manufacturing approach efficiency.
And for customers, 3M is creating connected options for current solution offerings, like the state-of-the-art Filtrete Clever HVAC Air Filter. This technologies aids trap and capture allergens and other microscopic particles, like bacteria and viruses, from the air in houses. It tracks the life of the filter primarily based on airflow and usage – not just time – so property owners under no circumstances have to be concerned about altering their filter also early or also late.
Delivering science-primarily based innovations at scale for a brighter tomorrow
As the transformative forces of climate alter and resource scarcity, shifting demographics and social alter and convergence of the physical and digital planet continue to shape our reality, 3M applies the most up-to-date supplies science-primarily based innovations and leverage its complete capabilities to provide meaningful options that aid society progress.
With R&D capabilities in 55 nations and much more than 7,000 R&D specialists and scientists, 3M innovation has led to much more than 132,000 patents and 60,000 goods across diverse industries. The outcomes and influence of 3M’s worldwide portfolio and deep experience permit the enterprise to offer you scalable scientific options and aid construct a brighter future for all.
