The manufacturing process that takes the next big idea from concept to market is one of the greatest factors propelling innovation forward — or in some cases, holding it back. Without this important step, we’d live in a world without many of the ingenious technologies that improve our daily lives and excite our imaginations, from smartwatches to...

Researchers at a Cambridge lab hope so. They’re developing fibers that would be integrated into the smart sweater of Christmases yet to come, enabling what was once a simple garment to store electricity, change colors, gather data about your health, or even help an acquaintance recall your name at a crowded holiday party.

The lab, part of a public...

LOWELL -- It's a tale of two fabrics.

The standard uniform catches fire and never stands a chance, burning completely through.

But the other flame-retardant uniform self-extinguishes the fire within a few seconds, resulting in a charred sleeve. This safer, lower cost, non-toxic material may end up saving soldiers and firefighters in the future.

Since May 2015, in a portion of its WorldPort distribution center in Louisville, Kentucky, United Parcel Service has been operating a spare parts warehouse with no spare parts. Instead, the facility is stocked with ultrafast 3-D printers that can build up almost any plastic part that’s required, layer by layer by layer — and have it ready for UPS...