Shopping for gifts for anyone you care about can be stressful, so we've put together a handy list of gifts for manufacturing professionals to help you find that perfect present. We hope this relieves some of the stress of the holiday season so you can nail your last-minute shopping.
Any manufacturing professional will need a place to jot down notes, so why not do it in style? Despite most of us taking notes on our computer and cellphone, there's still something handy about being able to whip out a high-quality notebook to create a sketch or work out a concept. And when it comes to notebooks, it really doesn't get much better than Moleskin. We love the graph paper style of this notebook because it's perfect for graphs and making clean lines.
2. Mistakes That Worked: 40 Familiar Inventions & How They Came to Be
What do a slinky, a piggy bank and silly putty all have in common? Besides being the type of gift we all would have loved to receive as a child, they were all inventions that came about accidentally. This fun book reminds us that sometimes the best way forward is around.
3. The Best T-shirt For The Engineer In Your Life
This shirt is sure to give a chuckle to the engineer in your life, as tested out on our own MAX software engineers. It reminds us that engineers are the ones "solving problems you didn't know you had in ways you don't understand". Oh, how true!
4. A Coffee Cup That Provides Endless Amounts Of Fun
Know someone who could use an extra kick of creativity along with their coffee? Check out the Lego coffee cup! We suggest buying a Lego character from their favorite movie (they now have Legos from Star Wars, the Lord of the Rings and more). This gift will definitely invoke some envy at the office.
5. What A Bright Idea!
Do you know someone on your gift list that basically has everything? Well, you can be pretty sure they don't have a levitating light bulb! This ingenious design provides light without a battery "using the mysterious power of magnets". Check out the video to see it in action!
6. DIY Hot Stirling Engine
This neat little gadget converts thermal energy into kinetic energy. It's perfect for someone who loves assembling kits and enjoys physics. At only $14 it's an incredibly fun find:
7. Wanted Dead Or Alive
Understanding the concept of quantum superposition doesn't sound like a ton of fun, but with this mug it is! Schrodinger posited that we can never truly know the exact position of a quantum particle and that once we know, our bias affects the result. He created a cat paradox to explain the idea (you can read more about this here). This idea has been entertaining science lovers for decades, and now you can share that joy with a mug that only reveals the state of the cat once the cup is warmed up with a tasty beverage. Store them both side by side and you'll have a surprise each morning when you pull one out at random! We found this gift at Think Geek, and you can find even more cool gifts for the "mad scientist" on their website.
8. It's All About Those Drones
For the last few years, it's been all over the skies and geek wishlists. The drone is still one of the coolest gifts out there. Coming in at the same price as those remote control helicopters that broke a few weeks after you unwrapped them, this drone can flip 360º and will return to you at the touch a button. Check out a review below:
9. Magnetic Putty
Much like the video game character, Kirby, this putty will take on the property of what it "eats". Put a magnet nearby and the putty will stretch around the magnet, then absorb the magnetic properties.
10. Engineers Field Bag
With spots for books, pencils, a calculator and whatever else your favorite engineer needs, this bag makes a perfect gift for the engineer on the run. With a variety of pockets, hooks and loops they're sure to find a spot for everything they need on a daily basis.
MAX helps small to medium-sized manufacturing companies perform better by using ERP software that’s simple to use, easy to deploy and provides the structure they need to manage growth. If you enjoyed this post and would value receiving Manufacturing Insights, please subscribe to our blog!
We'd love to know what you think of these gifts. Would you enjoy them? Would someone you care about love them? Please leave your comments below.
