Industry Week articles from December 2006

Industry Week archives from December 2006

"Right" sizing: strategic workforce planning promises better cost control and better business decisions.(HUMAN RESOURCES)
December 1, 2006... With its world headquarters close to the Finger Lakes, high-tech manufacturer Corning Inc. seems pointed in the right direction. Based in the upstate New York town of the same name, Corning is among a growing number of companies turning to...

JIT tops management practices.(just in time)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Supplier deliveries that arrive just in time (JIT) during production are the most common means for managing inventories among U.S. manufacturers surveyed by INDUSTRYWEEK and the Manufacturing Performance Institute for the 2006 Census of...

Air Products plans new Korean plant.(SITING)
December 1, 2006... Allentown, Pa.-based Air Products & Chemicals Inc. is constructing a new nitrogen trifluoride plant in Ulsan, South Korea, to support Asian semiconductor and liquid crystal display markets. The plant is to be built at an existing specialty gas...

Supreme Judgments.(Environmental Defense v. Duke Energy Corp)(Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.)(Davenport v. Washington Education Association )
December 1, 2006... Most of the business cases being argued before the U.S. Supreme Court during the term that began Oct. 2 won't affect manufacturers at the plant level. But three could. Environmental Defense v. Duke Energy Corp. (05-848) involves challenges to...

RoHS--don't ignore the opportunities: initially viewed as costly burdens, regulatory requirements like RoHS are now emerging as competitive tools for manufacturers.(REGULATORY COMPLIANCE)(Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive)
December 1, 2006... For manufacturers, meeting the European Union's July 1 Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHs)compliance deadline was the easy part. Will come from the effort to maximize the strategic, competitive benefits. Strat by realizing that...

Still not compliant?(Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive compliance)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Get the lead out... and the cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers. Months after the EU's July 1 deadline, an ongoing RoHS survey revealed that 83% of respondents were at severe to...

Winning with sustainability: Chairman and CEO Charles O. Holliday Jr., E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company commits to sustainability via science and innovation.(TECHNOLOGY LEADER OF THE YEAR)(Company overview)
December 1, 2006... Putting the environment first doesn't thwart business opportunities, it creates them." That's DuPont's Charles O. Holliday Jr., chairman and CEO, discussing his commitment to sustainability, what he labels as global industry's biggest...

Industry Week's: Technology & Innovation in Manufacturing awards.(TECHNOLOGIES OF THE YEAR)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Every year INDUSTRY WEEK bestows its Technology & Innovation in Manufacturing Awards on a handful of companies or organizations whose work stretches the boundaries of what "manufacturing" is all about. In this, the 14th annual presentation of...

Defying Moore's law: IBM researches for tomorrow's nanocircuits.(INDUSTRY WEEK'S: TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION IN MANUFACTURING AWARDS)(International Business Machines Corp.)
December 1, 2006... IBM researchers have built the first complex electronic integrated circuit around a single carbon nanotube molecule, a new material that shows promise for enhancing performance over today's standard silicon semiconductors. For some 50...

Powering machine tools: the secret to Mazak's machine-tool success just might be the Mazatrol Matrix CNC.(INDUSTRY WEEK'S: TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION IN MANUFACTURING AWARDS)(computer numerical control)
December 1, 2006... As machine tools grow in capability, productivity and accuracy, the CNC (computer numerical control) has evolved into an increasing role as an enabler of customer value. At Florence, Ky.'s Mazak Corp., Brian Papke, president, appreciates that...

Demystifying CAD: Solid Works 2007 3-D computer-aided-design software has an expert built into the solution.(INDUSTRY WEEK'S: TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION IN MANUFACTURING AWARDS)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... For many manufacturers, having a computer-aided-design (CAD) master on staff isn't always possible. And without someone there to help engineers diagnose and cure problems, delays in prototypes, production and delivery will surely follow. ...

Integrating factory data: FactoryTalk converts factory data to business knowledge.(INDUSTRY WEEK'S: TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION IN MANUFACTURING AWARDS)
December 1, 2006... Rockwell Software's premise for FactoryTalk is that data integration is a critical production-floor issue--an issue that offers substantial competitive benefits. "With increased demands on manufacturers to improve quality, reduce costs,...

Copper rotor creates efficiency: Siemens Energy & Automation's motor design lowers energy costs and extends service life.(INDUSTRY WEEK'S: TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION IN MANUFACTURING AWARDS)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Aluminum is good, but copper is better--at least when you're talking about die-cast rotors in three-phase induction motors. Siemens Energy & Automation, based in Alpharetta, Ga., offers a new line of AC motors designed to meet or exceed...

Rust belt rebound? In America's heartland particularly, manufacturing seems to be making a comeback. But only here and there. And how long will that last?(ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT)
December 1, 2006... Will the North rise again? Will the Rust Belt rebound? You might not think so, especially if you have been hearing and reading a lot about restructuring at General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and DaimlerChrysler. For example, Ford's rerouted...

Taking a stake in safety: instead of identifying employees as part of the problem, the safest plants make them part of the solution.(FACILITIES MANAGEMENT)
December 1, 2006... BEFORE RONNEY LOVELACE ARRIVED AS THE safety director of TRW's OSS Mexican Operations, the division's Reynosa and Del Norte plants averaged about six lost-time accidents per month. Injuries were so common that managers stopped tracking...

A loose link: too few manufacturers are tying operations to their financials.(OPERATIONS INTELLIGENCE)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Even though plant-floor metrics are key indicators of how a company is performing financially, few manufacturers have successfully linked plant data to their financials, according to a study released by the Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions...

Manufacturers to shuffle it spending plans in 2007: companies will concentrate their IT dollars on competitiveness and operational gains.(IT SPENDING)
December 1, 2006... WHILE MANY MANUfacturers earlier in 2006 had planned on robust increases in technology investment in the coming year, those plans have since been deflated as a result of rising fuel prices, continued unrest in the Middle East and a cooling...

Simulated crash test dummies.(high performance computing and automobile industry)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... In the race to produce the safest, most fuel-efficient cars, automakers are turning toward high-performance computing (HPC) systems to conduct such simulations as crash tests, operating variables and parts performance, according to research...

Protecting the global supply chain: the world hasn't gotten much safer since Sept. 11. Fortunately, the benefits of securing your supply chain are real and quantifiable.(SECURITY)
December 1, 2006... If you think that the world has gotten safer since security measures were put in place post-Sept. 11, think again. In her annual State of Logistics Report for the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals, supply chain consultant Rosalyn...

The benefits of a secure supply chain.(SUPPLY CHAIN & LOGISTICS)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... A recent study has quantified the tangible business benefits of investing in supply chain security efforts. Those benefits include: * Improved product safety (e.g., 38% reduction in theft/loss/pilferage, 37% reduction in tampering);...

Complexity cure: product lifecycle management solutions help streamline FDA compliance efforts.(Food and Drug Administration)(ArthroCare Corp. used product life cycle management software inorder to maintain regulatory compliance)
December 1, 2006... While the European union's Restriction of Hazardous Substances directive has garnered the lion's share of compliance headlines this year, regulatory compliance is second nature in many manufacturing industries. Food manufacturers,...

Questionable logic: there's an art to knowing how not to answer a straight question.(BRANDT ON LEADERSHIP)(tips to first time managers)(Editorial)
December 1, 2006... Many first-time managers live in fear of the day when their bosses will ask them a question that they cannot answer. They fear this because, after a young lifetime spent almost entirely in fancy schools amidst exams and quizzes, they have been...

Are your best practices getting the job done? Product innovation could be the key to turning around U.S. manufacturing, based on Singapore's recent success.(Manufacturing Excellence Awards)(Editorial)
December 1, 2006... IT'S GOOD TO GET OUT OF THE OFFICE EVERY NOW AND then, and last month I got way out, as in "other side of the world" out--namely the Southeast Asian nation of Singapore. The occasion was the inaugural Manufacturing Excellence Awards (MAXA)...

Forget leveling the field.(IW READER: FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2006... Re "How Level Is Your Playing Field?" editor's page, Page 7, November 2006. Just for the record, neither I nor any other manufacturer or retailer is really interested in leveling the playing field. I want one slanted in my favor, and therein...

Attendant fights back.(IW READER: FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2006... Re "Leaky, Sneaky And Cheeky," Brandt On Leadership, Page 56, November 2006. First of all, thank you for flying US Airways. We do appreciate your business. I am curious as to what time of day your flight was taken. If you were on a redeye...

China expands its energy source.(cost of doing business in this country)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... forums.industryweek.com/show thread.php?t = 471 It was interesting to read that China is attempting to secure its energy future by purchasing Canada's assets in Kazakhstan oil. It appears that nothing can stop its insatiable growth. ...

Hybrid vehicle demand?(because of gasoline prices)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... forums.industryweek.com/show thread.php?t = 460 There is just not an economic incentive to buy a hybrid at this point. When dealing with a commodity like fuel, consumers will automatically move to the cheapest option (for the most part)....

Are you reinventing wheels? Lean manufacturing has been around for more than a century--so what are you doing to make it relevant to your company today?(CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT)
December 1, 2006... I'M ALWAYS INTERESTED IN HOW "NEW" ideas for business improvement come about and whether they are really original and new. For example, today there is the widespread application of lean manufacturing processes and tools in manufacturing, health...

Managing maverick spend: how a Web-based solution can keep indirect-materials spend in check.(Kennametal Inc. used purchasing software of Ketera Technologies)
December 1, 2006... WE'VE ALL DONE IT. WE'VE bought indirect supplies without thinking about cost, let alone who is the best supplier. It seems harmless at first--a box of pens here, a shipment of work gloves there. The rationale: It's easier to buy ad-hoc and pay...

Procure-to-pay problem solving.(CAPS Center For Strategic Supply Research)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Arecent study indicates that companies are challenged when it comes to procure-to-pay (P2P) cycles involving contracted services, especially facilities management and onsite contract management. The CAPS Center For Strategic Supply...

IBM moves procurement to China.(GLOBAL STRATEGY)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... TO MAKE IBM CORP. A GLOBALLY integrated enterprise, the high-tech giant has decided to relocate its global procurement headquarters to Shenzhen, China, from Somers, N.Y. The move marks the first time the headquarters of an IBM corporate-wide...

Lower wages offset higher costs.(RAW MATERIAL COSTS)
December 1, 2006... Aiming to combat rising raw material and energy costs, Greenville, S.C.-based tire manufacturer Michelin North America Inc. will be paying workers 20% less and asking those workers to contribute more to health-care coverage. United Steel...

Chain reactions.(manufacturing industries and economy)(Editorial)(Brief article)
December 1, 2006... Chain Reactions by David Blanchard editor-in-chief IndustryWeek In his blog, Dave looks at the latest trends in supply chain management--the good, the bad and the ugly. Singapore's manufacturing sector is growing at the...