Industry Week articles from July 2008

Industry Week archives from July 2008

The art of the excuse: because blame avoidance never goes out of style.(BRANDT ON LEADERSHIP)
July 1, 2008... Look, it's a tough economy out there, a lot of you are new to your jobs and you're about to face the most harrowing moment of a young executive's career: Reporting bad (probably awful, possibly record-breakingly horrendous) financial results to...

Globalization comes under siege: a rising tide of anti-globalization sentiment could threaten trade-dependent U.S. manufacturers.(THE COMPETITIVE EDGE)
July 1, 2008... A few short years ago, Thomas Friedman crystallized both academic studies and leading opinion about the inevitable advance of global integration in his book The World Is Flat. More recently, no matter where one turns, there is evidence of...

Do you agree with NAM that the Lieberman-Warner climate change bill will double the price of natural gas and cause great harm to the manufacturing industry?(Online Poll)
July 1, 2008... IndustryWeek.com readers respond: Yes 66% No 19% Don't Know 15% Note: Table made from bar graph.

You write the caption.(OnLine: WWW.INDUSTRYWEEK.COM)
July 1, 2008... Congratulations to casagran, who has achieved the lofty title of CWE (Caption Writer Extraordinaire). You, too, can earn fame (but, alas, no fortune) by joining in the latest "You Write The Caption" contest, featuring gags from cartoonist Jerry...

Web 2.0 tools transform Osborne's management strategies: with collaboration at a premium, manufacturers are looking to the next generation of information tools for help.(INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When electrical equipment manufacturer Osborne Transformer was looking to update its Web site, the management team had the good fortune of having a third-generation family member on the staff who understood the...

Best practices in BPM: business process management tools are available to help manufacturers cope with information overload.(INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The amount of information being generated by even non-technical businesses today is staggering. Software tools exist to measure and report on almost every single operation imaginable, and data can be collected and...

Plugging the gaps in U.S. broadband.(INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In today's hypercompetitive knowledge-based economy, broadband access plays a critical role in the productivity, innovation and economic growth of a nation. The United States ranks 15th globally in broadband...

Synchronization through simulation.(INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY)(Quotation)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "In the coming years, entire production plants will be created and simulated in the computer, using all available means of optimizing product and production alike." --Dr. Heinrich Hiesinger, member of the Siemens...

IT leaders want more say in strategy.(By The Numbers)(Survey)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... While IT leaders at U.S. companies say they are achieving business integration and corporate outsourcing goals, they want more decision-making responsibility and involvement in strategy development, according to a recent Harvey Nash survey. And...

Counterfeiters be gone: strategies to stymie IP thieves include well-placed technologies.(PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The best defense against counterfeit products entering the supply chain is a comprehensive offense, experts say. Legislation, litigation, anti-counterfeiting tools and technologies, and participation in supply...

Are venture capitalists misplaying nanotech? Nano-funding is out of sync with returns.(PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT)(synchronous)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] If you examine who is delivering the majority of venture capital returns in nanotechnology, it is application--oriented life sciences companies, says analyst firm Lux Research. Yet venture capitalists are...

Happy anniversary for General Mills' G-WIN.(PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT)
July 1, 2008... General Mills' open innovation initiative celebrated its one-year anniversary in May, and the food company is pleased with its progress. "Not only have we seen a 300% increase in the number of innovation concepts submitted to us since we...

Siemens PLM Software has developed Synchronous Technology, a history-free, feature-based modeling technology the company says combines the best of constraint-driven techniques with direct modeling.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Siemens PLM Software has developed Synchronous Technology, a history-free, feature-based modeling technology the company says combines the best of constraint-driven techniques with direct modeling. The patent-pending...

Engineering simulation software provider Ansys has released version 4.0 of its Fluent for Catia V5 rapid flow modeling software.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... Engineering simulation software provider Ansys has released version 4.0 of its Fluent for Catia V5 rapid flow modeling software. This release adds new physics models to the software's analysis capabilities that extend the types of products for...

Abaqus for Catia V5 R18 SP4 is now available from Dassault Systemes' Simulia brand of simulation solutions.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... Abaqus for Catia V5 R18 SP4 is now available from Dassault Systemes' Simulia brand of simulation solutions. The latest release provides improved usability and robust design analysis capabilities directly in Catia V5. New or enhanced...

PTC has introduced FlexPLM 9.0, its retail, footwear and apparel product development solution.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... PTC has introduced FlexPLM 9.0, its retail, footwear and apparel product development solution. New capabilities and enhancements in this latest release include Adobe Illustrator design integration, which allows designers to create concept...

IP.com has announced InnovationQ 3.1, the latest release of its innovation and intellectual property management solution.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... IP.com has announced InnovationQ 3.1, the latest release of its innovation and intellectual property management solution. The new version incorporates collaborative features, as well as new modules. In addition to existing invention disclosure...

Aras, a Microsoft enterprise open source software solution provider, has launched Version 9 of its Innovator suite of model-based service-oriented architecture solutions for enterprise product lifecycle management.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... Aras, a Microsoft enterprise open source software solution provider, has launched Version 9 of its Innovator suite of model-based service-oriented architecture solutions for enterprise product lifecycle management. The new version includes...

3Dpaintbrush from Geometric Ltd. helps create near photo-realistic images, animations and videos from existing computer-based 3D models.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... 3Dpaintbrush from Geometric Ltd. Helps create near photo-realistic images, animations and videos from existing computer-based 3d models. Features of the visualization software include the ability to import and combine 3d models from multiple...

Parasolid 19.1 is now available from Siemens PLM Software.(Product Development Solutions)
July 1, 2008... Parasolid 19.1 is now available from Siemens PLM Software. The emphasis of the latest release is to provide support for sophisticated workflow operations. Enhancements to the geometric modeling component software include a new ability to...

P&G innovation leader announces retirement: Cloyd transformed company's innovation, chairman says.(TIME MACHINE)(Procter & Gamble Co.)(G. Gil Cloyd )(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "The challenge we face," said G. Gil Cloyd in the December 2004 issue of IndustryWeek, "is the competitive need for a very rapid pace of innovation. In the consumer products world we estimate that the required pace...

Winning with digital manufacturing: digital manufacturing offers the ability to visualize a finished product before it is actually made, offering reduced costs and increased efficiencies.(DIGITAL MANUFACTURING)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Like many of manufacturing's epochal transformations, the digital manufacturing revolution is being driven by the automobile industry and its evolving needs to become more collaborative, adaptive, flexible and...

Maintenance seers: predictive maintenance tools and strategies diagnose problems before they begin.(FACILITIES & OPERATIONS)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Plant-floor machines have so much to say, if people would just listen. Trapped inside every machine is a wealth of information that can tell maintenance technicians whether small hiccups could eventually develop into...

Future Leaders.(BOOKSHELF)(Book review)
July 1, 2008... Future Leaders By Eric Herzog Quest Consulting & Training Corp., 2007, 87 pages, $17.95 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] If you think management positions are immune to the looming workforce shortages that are expected to leave the...

Timken expands in Asia.(Global Sitings)
July 1, 2008... In April bearings and steel products manufacturer The Timken Co. opened two new plants in Asia to serve the aerospace and industrial markets of China and India. The Canton, Ohio-based company has begun production at its industrial bearings...

GM to start engines in Brazil.(Global Sitings)(General Motors Corp.)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... General Motors Corp.'s Brazil operations is investing approximately $200 million in an engine and automotive components plant in Joinville City, Brazil. The 646,000-square-foot plant is scheduled to begin production in the fourth quarter of...

Auto parts supplier grows in Mexico.(Global Sitings)(Toyoda Gosei North America Corp. )(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... Toyoda Gosei North America Corp. will begin production in October at a new auto parts manufacturing facility in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The U.S. subsidiary of Japan-based Toyoda Gosei Co. Ltd. will invest $12.5 million in the facility and...

Johnson Controls' Plant a Peach.(Global Sitings)
July 1, 2008... Milwaukee-based automotive interiors manufacturer Johnson Controls Inc. will build a 130,000-square-foot plant in West Point, Ga., where it will assemble seating and interior products for Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia Inc. The plant is...

Women step up.(FACILITIES & OPERATIONS)
July 1, 2008... "This is another chance for women to play the role of 'Rosie the Riveter.' There's an employment shortage that's damaging the economy, and women are stepping up to fill the void." --Pam McDonough, president and CEO of the Alliance for...

Workforce survivalist: how one worker has lasted four decades with the same manufacturer.(FACILITIES & OPERATIONS)(Connecticut Spring and Stamping Corp.)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... The days of the 30-plus-year plant-floor veteran seem numbered, replaced by automated processes or lower-wage workers in developing countries, plant operations' staffs are smaller and more skilled than previous generations. The transition makes...

Lean results for lean programs.(By The Numbers)(Survey)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... Although many large U.S.-based manufacturers utilize lean techniques, there's a lot of room for improvement, according to the results of a recent survey: 73 percent of U.S. manufacturers that actively deploy lean or Six Sigma 49...

Let motor efficiency drive competitiveness, too: high-efficiency motors offer a way of reducing industrial power consumption.(FACTORY AUTOMATION)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] On December 19, 2007, President Bush signed the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA). The bill, which goes into full effect in December 2010, mandates motor efficiencies beyond the minimums of the 1992 Energy...

Plant Engineers and Managers Guide to Energy Conservation, ninth edition.(BOOKSHELF)
July 1, 2008... By Albert Thumann and Scott Dunning Fairmont Press/Taylor & Francis, 2008, 460 pages, $99.95 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The guiding principle for the ninth edition is the growing significance of energy management. Emerging energy...

Growing the energy efficiency market: energy-efficiency technologies can reduce energy consumption by 25% or more, claims a new study.(FACTORY AUTOMATION)
July 1, 2008... The popular press hasn't publicized it at all, but the consumption of energy in the United States has been cut in half since 1970, at least by one major measure. U.S. energy consumption--as measured per dollar of economic output--will have been...

Automation helps Signicast stay ahead of the curve: manufacturer reduces labor without cutting its workforce.(FACTORY AUTOMATION)
July 1, 2008... Customers were thrilled but the competitors were suspicious. In 1993 Signicast Corp. a manufacturer of investment castings, opened its Module 1 manufacturing operation and reduced its production cycle from 30 days to 4.5. "Rumors from our...

A new material benefits fuel cells: MIT boosts power output more than 50% with a lower-cost material.(FACTORY AUTOMATION)(Massachusetts institute of technology)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Focusing on direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCS), researchers at the Massachusetts institute of technology have reportedly improved power output by more than 50%. key to the advance is a new, lower-cost material that...

The zero effect: how to green your facility: these days, defects aren't the only metric that manufacturing managers are trying to drive down to zero--landfill waste, carbon emissions and energy grid use are the new targets.(GREEN MANUFACTURING)
July 1, 2008... "Reduce, reuse and recycle" are the new watchwords for manufacturing excellence, And just like any other improve-being idea, there are benefits to being the first, and the best, at implementing it, Take Subaru of Indiana (SIA), The...

The Chinese influence: emerging worldwide markets helped solidify the petroleum and automotive industries as the top revenue earners in 2007.(IW 1000: THE WORLD'S 1000 LARGEST MANUFACTURERS)
July 1, 2008... THE CROWDED STREETS OF CHINA, which once bustled with bicycles as the main means of transportation, have been overtaken by cars, The industrial revolution that's fueled the world's most populous nation's transformation from two wheels to four...

The price of progress.(IW READER: FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2008... > Re: "Lincoln Electric Supporting Effort to Relieve Welder Shortage," www.industryweek.com/ReadArticle. aspx?ArticleID=16225 Isn't this a self-inflicted wound? In the past, in shipbuilding, the car industry and heavy industry there were a...

The high cost of low-cost labor.(IW READER: FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2008... > Re: "Want to Improve Your Business? Walk the Floor," www.industryweek. com/ReadArticle.aspx?ArticleID=16351 To Al Weatherhead all that I can say is: "Amen." I learned long ago that the person most knowledgeable about the specific details...

A better way to fly.(IW READER: FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2008... > Re: "Brandt on Leadership: Customer Service From Hell," Page 88, May 2008 Been there, done that, wore out the t-shirt that proclaimed, "MY LUGGAGE IS BETTER TRAVELED THAN I AM, THANKS TO (fill in the airline of choice)." ...

The democracy of Web 2.0.(IW READER: FEEDBACK)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2008... > Re: "Defining Web 2.0," www. industryweek.com/ReadArticle. aspx?ArticleID=14357 I hear a lot of discussion around defining Web 2.0; I think a simpler definition is better, such as "user-based collaboration and content generation." There...

Correction.(IW READER: FEEDBACK)(Correction notice)
July 1, 2008... Boeing did not purchase Vought Aircraft Industries, as was incorrectly stated in the June 2008 issue; rather, Boeing purchased Vought's 50% share of a joint venture in Global Aeronautica.

Energy efficiency's secret weapon: software: what do information-technology solutions and Web 2.0 technologies have to do with reining in the high cost of energy? Plenty, if the oil & gas companies can leverage them to become more efficient.(FOCUS ON THE PROCESS INDUSTRIES: OIL & GAS)(Cover story)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] QUICK SHOW OF HANDS among all the manufacturing professionals out there; How many of you are happy about the skyrocketing costs of energy? If you could look around at all of your peers, you'd see that nobody's hand...

An automatic connection: electronic transaction tools help manufacturers connect with suppliers to streamline sourcing efforts.(PURCHASING)(TradeCard Inc.)(Wolverine World Wide Inc.)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] There's an old say ing that if a company doesn't grow, it dies. But to allow for growth to occur old practices often need to be left behind so new ones can take their place, Ten years ago footwear and apparel maker...

Who's on HP's short list? High-tech giant releases the names of its top suppliers to emphasize its supply chain visibility.(PURCHASING)(Hewlett-Packard Co.)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Manufacturers are always talking about developing transparency with their suppliers, but high-tech giant Hewlett Packard Co. has taken things up a notch. The company has publicly released a list of its largest...

Supplier negotiation: an art or a science?(PURCHASING)(Quotation)
July 1, 2008... "In my experience, the most successful negotiators in the world are those who understand human dynamics as well as the mechanics of the negotiation. If you ignore one or the other, you do so at your own peril." --Ernest Gabbard, director...

First-hand accounts.(By The Numbers)(Aberdeen Group)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... According to a recent report from analyst firm Aberdeen Group, companies who are electronically connected to more of their suppliers are steadily achieving transaction cost savings in both their procurement and accounts payable departments. ...

Power buying tools: association of hardware manufacturers launches group purchasing organization.(PURCHASING)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Following the dictum that there is strength in numbers, group purchasing organizations (GPOs) use that extra muscle to help them buy anything from raw materials to office supplies, However, having the backing of an...

Oshkosh opens procurement office in Shanghai.(PURCHASING)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... As more manufacturers have grown to depend on Southeast Asia for many of their sourcing needs, they have also realized the difficulty in managing those efforts from thousands of miles away. In a step to make its Asian procurement efforts...

Central intelligence: new software platform helps keep track of important supplier data.(PURCHASING)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The ability to make good sourcing decisions always hinges on having the most accurate information possible, And while accumulating that data is certainly a critical step, keeping all of it organized should be a close...

Transportation outlook: back to the rails: manufacturers are finding price relief by shipping more products via the railroads.(SUPPLY CHAIN & LOGISTICS)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The combination of a slowing economy and historically high fuel prices is driving many manufacturers to the railroads to deliver their products, The perception is that rail transportation is three to five times more...

How IBM limits its greenhouse gas emissions.(SUPPLY CHAIN & LOGISTICS)(International Business Machines Corp.)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Computer giant IBM Corp. outlines five steps manufacturers can take to master their carbon management. As IBM sees it, the further these activities extend and integrate across the supply chain, the greater leverage...

Tech scorecard: more strategic strikes on the tech marketplace.(SUPPLY CHAIN & LOGISTICS)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] While software giant Oracle Corp. got most of the attention for its $8.5 billion takeover of middleware provider BEA, it has been Descartes Systems Group, a Canadian software vendor of supply chain execution...

Now you really can take it with you: users can now access SAP enterprise applications through a BlackBerry.(SUPPLY CHAIN & LOGISTICS)(Brief article)
July 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Sometimes the Next Big Thing take a while to actually hit the market. Although the deal was originally announced in 2004, at the SAPPHIRE 2008 show in Orlando enterprise software giant SAP and wireless device...

Partnering on the supply side: supply distributors need to provide more than just logistics services.(SUPPLY CHAIN & LOGISTICS)
July 1, 2008... Downtime is money, but exactly how much? When it comes to production cycles, a single hour of downtime for papermaking, steel-making and certain chemical processing equipment can be valued at more than $ 25,000, which can add up to millions...

Managing a complex supply chain does not require overly complex software.
July 1, 2008... More and more manufacturers are being caught between the demand to bring products to market faster and pressures to be more cost competitive on a global basis (See bar chart). In addition to accommodating shorter product lifecycles, supply...

Overall Labor effectiveness (OLE): achieving a highly effective workforce.
July 1, 2008... You get what you measure. Although manufacturers track time and attendance, they seldom have a method of measuring or understanding how the actions of the labor force directly influence profitability. After spending recent years squeezing...

Measuring the impact of enterprise software on the bottom line.
July 1, 2008... Small and mid-sized manufactures spend millions of dollars on IT every year. Seeing such numbers on the annual budget, company leaders can't help but wonder if such investments are worth it. To help answer that question, Dr. Sin an Aral, a...

Multi-enterprise service-oriented architecture increases flexibility, speeds market responsiveness.
July 1, 2008... For companies to profitably respond to today's global markets requires constant interaction with partners, suppliers, customers, and even regulators. In such a rapidly changing environment, the role of information technology must evolve. ...

Path to the lean enterprise: the continuous improvement office.
July 1, 2008... It can be triggered by rapid growth or a crisis or the simple recognition that someone has to take ownership for any gains to be sustained. the real commitment to continuous improvement begins the moment leaders make the decision to assign a...

Electronic kanban slashes inventory, improves supplier performance.
July 1, 2008... To position the company for future growth A.O. Smith Water Products needed to streamline material replenishment and improve its parts forecasting processes. Managers wanted to extend the company's kanban-based inventory replenishment system to...