Monthly Archives: October 2018

Should the lower shipping prices from China to the US end ?

An article in the Wall Street Journal (October 17, 2018) titled “No More Mail Privilege for China as U.S. to end deep discounts in packages” describes the classification of China as a “tier 3” country while the U.S. is a … Continue reading

Posted in consumer, Cost, delivery, Global Contexts, logistics, manufacturer, Prices | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Walmart’s new technology intensive warehouse that is 40% more efficient

An article in finance.yahoo.com titled “Walmart’s grocery warehouse worker of the future will have a STEM background” discussed the new warehouse in Shafter, California that will use automation to get eggs, diary and frozen goods to warehouse employees pick rather … Continue reading

Posted in consumer, Cost, disruption, logistics, Operations Management, retailers, technology | Tagged , , , , , , , | 55 Comments

Preventing child labor use for cobalt mining

An article in Fortune (September 1, 2018) titled “Blood, Sweat and Batteries” describes artisanal mining by over 10,000 children using hand tools in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the source of 67% of the world supply of cobalt. With … Continue reading

Posted in Africa, Capacity, cobalt, consumer, Cost, Global Contexts, mining, Prices | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Is V-commerce by Fanatics the future of retail?

An article in Fortune (September 1, 2018) titled “Licensed to Thrill”, describes the company Fanatics that has exclusive rights to sell professional basketball and football clothing. The company describes V-commerce as a combination of manufacturing, logistics and technology capacity. Fanatics … Continue reading

Posted in consumer, Cost, delivery, Ecommerce, retailers, technology | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Going Digital in the construction industry to reap $1.6 trillion in potential savings

An article in Fortune (October 2018) titled “Building with Bits and Bytes” reports that the construction industry is replacing paper with digital drawings, enabling collaboration with architects and reducing the 33 percent reported waste, totaling $1.6 trillion. The construction industry’s … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, competitiveness, Cost, delivery, logistics, Operations Management, technology, waste | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

Reducing complexity and returning to profitability at PSA’s Opel division

An article in BloombergBusinessweek (August 29, 2018) titled “The Stunning One-Year turnaround of GM’s German castoff” describes a focus on reducing part variety. The article describes reduction of the 57 possible infotainment systems for the Corsa hatchback to 10. It … Continue reading

Posted in consumer, Cost, Operations Management, productivity, Variety | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment