Category Archives: Global Contexts

Climate neutral products from Eosta

Posted on October 23, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in Sustainable Business newsletter describes Eosta (http://www.eosta.com/index.cfm?vid=64DD31DB-AB5A-D733-DF31869591EFD001), a Dutch company that sells fruits and vegetables claimed to be climate neutral. Use of organic fertilizer that does not release methane, avoiding mineral fertilizers and thus saving nitrous oxide and … Continue reading →

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Intellectual property rights on visible car parts in France and rising repair costs

Posted on October 10, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (October 9, 2012) describes a regulation in France that grants automakers intellectual property rights over the external looks of the car, thus guaranteeing that mirrors, bumpers, windshield wipers etc have to be purchased … Continue reading →

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Auditing conflict materials free suppliers and cost impact

Posted on October 10, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (October 9, 2012) describes the number of conflict materials free smelters as 27 out of 200 to 400 worldwide. With the Dodd-Frank law demanding that companies declare the extent of use of tin, … Continue reading →

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Global trade slows, but continues to be robust in pockets

Posted on October 8, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (October 1, 2012) describes the slowing of global trade flows. The Los Angeles port claims a 10.5 % drop in US exports shipped, while the Shanghai port reports a 6 % slowdown. While … Continue reading →

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Drug shortages and quality issues at backup compounding pharmacies

Posted on October 5, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times (October 4, 2012) describes an outbreak of meningitis caused a fungus that contaminated steriod solutions supplied by a compounding pharmacy in New England. Hospitals ordered the solution, which was in short supply, from … Continue reading →

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Can cheap, flexible robots assist workers to make US manufacturing globally competitive?

Posted on September 22, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (September 24, 2012) describes new robots announced by Rethink Robotics, priced at $ 22,000 and reprogrammable to assist workers with repititive tasks. Teaching the robot requires simulating the steps by moving its arms, after which the … Continue reading →

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Does WalMart gain by not selling Kindles ?

Posted on September 22, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times (September 20, 2012) describes WalMart’s decision to stop selling Amazon’s Kindles once its inventory runs out. Retailers are concerned about customers browsing for online prices while in the store and buying products online. … Continue reading →

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Japanese multinationals importing back into Japan

Posted on September 17, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (September 17,2012) describes automobiles made in Thailand by Nissan but ported back for sales in Japan. At 1 million yen, it is 65% of the price of a Japanese made car and 34 % of the … Continue reading →

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Content Claim Standards by the Textile Exchange and benefits

Posted on September 17, 2012 by aviyer2010

A recent announcement by the Textile Exchange of their Content Claim Standards (CCS http://textileexchange.org/sites/default/files/te_pdfs/integrity/Content%20Claim%20Standard_v1.0.pdf) suggests a scheme to verify chain of custody across the textile supply chain. The goal is to verify claims regarding specific content e.g., organic cotton, recycled … Continue reading →

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Should The Japanese and European governments assist automakers with demand growth ?

Posted on September 15, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (September 15, 2012) describes a request by the CEO of Nissan, Carlos Ghosn, to the Japanese government to intervene to make the yen exchange rate more favorable to local production and encourage alternate … Continue reading →

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