Category Archives: manufacturer

Boeing division, to independent supplier, back to Boeing, the story of Spirit Aerosystems

An article in the Wall Street Journal (July 2, 2024) titled “Boeing Calls Time on the Great American Outsourcing” describes the reintegration of supplier Sport Aerosystems back into Boeing as a failed attempt at outsourcing. When Spirit split from Boeing, … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, Coordination, Cost, logistics, Made in USA, manufacturer, Operations Management, productivity, supplier | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Did Boeing favor “Speed over Quality” ?

An article in the New York Times (March 28, 2024) titled “”‘Shortcuts Everywhere’: How Boeing Favored Speed over Quality” describes examples of monthly production rates of the 737 Max increased from 42 in 2017 to 52 in 2018, suppliers pushed … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, competitiveness, Cost, delivery, logistics, manufacturer, supplier, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Are apparel brands responsible for minimum wage levels in Bangladesh?

An article in the Wall Street Journal (November 6, 2023) titled “The Workers who make your clothes want higher pay. Who should pay up?” describes the demand by workers in Bangladesh for higher wages, $205 per month, as against the … Continue reading

Posted in competitiveness, Cost, fairness, manufacturer | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Managing small firm supply chain pressures

A Wall Street Journal article (February 22, 2022) titled “Worried About Inflation and Supply Constraints? Try Being a Small Business”, describes the longer supply lead times, how higher prices and higher demand, yet lower bank credit access. The article claims … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, competitiveness, delivery, disruption, manufacturer, Operations Management, Prices, Supply Chain Issues, technology | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Manufacturers thinking holistically about opening in the New Normal

A report published by Purdue’s DCMME (https://tinyurl.com/y5579emz) describes an approach to leverage smart technology to enable manufacturers to operate as they open after the pandemic. The report describes process adjustments to prevent infection spread and rethinking the economics of technology … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, manufacturer, Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues, technology, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 48 Comments

Planning for Brexit related upheaval

An article in the Wall Street Journal (February 1, 2019) titled “Secret Truck Routes and backup Storage”, describes plans by one UK company, Heller Maschinenfabrik GmbH. The company gets 60% of its components weekly from suppliers across Europe, assembles it … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, congestion, Cost, disruption, logistics, manufacturer, mgmt5612019, Operations Management | Tagged , , , , | 59 Comments

Tesla acquiring trucking capacity to complete deliveries by December 31

An article in the TechCrunch site titled “Tesla acquires trucking companies to squeeze in more deliveries before Dec. 31” describes the federal electric vehicle tax credit of $7,500 that winds down by Dec 31st, and is available only to customers … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, car, consumer, Cost, delivery, emb2020, logistics, manufacturer, Tesla | Tagged , , , , , | 31 Comments

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

Managing the supply chain when facing “Matcha Madness”

A video posted in the Atlantic (though made by AT&T to showcase its digital capabilities and available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=129&v=u_lUD3WHz1s) describes the rush to use matcha as a food ingredient fro beverages, cupcakes and more. With harvests at select periods, volatile … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, competitiveness, consumer, Cost, delivery, manufacturer, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Exporting hurricane damaged “total loss” cars

An article in the Wall Street Journal (April 5, 2018) titled “Hurricane-Damaged Cars Moving Again as U.S. Exports”, describes the disposition of over 600,000 cars declared a “total loss” i.e., whose repair cost would exceed their replacement cost. These cars … Continue reading

Posted in Capacity, consumer, Cost, delivery, logistics, manufacturer, ship, Supply Chain Issues, Sustainability | Leave a comment