Category Archives: Operations Management

Solarthermal approach to store solar energy and supply chain impact

Posted on January 10, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times (Jan 4, 2012) describes solarthermal techonolgy- using  salt to store the heat generated from solar energy, with release of this heat to create electricity at a later time.The resulting heat can be used … Continue reading →

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FDA restrictions on some antibiotics use in agriculture

Posted on January 10, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times (Jan 4, 2012) describes FDA plans to restrict use of cephalasporins in agriculture. These antibiotics are used to treat strep and bronchitis and by surgeons. But they are also used on animals, with … Continue reading →

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EPA Dioxin limit proposal and food supply chain impact

Posted on January 10, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (Jan 4,2012) describes a propsal by the EPA to recommend a 64 picogram limit of dioxin for a 200 lb person. The EPA wants to ensure that prolonged exposure at this limit is … Continue reading →

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Caterpillar’s US plant labor costs vs Canadian costs

Posted on January 10, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (Jan 7, 2012) describes Caterpillar’s assertion tha labor costs in its US plants are 50% of the costs in Canada. Given the Canadian plant’s lack of global competitiveness due to labor rule inflexibility, … Continue reading →

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Corn Storage Capacity increase and supply chain impact

Posted on January 10, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (Jan 9, 2012) describes a significant increase in corn storage capacity at the farm level. The result, farmers hold their crop to sell at the best price, thus corn prices have increased 23 % over the … Continue reading →

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Whirlpool dumping charge against LG and Samsung and possible supply chain response

Posted on January 2, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (Jan 2, 2012) describes a claim by Whirlpool that LG and Samsung have dumped residential washing machines, at prices below production costs, and requests import duties to be levied.  Whirlpool claims that the … Continue reading →

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Court Blocks California use of life cycle greenhouse gas estimation for fuel producers

Posted on January 1, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times (Dec 29, 2011) describes a Federal judge’s decision to block the state of California from computing the life cycle impact of greenhouse gas emissions by furl producers. The plan was to include the … Continue reading →

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DEA, FDA coordination issues and ADHD drug shortages

Posted on January 1, 2012 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times (Dec 31, 2011) describes shortages of ADHD drugs and root causes. The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) , concerned about use of ADHD drugs among college students as a memory stimulant, forecasts overall demand … Continue reading →

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iPad 3 rumors, product transition and possible supply chain impact

Posted on December 30, 2011 by aviyer2010

An article by Louis Bedigian (Dec 29, 2011 http://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/11/12/2231119/ipad-3s-most-significant-upgrade-will-be) describes rumors regarding a new iPad 3 and possible design choices. Will the new iPad 3 replace the older iPad 2 – as suggested by the Apple supply chain’s participants noticing … Continue reading →

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Ad Free product cost and Supply Chain Impact

Posted on December 30, 2011 by aviyer2010

An article by Michael Schulder in CNN.com (Dec 29, 2011 http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/29/tech/gaming-gadgets/kindle-ads-schulder/index.html?hpt=hp_bn6) describes the choice between an ad free Kindle for $ 109 and one with ads for $ 79. Clearly Amazon is estimating the ad related revenues as $ 30 … Continue reading →

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