Tag Archives: Cost

Egypt Unrest and Supply Chain Impact

Posted on February 1, 2011 by aviyer2010

A Wall Street Journal article (January 31, 2011) analyzes the potential impact of the unrest in Egypt on the global supply chain for oil and cotton.  If the Suez Canal were closed, oil from the Middle East would take 10 … Continue reading →

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Are Boeing Dreamliner delays history ?

Posted on January 28, 2011 by aviyer2010

A New York Times article (January 27,2011, B3) quotes executives at Boeing being optimistic that production of Dreamliners can be ramped up significantly over the next three years. The company claims that problems for the first few planes were due … Continue reading →

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Choosing Inventories when Economy Recovery is Uneven

Posted on January 27, 2011 by aviyer2010

A Wall Street Journal article (January 27, 2011, B6) describes the challenges associated with choosing the right level of inventory given uncertainty in the US economic recovery. The article claims that Kimberly Clark managers cut production in the fourth quarter … Continue reading →

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Adjusting the Supply Chain for Girl Scouts Cookies

Posted on January 27, 2011 by aviyer2010

A Wall Street Journal article (January 27,2011) describes changes being made to girl scout cookie supply chains to improve profits. First – variety is being cut to focus on just six SKUs which are estimated to save a penny per … Continue reading →

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Rethinking Federal Regulations and supply chain impact

Posted on January 26, 2011 by aviyer2010

An article in Bloomberg Businessweek( January 24,2011) analyzes a recent statement by President Obama to examine burdensome regulations.  Consider a few regulations and ponder their impact. The Department of Defense plans to rethink outsourcing of maintenance – now critical tasks … Continue reading →

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Testing milk for antibiotics – a tussle between farmers and the FDA

Posted on January 26, 2011 by aviyer2010

A New York Times article (January 26, 2011, B1) describes a tussle between the FDA proposal to test milk for a wider range of antibiotics (than the six currently tested) and the diary farmers, who are worried that the associated … Continue reading →

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The Impact of competitors imitating each other

Posted on January 26, 2011 by aviyer2010

A New York times article (January 25, 2011, B1) describes a decision by Sealy to start using a technology prominently advertised by its competitor, Simmons. The technology is a closed coil system used by Simmons, as against the traditional Sealy … Continue reading →

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Global Trade Rules and Remanufactured Products

Posted on January 24, 2011 by aviyer2010

A Wall Street Journal article (January 24, 2011, A3) describes efforts by US manufacturers to press for changes in laws in China, Japan and Brazil that ban or restrict the import of used medical equipment. Manufacturers claim that rising commodity … Continue reading →

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Understanding Rare Earths Supply Chains – a DOE Report

Posted on January 23, 2011 by aviyer2010

For supply chain managers interested in rare earth supply chains, a DOE report, available at  http://www.energy.gov/news/documents/criticalmaterialsstrategy.pdf provides a comprehensive summary. Currently, 97 % of the world’s rare earth metals are sourced from China. A few highlights of the report (a) … Continue reading →

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Rising Prices for Coffee, Cotton and Cocoa

Posted on January 22, 2011 by aviyer2010

A Wall Street Journal article (January 22, 2011) describes rising prices for commodities such as coffee, cotton and cocoa. Reasons for this estimated price increase, as reflected by rising prices of futures, are global.  Significant rainfall in Colombia is expected … Continue reading →

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