Tag Archives: Outsourcing

Sick workers at Apple’s supplier and OEM’s responsibility

Posted on February 23, 2011 by aviyer2010

A New York Times article (February 23, 2011) describes worker complaints at an Apple supplier, Wintek, and their plant in China that uses the n-hexane agent to cleaning glass panels for the Apple iPhone.  The cleaning agent was used for … Continue reading →

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Is Apple more like Zara ? How can the ipad be sold for $ 500 ?

Posted on February 21, 2011 by aviyer2010

A article in WIRED magazine (February 21, 2011, Brian X. Chen) asks the question – how can the ipad be sold for $ 500 when other manufacturers cannot attain that price ? The answer suggested is that Apple is, for … Continue reading →

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Operational Hedging vs Currency Hedging

Posted on February 19, 2011 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (February 19, 2011) describes the move towards operational hedging – by shifting production across a global network of plants rather than pay for currency hedging. The article lists Nissan, Autoliv (seatbelt and airbag … Continue reading →

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Commodity price increases, margin impact and choices

Posted on February 15, 2011 by aviyer2010

A Wall Street Journal article (14 February 2011) describes the impact of commodity price increases have driven down average operating margins – by $ 500 million for Kraft and $ 1 billion for Proctor & Gamble.  The focus on productivity … Continue reading →

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US Manufacturing decreases and possible Innovation Impact

Posted on February 14, 2011 by aviyer2010

A New York Times article (February 12, 2011) describes the drop in employment in US manufacturing – from 11.6 million in 1979 to 8.1 million in 2010, and worries about the consequent impact on innovation.  Some experts suggest that manufacturing … Continue reading →

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Rising prices in China and Global Supply Chain Impact

Posted on January 31, 2011 by aviyer2010

An article in the International Herald Tribune (30 January 2011) tracks the impact of rising prices in China (“20 to 50 % increases for leather shoes and polo shirts” according to the article) on sourcing decisions and shipping. Wage increases … Continue reading →

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Apple’s Platform Approach impact on growth

Posted on January 29, 2011 by aviyer2010

An article in the International Herald Tribune (January 28, 2011) describes the 71 % growth in quarterly sales reported by Apple and attributes it to a “platform” approach.  The claim is that Apple software (iTunes, the store and app software) … 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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Apple’s Global Supply Chain Changes

Posted on January 24, 2011 by aviyer2010

A New York Times article (January 24, 2011, B1) describes changes to Apple’s global supply chain orchestrated by the COO, Tim Cook.  It claims that when Apple owned plants in California, Ireland and Singapore, the supply chain had 90 days … Continue reading →

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Outsourcing Accounting to Sri Lanka

Posted on December 6, 2010 by aviyer2010

A recent New York Times article   (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/30/business/global/30lanka.html) describes the growing outsourcing of accounting services to companies in Sri Lanka.  The country has a large number (over 10,000) certified accountants with over 30,000 now enrolled.  Given the high literacy rate, and … Continue reading →

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