The L.A. Times & Automation
I toured the Los Angeles Times last week and was impressed with the automation. Although newspapers seems like an old business, it was impressive in pure size and volume with minimal people.
Are Robots Good or Bad?
According to the Material Handling & Logistics, robots are slashing U.S. wages and worsening pay inequality. That is certainly a provocative statement! According to new research by MIT's Daron Acemoglu and Boston University's Pascual Restrepo, one additional robot per thousand workers reduces the employment to population ratio from .18 percentage points to .34 percentage points and slashes wages from .25% to .5%.
Gain a Strategic Focus on Quality IF Customers are Important
People and companies have more choices than ever before. If you wish to remain in the race, quality must be more than an assumption; it must become a strategic focus.
Reshoring Gains
According to Industry Week and the Reshoring Initiative, after two decades of job losses, we have turned the corner. If you are interested in taking advantage of this rare opportunity, you must be prepared!
Manufacturers Upbeat But Worry About Skills Gap
According to Industry Week, the Fed's survey of the economy expressed optimism; however, it also noted that labor markets are tightening. Since I'm also embarking on refrehsing my 2013 Skills Gap research report, thus far, I've noted the same concerns for high-skilled positions. I hear far less conversation about [...]
Tour of Toyota and the Toyota Production System
There is much that can be achieved rapidly in leveraging Toyota Production System techniques - no matter your industry or role.
Manufacturing Expands at Fastest Rate Since 2010
According to the Institute for Supply Management's Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, manufacturing is on an upswing.
Manufacturing Gains
As one of the panelists at the Manufacturers' Summit last week said, "Have you ever seen manufacturing in the news more than it has been lately?" Quite an intriguing point.
Manufacturing is on the Rise
Just because many manufacturers are seeing a positive outlook to the future doesn't mean it will turn into a reality unless we back up the talk with action.
Near-shoring to increase in USA
A recently released study by Manufacturing and Supply Chain Expert, Lisa Anderson, MBA, CSCP, CLTD, president of LMA Consulting Group Inc., indicates that 70% of US manufacturing executives expect near-sourcing to increase within the next five years.