Multiple sourcing and proximity sourcing are shaping into long-term trends as global firms hardwire resilience and agility into their supply chains. Less developed countries face considerable risks in this new environment where the organisation of international production and investment is…
China’s entrance into the World Trade Organization nearly two decades ago was supposed to transform China. Instead, it has transformed the U.S. – for the worse. If the belief was that China would come to liberalize as it integrated into…
Steel-tube chief launches expensive advertising buys to get peers to reconsider sourcing decisions—and rebuilding American communities. Barry Zekelman is trying to pierce through all the noise of this season of American political and social unrest with a message that he…
By Rajesh Kumar Singh and Philip Blenkinsop CHICAGO/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - New York-based Delta Children, which makes cribs in China for retailers such as Walmart, briefly studied moving production to the United States as supply shortages caused by the COVID-19 pandemic…
It is no exaggeration to say that supply chains have taken a hit this year. When China made the unprecedented move to lock down earlier this year, shock waves sent round the world caused disruptions and cargo delays that lasted…
The coronavirus pandemic has left many workers wondering how their jobs will change going forward. More remote work? More personal protective equipment? And supply chain managers have been flung into the thick of the pandemic, tasked with keeping goods flowing…
For decades, low-cost supply with minimal inventory were the key tenets of supply chain management. Lean manufacturing and just-in-time delivery were how companies across the globe achieved cost control and production efficiency. For many major companies, China has been the…
The Covid-19 crisis has amplified profound fault lines in the functioning of global value chains (GVCs) and exposed the fragility of a model characterised by high interdependencies between leading firms and suppliers located across several continents. All at a time…
By Pedro Palandrani | September 11, 2020 Over the past few decades, many corporations in advanced economies took advantage of low trade barriers and globally integrated supply chains to outsource manual tasks to workers in countries with lower labor costs.…
Most in the industry have never experienced anything like the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This global disruption has affected supply chains across every industry, and in the same breath, destroyed and heightened demand for an array of products and services.…
For a long time, we’ve thought bigger was better. We mass produced items, built bigger warehouses to store them in, and created big-box stores. But today’s consumer wants a more one-of-a-kind experience that adheres to their values, needs, and aesthetic.…
Reuters and other outlets have been reporting on plans of Taiwan-based Foxconn and Pegatron, among others, to explore manufacturing facilities in North America, as concerns about the ongoing US/China trade war and the Coronavirus pandemic continue to stress global manufacturing…
Tesla’s announcement of a new, 2,100-acre gigafactory in Texas has rightly generated a great deal of excitement. In this time of economic crisis, news of 5,000 new jobs assembling the world’s most celebrated electric vehicle is an important step toward strengthening domestic…
Reshoring the defense supply chain may reduce national security risks, but a new report detailing a heavy dependency on goods and services from foreign countries like China shows reshoring may be easier said than done. Researchers at Govini, a decision science company…
Medtech has really stepped up this year to respond to medical device shortages brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite these impressive efforts, there remains a growing list of medical device shortages. FDA maintains a publicly-available, up-to-date list of the medical…
The United States must secure the benefits of a globalized economy while protecting itself from systemic shocks and supporting the economic renewal of middle-class communities. Over the past two decades, the American middle class has faced a surge of import…
The COVID pandemic has led the U.S. industrial sector to take a hard look at the efficiencies and cost-effectiveness of operations and supply chains. While production improvements can be addressed by implementing process improvements, updating infrastructure, upgrading IT platforms, and…
SmarTech Analysis has published a new report on the state of metal 3D printing service bureaus dubbed “The Market for Metal Additive Manufacturing Services: 2020-2029.” The report illustrates the current picture of the metal additive manufacturing (AM) service market and projects…