Skilled Worker Shortage

November 24, 2014

In spite of the relatively high unemployment level (5.9% last month), there are many manufacturing firms that are struggling to find skilled workers.  In several cases, manufacturers can’t increase capacity or build market share because of the shortage of skilled labor. For many decades, the United States has focused on college education for a generation […]

Read the full article →

The Curse of Business Bureaucracy

October 27, 2014

There are many in the business world who would insist that a collection of managers is necessary to manage a company.  While this theory may be true in principle, it can get out of control.  Managers have a bad habit of justifying their existence by holding meetings, sending e-mails and asking for more subordinates to […]

Read the full article →

Labor Shortage & Unemployment

September 23, 2014

Recently a little known statistic was released and showed the relationship between job openings and unemployment.  The Beveridge Curve is a classic economic measure of the employment situation.  It shows on its Y-axis the vacancy rate as a percent of the labor force.  The X-axis shows the unemployment rate in percent.  This relationship is one […]

Read the full article →

APICS Training Classes in September

August 18, 2014

The APICS Piedmont Triad Chapter in Greensboro, NC is offering training sessions to enable professionals in the Production and Inventory Control and Supply Chain fields to obtain APICS certification. These certifications are excellent ways to boost your career, open doors to new job opportunities and improve your skills. Classes are offered for Master Planning of […]

Read the full article →

Inventory Management – Some Basics That Will Save You Money

August 14, 2014

Many times we get so involved in the daily problems of a business that we lose sight of the big picture.  “Can’t see the forest for the trees.”  I want to take this opportunity to look at some basic principles of inventory management.  The purpose is to help you re-focus on the central role of […]

Read the full article →

Evaluating Your Operations for a New ERP System

July 10, 2014

In the last e-bulletin we looked at the symptoms of operational problems.  Many of these problems are centered on the dissemination and collection of operations data.  A computer system can be a major asset in data management and conducting repetitive tasks.  However, we must stress, again, that an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system will not […]

Read the full article →

So You Think You Might Need an ERP System

June 2, 2014

There are times in the life of every manager when he begins to think there has to be a better way to accomplish the daily production and inventory control activities in his company. Many managers look to the computer for solutions to their problems. It is easy to imagine a computer system that provides answers […]

Read the full article →

Back to Basics with Inventory

June 2, 2014

The APICS chapter (the Piedmont Triad chapter) in the Greensboro- Winston- Salem area has an active schedule of workshops for manufacturing devotees. Starting on June 5 they are conducting a series of four 4-hour Thursday afternoon workshops. I would strong encourage these courses for two types of manufacturing individuals: 1. The practitioner who is seeking […]

Read the full article →

Supply Chain Challenges and Solution

May 5, 2014

Over the past ten years there has been a major effort in the manufacturing world to streamline corporate supply chains. The goal of these efforts has been to improve quality, speed delivery times from vendors, reduce inventory and respond more quickly to customer requirements and new product development. These are all laudable goals and many […]

Read the full article →

US Senate Quality and Productivity Award Program (SPQA)

May 2, 2014

The U.S. Senate Quality and Productivity Award Program (SPQA) will be holding the Western Regional Criteria training at Blue Ridge Community College in Weyer’s Cave, VA on June 10-11.  BRCC is located on I-81 between Staunton and Harrisonsburg (approximately 90 miles from Roanoke.  The registration for this training can be made at www.spqa-va.org.  The SPQA […]

Read the full article →

← Previous Entries

Next Entries →