Manufacturing Business Technology - February 1, 2007

For Nick Butkovich, the use of a lightweight data format to share designs boils down to faster product development and better protection of intellectual property. Butkovich, an IT project manager with Bradrock Industries, a Des Plaines, Ill.-based manufacturer of custom plastic moldings and tooling, says lightweight viewing of 3D data speeds up design reviews versus previous proc...

• Applications and Services
• Reality trumps perfection
• Design Collaboration
• VoIP enhances product development
• Global Production
• Manufacturers face choices in initiating multiplant planning
• Research and Development
• Engineers search for better response times to requests for information
• Supply Chain Execution
• Delivery time remains big question for shipping; lack of dockside visibility deplored
• Supply Chain Roundup
• Testing can save millions in tracking assets
• The Global Economy
• Infor introduces cross-platform Web service

• Business Performance
• The overgeneralization is over
• Best Practices
• Closing in on world-class
• Business Process Management
• Trade platform cuts the paper-based tasks of financial processes down to size
• Global Markets
• Singapore development board credits prosperous island nation transformation to manufacturing
• Multivariable Testing
• Optimizing process performance is all in the math
• Outsourcing
• EquaTerra partnership with Microsoft brings visibility, governance to business process outsourcing endeavors
• SCOR Model
• Portal offers performance metrics
• Supply Chain Management
• "The system is down" seen as greatest threat to supply chain
• The Cost of Labor
• Survey: Manufacturers need help with workforce management

• Columnists
• Back Talk
• SAP introduces the non-upgrade
• Up Front
• East coast swing 2007

• Integration and Infrastructure
• Toward mobile problem-solving
• In brief
• Case-In-Point
• Cognizant serves up mainframe-to-Windows migration to foods supplier Schwan
• Data Protection
• Sun retools back-up and recovery process
• E-Ventures
• Intuit alliance with Google offers small businesses online opportunities
• RFID Roundup
• Mandates, supply chain security, anticounterfeiting to drive item-level tagging in 2007
• Supply Chain Security
• RFID pilot takes pharma data out into the supply chain
• Warehouse Automation
• Power equipment maker benefits from plant-floor wireless network
• Wireless Enablement
• QUALCOMM buys nPhase
• Wireless Solutions
• Study finally shows takeoff in wireless data applications market

• Special Report
• Microsoft and Partners
• A shared vision

• Views From The Front
• In brief
• Corporate
• Automation vendors team up with US-CERT
• Customer Management
• Companies chase success in after-sales services
• ERP Extensions
• It doesn't mean a thing if it isn't integrated
• Economic Indicators
• Exports show marked improvement in 2006, but growth expected to slow
• Executive Search
• Top talent gains greater control of its destiny; more career opportunities
• Human Resources
• Supply chain talent battle brews in China as manufacturers push out new "people programs"
• Information Technology
• Encryption key to endpoint data protection
• Operations
• Trends drive risk-management awareness
• Predictions Arise
• What you need to know about the top 2007 IT challenges
• Product Traceability
• Meeting compliance mandates requires a good look at the shop floor
• Project Execution
• Managing for uncertainty is key to open the best laid plans
• Strategic Sourcing
• Complexity, variability place tough demands on integrated global sourcing