Manufacturing Business Technology

• Safety in numbers: Software vendor forms supply chain risk management council
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 30, 2008
  Manufacturers across most industries see the same issues as posing the biggest risks to their supply chains. That’s the conclusion drawn so far from research conducted by analyst firm Enterprise Applications Consulting on behalf of New Momentum, a software vendor that specializes in supply chain risk management solutions.
  
  
• A silver lining: DOL projects manufacturing job losses to slow this decade
  
  Frank O Smith, senior contributing editor, January 30, 2008
  The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) updated its 10-year job outlook in early December with prognostications that 1.5 million jobs will be lost in manufacturing between 2006 and 2016. The silver lining is that the decline is half of the three million manufacturing jobs lost in the previous decade.
  
• SOA integration: Accenture launches Innovation Centre for Oracle in Europe
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 29, 2008
  Many organizations have successfully completed small-scale service-oriented architecture (SOA) pilot projects, but not without a number of business management challenges that must be addressed before wider-scale adoption can be started. To that end, Accenture says its newly launched Innovation Centre for Oracle will be a European hub for joint business development surrounding Oracle applications.
  
• Skills shortage: IT services vendors compete for U.K. SAP services market share
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 29, 2008
  As SAP pursues a growth strategy through existing and new accounts, the U.K. market is seeing a rising demand for SAP services. Identifying major opportunities in this space, which is further fuelled by the lack of related IT skills, leading IT services players are ramping up their SAP capabilities.
  
• Outsourcing for success: Managed services partnership lets Italian manufacturer focus on growth
  
  Malcolm Wheatley, senior contributing editor, Povolaro di Dueville, Italy, January 29, 2008
  Compared to North America, European manufacturers are sometimes slow to see the merits of the wholesale outsourcing of their IT infrastructures. But specialty pump manufacturer Askoll Group has done just that—outsourcing to Hewlett-Packard the responsibility for server and desktop hardware provision, software integration, maintenance, operations, and even some of its IT consulting needs.
  
• ARC reports: ABB tops process automation market share worldwide
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 29, 2008
  Globalization is driving process manufacturers to improve plant performance in ways that would be inconceivable without modern process automation systems and business processes.
  
• Transportation management: Oracle links transit applications with EnterpriseOne
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 28, 2008
  Oracle has integrated its Transportation Management solution with its JD Edwards EnterpriseOne software suite. Oracle officials say this linkage will allow customers to minimize costs and gain control of transportation and logistics operations while eliminating inefficient and redundant processes.
  
• The next stage: IBM unveils Web 2.0 platform
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 28, 2008
  IBM launched its new range of Web 2.0 and collaboration tools to enable enterprise mashups and social software, and help clients improve agility and speed decision-making for an increasingly virtual, global workforce.
  
• Software test drive: Aravo offers free trial of on-demand supplier management solution
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 28, 2008
  Aravo Solutions, a provider of on-demand Supplier Information Management (SIM) software, is allowing up to five five users within a buyer company to test its product with up to 2,000 suppliers for a period of 90 days.
  
• Non-tagging fee: Wal-Mart to charge suppliers for not using RFID
  
  Datamonitor NewsWire, January 28, 2008
    Apparently frustrated by suppliers’ slowness in complying with its edict to put RFID tags on pallets sent to its distribution centers, Wal-Mart says it will start charging suppliers $2.00 for each pallet arriving at its Sam's Club warehouse outlet distribution center in Texas without an RFID tag.
  
• ILS Technology accepted into IBM SOA specialty program
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 28, 2008
   ILS Technology’s deviceWISE 2.0 platform will integrate with IBM software and strategy for SOA.
  
• Visiprise teams with Tata for SAP "perfect plant" initiative
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 28, 2008
  Visiprise and Tata Consultancy Services will work in collaboration with SAP AG to help manufacturing customers achieve the "perfect plant," including giving discrete manufacturers a manufacturing execution system (MES) to enable a tightly integrated technology ecosystem.
  
• HVAC specialist taps TDCI product configurator for guided-selling gains
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 28, 2008
  DRI-STEEM, which designs and builds industrial and commercial humidification systems, will use TDCI’s BuyDesign Guided Selling and Configuration software to enhance Web-based system specification capabilities for HVAC engineers, and streamline Web-based quoting capabilities for the company’s network of manufacturer’s representatives.
  
• Descartes routing solutions gain more mapping
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 28, 2008
  Descartes Systems Group, a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) logistics solutions provider, recently launched enhanced route management solutions with extensive location-based service (LBS) capabilities.
  
• A different approach: RFID integrators need to start understanding business processes
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 23, 2008
  Only a couple of years ago, companies specializing in RFID integration services could succeed by offering specialized knowledge of how RFID technology worked—or in some cases didn’t work. Today, RFID works well out of the box, and according to a new study from ABI Research, it is time for RFID integrators to think about repositioning themselves.
  
• The right mix: Juice maker finds recipe for business growth with process-oriented ERP system
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 23, 2008
  Juice Harvest, a San Bernardino, Calif.-based maker of fresh juices, cut fruit, and vegetables, is reporting better lot traceability and improved costing accuracy after adopting an ERP system tailored for food & beverage manufacturers. 
  
• Growth curve: EMS providers learning to make more than high-tech products
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 23, 2008
  Electronics manufacturing services (EMS) companies are poised to expand beyond their traditional roles of making consumer electronics, telecommunications, and automotive products.
  
• Working together: IBM and SAP to develop first joint software product
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 23, 2008
  IBM and SAP have announced plans to launch their first joint software product. Code-named "Atlantic," the solution will integrate IBM Lotus Notes software with the SAP business suite. This agreement between IBM and SAP is similar to one that SAP entered with Microsoft in 2006 that produced a set of applications under the banner Duet.
  
• Straight talk: The truth about collaboration in product development
  
  Sidney Hill, Jr., executive editor, January 23, 2008
    Nearly everyone involved in designing and building products regularly collaborates with colleagues, yet very few are satisfied with the results of those efforts. That’s one of many surprising facts uncovered in a survey on manufacturers’ information exchange and collaboration habits conducted by Harris Interactive.
  
• Deloitte A&D Alert: Optimize supply chain or be left behind
  
  By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff, January 21, 2008
  New information from Deloitte Consulting indicates the risk of failure for A&D companies is "real and significant" if companies don't implement changes now to ensure the longevity and success of their supply chains.