Can pure velocity reshape the supply chain and move the productivity curve? Inspired by the whoosh of a racing Maserati on the autobahn, long-time advanced manufacturer David Burns explores how our obsession with speed, combined with digital manufacturing, might be the golden ticket to reshore, strengthen supply chains, and accelerate productivity.

HM Manufacturing, a manufacturer of power transmission components discusses response to supply chain disruptions with Crain’s Chicago Business. Customer relationships and talent curation are top priority.

The manufacturing industry has the potential to reap many benefits from Model-Based Definition (MBD) practices, such as time and cost savings and improved quality. Before stepping into MBD, it’s important for parts makers to avoid common roadblocks and prepare people for a culture shift.

With more than 40 years of manufacturing technology experience, AMT Senior Advisor Dave Burns believes that dynamic digital manufacturing technologies form a framework for success. Here, he shares a true story of how 3D printing changed the supply game and freed up one million dollars of in Work-in-Progress.

Last month, President Biden issued an Executive Order to assess America’s supply chain and four classes of products where American manufacturers rely on imports. AMT VP Tim Shinbara is encouraged by the common language legislators and industry are speaking.

What are favorable conditions for manufacturing businesses? The answer hits close to home. Read highlights from a new study that ranks the United States fifth among 16 other major manufacturing exporting nations. With high labor costs, find out how low secondary costs boost America’s standing. 

During IMTS Network week, Trenton Forging and Die-Tech & Engineering were recognized as recipients of the 2020 National Metalworking Reshoring Award. The award honors companies competing—and winning—in a global marketplace. 

Tap into sourcing solutions, resources, and tools to meet today’s challenges. As OEMs and suppliers work to fulfill orders with strong market fluctuations, knowing how to navigate supply chain disruptions is key to competitiveness.

Paul Ericksen writes one of the best-read monthly columns for IndustryWeek. He draws on his decades of supply chain experience, sharing some eye-popping facts in this “top 10” column.

OPTIMIZE = Optimize operations. Purchase locally. Train your staff. Invest in new technology. Monitor efficiency. Innovate. Zoom calls. Execute on the data. An expert with 40 years of experience in the machine tool industry shares his thoughts on improving competitiveness.

Options for rethinking a supply chain approach include lean, agile, or a combination of the two, sometimes called “leagile.” Here’s a quick introduction to all three, plus a stress test to help spot supply chain vulnerability.

We’re surviving tariffs, trade wars, and COVID—by the time the next disruption inevitably strikes, will you have created a more resilient supply chain? Options for rethinking your approach include lean, agile, or a combination of the two sometimes called “leagile.”

Lean principles, lean math and taking the long view. In Part 1 of a two-part conversation with Jim Womack, father of the lean movement, IMTS reviews the state of the U.S. supply chain, discusses JIT vs. MRP, media hype and solutions for our chronic unpreparedness for disruptions.

In Part 2 of a conversation with Jim Womack, the father of the lean movement, we discusses the origins of “lean math,” the reshoring movement, the tragedy of short-term thinking and shares some success stories of leaders who have seen the light.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed a lack of adaptability, flexibility, and resilience in meeting the demand for critical goods, materials, and production equipment in the United States. As it became clear that the United States, over a period of years, had decided to buy, and not build, items that were suddenly critical supplies, equipment builders and manufacturing supply chain management were thrust into public view after having long been in the shadows.

Supply chains have evolved as an efficient way to source raw materials and parts from the most cost-effective global sources for the manufacture of final products. To date, they have not focused on resiliency, visibility, or redundancy; instead, the goal has been to deliver speed and quality at the lowest cost.

The supply chain disruptions caused by COVID-19 may have appeared unexpected and sudden, but they are the result of decades of decision-making that led to key parts of the North American manufacturing supply chain being offshored. Often, those decisions made sense. It is profitable for American companies to lower their labor costs and decrease their regulatory burden; but in doing so, many became over-reliant on foreign suppliers, and the supply chain buckled under this recent pressure. The weaknesses in the supply chain are likely to widen and threaten the American industrial base unless action is taken.

Tier 1 companies are relying on transformative technologies to get through the pandemic and navigate their future. Familiarize yourself with these accessible assets and learn how to strengthen your own operations and be a part of rebuilding the supply chain.

IMTS is different this year, and not just because of COVID-19 and its impact on supply chains. In the era of standard manufacturing technology, conversations between providers and customers are focused on the classic “Ps” of marketing:  product, price, performance, people, promotion, and place. Digital manufacturing technology changed that paradigm. As the IMTS community comes together through the IMTS Network and IMTS spark, IMTS suggests participants absorb information within the framework of “3 Es.”

The United States is consistently ranked as the top destination for foreign direct investment. A major portion of that investment is in the manufacturing sector. As the world responds to the pandemic by adopting more nationalist policies and deglobization accelerates, the inflow of FDI is expected to significantly decrease. 

To avoid disruptions in production, more companies are taking a cue from Walmart and Amazon. They are using Vendor Managed Inventory or outsourcing inventory for someone else to manage to ensure the right product goes to the right person at the right time.